Beer # 160 Double Dead Elephant Railway City

Double Dead Elephant Imperial IPA

Railway City Brewery

Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Independent
Imperial IPA 7.5 % ABV Brown Glass Bottle 750 ml.
$10.95 (Canadian) At the LCBO
Twitter: @railwaycity

This takes me back to my first post. I started my blog way back in 2010 in November with Railway City's Dead Elephant ale. Here it is, four years later and I am getting around to posting about it's stronger brother the Double Dead Elephant... Sadly I have had bad experiences with Railway City... I have not found any beer of theirs I really liked, and for a time I have avoided them. That has changed now.  I tried this beer a couple of weeks ago and I was happily surprised to find a well rounded good tasting beer. The beer still references the long ago incident where Jumbo the elephant of the Barnum and Bailey Circus, was killed on a railway track outside of St. Thomas, Ontario where the brewery is now located. I detail the full story in my older blog post about Dead Elephant here. 

Without further monkeying around, if you will direct your attention to the centre ring, I give you tonight's tasting...

Dark gold in colour with hints of brown. Fluffy off white head made up of mostly small bubbles. Aroma is spicy light malt and caramel, and a hint of fruit. First sip is malt and raisin. The middle is chock full of green and bitter herbs, leaving a tart and tangy feeling on the tongue. Citrus zest and some orange pith. Grassy, some hay, touch of spice and some caramel, and vanilla. Aeration brings out the alcohol and malty sugars.

Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional 

Cost: 5/6 PASS
Colour: 5/6 PASS
Beer Style: 5/6 PASS
Re-Order:  6/6 EXCEPTIONAL
Experience:  5/6 PASS

Final Thoughts:

A good solid beer from Railway city and certainly the best I have had from them. Lots of flavour and good complexity while still being balanced and not being overly hot from the extra alcohol. Get it while it is still on the shelves.

Cheers


CJT



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Beer # 1 Dead Elephant Ale, Railway City Brewing Co. Ontario

Well to start the whole thing off I go to St. Thomas Ontario, with a brewery I have only just heard of recently. Railway City Brewing Company. www.railwaycitybrewing.com

The first thing I notice of course is the label. It looks like something off of a Grateful Dead album cover (which to me seems like a great start!). It's a 500ml bottle of "Golden Pale Ale" according to the website. A slightly buzzy 6.5% ABV. I pour a half of a glass worth below...

Good colour, faint copper tinge very white head but it doesn't last nor does it give me the "spider-web lacing" promised by the website. A swirl and a sniff reveal a very sweet fruity and malt nose. Screams sugar, almost candy-like. First sip, notice the 6.5% alcohol right away, with a little bit of heat on the throat. Fruitiness continues through the attack, dissolving into bready notes on the finish. Aeration in the mouth gives a burst of alcohol with a grapey almost winey feel. Hopping is very mild. Website claims an IBU of 46.6, while hops are noticeable, they get lost in the sweetness.

Overall results: (Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional)

Taste: So-so
Cost: Pass ($3.50 at selected LCBO)
Drnkability: So-so
Colour: Pass
Beer Style: Fail
Re-order: Fail
Experience: Fail



Sorry Railway City This offering is a Fail... sad to start the blog off on a bad note. They have several more products that I am looking forward to reviewing hopefully they will be better.

CJT