Beer # 360 Mellifera, Trou du Diable

Beer # 360: Mellifera

Trou du Diable

Shawinigan, Quebec Canada
Independent Microbrewery
Blonde Saison with Honey
ABV 5.0 %  
Brown Glass Bottle 600 ml.
$5.80 (Canadian) At the LCBO

Twitter @TrouduDiable

Down to Trou du Diable again, I was good to see them at FUNKFEST This year, I hope they can make that a regular occurrence. In that vein, we have another Sour Saison from them. This time fermented with honey added into the wort. I have to say, I was really drawn in by the label. The artwork is a scream. I love the play on the traditional "Our Lady of X" with the Sugar skull masks. She is correctly called: Notre Dame Des Luchadores,' (Our Lady of Crazy Mexican Wrestlers). And it does belie the beer you find in the bottle... irreverent and heavenly.

Onto our Tasting...

Pours a slightly cloudy, dark honey-gold, with a massive light-tan honey coloured head made up small to large bubbles. Bubbles grow rapidly in size and then dissipate. Nose is decidedly spicy, with biscuity wheat notes, good hints of yeast and fruity, floral honey. The first sip gives us some cheek pricking Brettanomyces.The attack starts us off with very refreshing acidic tones that slowly morph through the wheat notes and balances the subtle sweetness of the honey. Fruity hints of Honeycrisp apple, orange, and lemon. Aeration gives us sour lemon zest, tongue biting prickles of acid, hints of clove and tasty bread.

 Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional 


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


Final Thoughts:

This is a fantastic sour. Easy drinking and refreshing. Great for the patio when it's sunny or inside when it's raining (more likely this year). Pick up one of Our Lady's if you can you will love it.


Cheers

CJT

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FUNKFEST 2017 Live Blog # 1

FUNKFEST 2017

Sawdust City Brewery

Gravenhurst, Ontario

Due to technical difficulties, yesterday's live blog could not be posted until today. Sorry about that, but please enjoy.

Saison du Parc

Beers 318 to 325

Beer: Saison du Parc

Brewery:  Brasserie Dieu du Ciel!
Location: St-Jérôme Quebec, Canada

Style; Sour Farmhouse Ale
ABV: 4.2%
Colour: clear gold large white head
Aroma: bright citrus and wheat
Thoughts: floral wheaty citrus spicy light sourness... bright and tasty

Funk Factor: 5/6

Solstice d'ete Framboise

Beer: Solstice d'Eté Framboise 

Brewery: Brasserie Dieu du Ciel!
Location:  St-Jérôme Quebec, Canada

Style: Sour Berliner Weisse with Raspberries
ABV: 5.9%
Colour: cherry red
Aroma: Explosion of fresh raspberries
Thoughts: sweet and tart raspberry coulis... sour candy finish

La Tripe a Trois Lambicus

Funk Factor: 6/6

Beer: La Tripe a Trois Lambicus (Édition Spcéciale Houblonnée)

Brewery: À la Fut
Location: Saint-Tite, Quebec, Canada

Style: Belgian Tripel
ABV: 8.8%
Colour: Dark gold
Aroma: Sweet, wheat, sour cherry
Thoughts: Sour, smoky, creamy, slight medicinal hops

Session IPA Sure

Funk Factor: 4/6

Beer: Session IPA Sure

Brewery: À la Fut
Location: Saint-Tite, Quebec, Canada

Style; Sour IPA
ABV:3.5 % IBU 50
Colour: tinny gold
Aroma: fruity sweet sour tropical fruit
Thoughts: thin watery too much lemon pith slightly off flavours

Funk Factor: 2/6

Willow Gose

Beer: Willow Gose

Brewery: Trou du Diable
Location: Shawinigan, Quebec, Canada

Style: Sour Gose
ABV: 4%
Colour: brassy gold
Aroma: Mineral, grassy
Thoughts: Tart lemonade. Mineral, salt so refreshing... like gatorade for beer drinkers

Dulcis Succubus

Funk Factor: 6/6

Beer: Dulcis Succubus

Brewery: Trou du Diable
Location: Shawinigan, Quebec, Canada

Style: Sour Ale
ABV: 7%
Colour: Cloudy gold 
Aroma: Tart, grainy, and citrus
Thoughts: Sweet and sour candy, spice and wheat. With hints of sour orange.

Funk Factor: 5/6

Beer: Double Pale Ale Americane Sure

Double Pale Ale Americaine Sure

Brewery: À la Fut
Location: Saint-Tite, Quebec, Canada

Style; Sour Pale Ale, American
ABV: 7.5 %
Colour: Cloudy, brass-gold

Aroma: Fruity, woody, sour, nutty
Thoughts: Lots of fruit and wood with pale ale notes some spice and a creeping sour on the finish. Some slight off flavour
Funk Factor: 4/6

Berlinerweisse

Beer: Berliner Weisse

Brewery: Les Trois Mousquetaires
Location: Brassard, Quebec, Canada

Style: Sour Berliner Weisse
ABV: 3.0 % IBU 5
Colour: Cloudy, creamy, tan
Aroma: Tart, woody, sour cherry
Thoughts: very sour woody tart sour cherries tastes very alive like yeast is still active reminds me of chicha

Funk Factor: 4/6

The 2-4 Beers of Christmas Day 14: Flying Monkeys' Greetings from Canada

# 262 Greetings from Canada: Coast to Coastless
Collaboration with Garrison Brewing Company, Trou du Diable Brewing Company and Phillips Beer


Flying Monkeys Craft Brewery

Barrie, Ontario, Canada
Independent Microbrewery
Imperial ESB 7.6% ABV 
Brown Glass Bottle 750 ml.
$9.95 (Canadian) At the LCBO

Twitter: @FlyingMonkeys

Garrison Brewing Company Halifax, Nova Scotia @GarrisonBrewing

Trou du Diable Shawinigan, Quebec @troududiable

Philips Beer Victoria, British Columbia @philipsbeer


Flying Monkeys is a brewery that always comes up with some great beers. This is quite possibly the most ambitious Collab I have heard of, four breweries from across Canada one from each coast and two from the middle. ESB or Extra Special Bitter is one of my favourite styles, (It's the Brit in me) so I gravitate towards them anytime I see one. This also being an Imperial ESB it fits in nicely with our stronger darker beers that tend to make an appearance on my 2-4 Beers of Christmas list.

Onto the ESB...


Pours a deep chestnut colour with a tan head made up of small bubbles. Aroma is a heady mix of dark malt sugars and licorice some turbinado sugar and caramel/burnt sugar. First sip is biscuits sweet molasses and some black tea. slightly spicy with hints of wood. and menthol. Aeration gives us some light breadiness with more sweetness and a hint of aromatic hops. Finish is slightly astringent, and bitter hops.

Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional 


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

Final Thoughts:

A lovely complex little beer. I perhaps tasted it a bit too cold. I feel that were it slightly warmer the full range of flavours would have been more evident. If you try this pull it from your fridge and let it warm for 20 minutes to half an hour before consuming, your patience will be rewarded.

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Beer # 113 Trou du Diable La Morsure

La Morsure 

Micro-Brasserie Le Trou Du Diable

Shawinigan, Quebec, Canada
Independent
Unfiltered APA 6.5% ABV Brown Glass Bottle 600 ml
$6.35 (Canadian) At LCBO 
Twitter: @troududiable

Named after a reputedly bottomless whirlpool on the Saint-Maurice River, Le Trou du Diable (the Devil's Hole) is  small brewery in the city of Shawinigan in the Province of Quebec. They first gained fame outside of their home province for naming one of their beers "The Shawinigan Handshake." Which, if you are not familiar with Canadian history, refers to an incident where former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien was being obstructed by a protester in Hull Quebec, he grabbed the man in a choke hold and threw him to the ground. Jean Chrétien was of course born and raised in Shawinigan. I am very happy to say I met the Prime Minister and shook the very big hand in question. ( and am very very glad it was never wrapped around my neck I can tell you!) Tonight's beer is, maybe not as steeped in history as that but it does have another unusual name. La Morsure, for those who don't speak French, translates as "The Bite."

Onto the tasting... allons-y!


Pale cloudy gold in colour with a large fluffy white head made up of small to medium sized bubbles. Cloudy with a touch of yeast sediment. Aroma is very green, lots of vegetation, herbs and light fruit essences, grape and apple. First sip is very light and smooth almost creamy. There is some sugar and a slight hint of caramel, but the malt is not the major player here. The yeast is the key in this beer. Just like a wine that has been left on the "lees" the leftover yeast in the bottle has softened the beer, making it smooth and creamy with a mouthfeel similar to a chardonnay that has undergone Malo-Lactic Fermentation. There is a light pine scent and mild herbaceous taste from the hops which balances out the creaminess of the yeast. Aeration tweaks the senses with grapefruit, a touch of pine, and a tingle of the high alcohol on the tongue.

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:  6/6 EXCEPTIONAL

Final Thoughts:

This is an excellent beer. Very unusual in that one does not often see an APA treated... with such reserve. Usually brewers try to cram so many different hops in and play with the steeping and boiling times to maximise intense hoppiness. Bold fruits and searing pine seem to be the way to go with the APA. However, here the the brewer has brought out the softer side of the APA. It is almost the demur feminine side of the beer.

Cheers

CJT


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