Back to Edinburgh for another sample from Innis and Gunn's never-ending tickle trunk of barrel-aged beers. This version is an Imperial Stout aged in Tullamore Dew Irish Whiskey BarrelsI like stouts and I like Irish Whiskey... so this should be pretty good. Onto our beer.. Pours a dark chestnut with an off tan head. The aroma is malty Irish whiskey and tropical fruit. The first sip is whiskey and tropical fruit giving over to wood and smoke and char. Sandwiched in the middle is coconut with rum whiskey phenols. Aeration gives us some tobacco, smoke, pencil box, and wood shavings.
Cost: 5/6 PASS Colour: 5/6 PASS Beer Style: 5/6 PASS Re-Order: 5/6 PASS Experience: 5/6 PASS Christmas Cheer 5/6 PASS Final Thoughts: A very complex and a decent tasting beer. not a real standout but good enough to share one with someone special during the holidays. CJT Let's Stay "Social" Follow my adventures here @pintjockey The Pintjockey Online
Day four of the #2-4BeersofChristmas brings me to a city that I loved when I visited it: Edinburgh. Despite one of the more epic hangovers of my early beer drinking career (Guinness hangovers suck... Yes I was drinking an Irish beer in a Scottish city, there were other beers too, hence the hangover) Edinburgh sticks out in my mind as a gorgeous historic city with a fun nightlife (see hangover earlier...) The craft beer movement really didn't start up until after I visited (I went for the whisky...) I would have loved to hit a few of the now famous Scottish craft brewers. Alchemy is one of the newer craft brewers in Edinburgh to gain attention. Started in 2012 they produce an interesting array of beers for all tastes. I had a tough time finding the website info for Alchemy as there are actually three (that I could find) Alchemy Brewing Companies. One is in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada, one in Seattle, Washington, USA, and the last in Edinburgh. Alchemy in Scotland doesn't have an Instagram account and the twitter accounts for all three are almost identical. This is a double oatmeal imperial stout that was flavoured with Licorice and then aged in Côtes du Rhône wine barrels. Onto our tasting: Pours a slightly murky dark chestnut brown with a hint of a red tint. Pours a short off-tan head made up of tiny bubbles. The aroma is a malty liquorice all-sorts. Boozy and oaky with hints of red wine. The first sip is slightly syrupy with hot flashes of alcohol, molasses, and liquorice root. Lips are left quite sticky even after a few sips. Hints of roasted caramel. Aeration gives us a boozy, anisette and whiskey mix. Warming up the beer takes on an oatmeal sweetness mixed with molasses reminding me of horse feed.
Cost: 5/6 PASS Colour: 5/6 PASS Beer Style: 5/6 PASS Re-Order: 5/6 PASS Experience: 5/6 PASS Christmas Cheer 5/6 PASS Final Thoughts: This bottle actually took some age, I had bought it for a previous #2-4BeersofChristmas but didn't get around to it. I was not worried about the age as I was sure the high alcohol would protect it. I'm thinking that it even mellowed out a bit because I found the liquorice mild in comparison to the hefty malt flavours. Not really a fantastic beer but quite a decent one. I have checked and the beer is no longer being produced... so you will have to take my word for it. Cheers CJT Let's Stay "Social" Follow my adventures here
Fuller's is a pretty common British export in the LCBO, however, this is the first year I think I have seen this one (not sure). I've had a few beers by them and they make a decent product for a National/Macro Brewery. Nothing too exciting. But since this is the #2-4beersofChristmas I thought I would give this 10.7 % big boy a try, and quite frankly I enjoyed it. Onto our beer. Pours a very dark chocolate brown with a short but tight tan head made up of small bubbles. Aroma is chocolate and molasses with hints of liquorice and turbinado sugar. Faint wood, wisps of smoke and a brush of whiskey. First sip is blackstrap molasses, rich and warming with vanilla biscuit and liquorice. Faint sweet hum of horehound candy. A hint of dark green hops running through the middle aeration gives us some old leather smoke and ashes.
Cost: 5/6 PASS Colour: 5/6 PASS Beer Style: 5/6 PASS Re-Order: 5/6 PASS Experience: 5/6 PASS Christmas Cheer 5/6 PASS Final Thoughts: Russian Imperial stouts have had a bit of a renaissance lately They are butch, flavourful, and malty beers that you can sit and contemplate for a while. They go very well with food, and the alcohol content is high enough to merit sharing this with someone so you don't get too giggly with the Christmas spirit. This is a very workable Russian stout full of flavours and definitely has a good hit of alcohol. Give this one a shot if you can find it, it is quite enjoyable. CJT Let's Stay "Social" Follow my adventures here @pintjockey The Pintjockey Online
In the 1970's, In Toronto (as in other cities) there was a huge Punk movement that took over the clubs of the entertainment district. Strangely, Toronto was almost as influential as New York for churning out hard rocking, loud and entertaining bands. This beer pays homage to one of those bands, coincidentally named "The Ugly." This Belgian strong was done as a collab between Toronto's Henderson Brewing Company and Brewdog from Scotland, the latter of the two is most noted for their delicious "Punk IPA" which explains why they chose an iconic Toronto punk band to name their beer after.
The Ugly: Stranded in the Laneway of Love
I hadn't heard of The Ugly prior to this, but I read a bit about them and checked out their music on YouTube and I really like them... Give them a listen especially if you are an old Ramones fan like me. I've always wondered if I should incorporate more music into the blog. Maybe I should work up a list of my Top Ten Beer Drinking songs and pair them with beers... Hmmmm. Thoughts. Onto our beer. Pours a very dark chestnut almost black with tints of red. With a generous head made up of small reddish-brown bubbles. Aroma is very warming nutty and sweet. Very fruity with hints of brown sugar and smoke and charcoal. First sip is nutty and molasses. The body is light and fruity, hints of dried fruit and plums. There is a slight "bubbling" of effervescence on the tongue. Aeration brings out fruitiness, liquorice and spikes of alcohol. Has hints of chocolate and dried fruit.
Wonderful collab. Rich and flavourful, awesome aromas. I don't think it revs up the anarchist in me... But I could enjoy one or two of these by a fire, listening to some punk music (before I fall asleep in my chair...) If you can find it get it in you, and do yourself a favour... play The Ugly really loud while you sip it.
For interesting beers, one can always look to Innis and Gunn. The Scottish brewers tend to play with their beers, specialising in ageing beers in barrels and attempting unusual combinations. Each year there brew a beer for Canada Day which usually includes Canadian ingredients or Canadian Whiskey Barrels. This year, as it was Canada's 150th anniversary of Confederation they brewed the Maple and Thistle Rye ale to celebrate Scotland and Canada's long friendship. The beer was brewed with malted Canadian rye and then aged for 150 days in 150 Canadian Oak casks. When maturation was complete they added maple syrup and Scottish thistle before bottling.
The result is a very rich rye beer with deep herbal notes and a touch of sweetness. I was trying to get this one done for #Canadabeermonth but it got overlooked, so I wanted to make sure it got the attention it needed in this special year for Canada. Onto our beer.
Pours a dark chestnut with a generous tan head made up of small bubbles. Aroma is rye bread, sweet malt, some chestnut and hints of bitter greens. First sip gives us sweet honey/ maple syrup with notes of smoke. Rich rye bread and distinct herbaceousness. whisky is evident on the finish as is a light woodiness.Aeration brings out the taste of new oak, woody, whisky, malty, light caramel and vanilla.
Cost: 5/6 PASS Colour: 5/6 PASS Beer Style: 5/6 PASS Re-Order: 5/6 PASS Experience: 5/6 PASS Christmas Cheer 5/6 PASS Final Thoughts: Innis and Gunn always makes a solid beer, and this one is no exception. Well rounded very drinkable. (Possibly better in the summer when it was released...) These may be finally sold out or my still be in select LCBOs... You may have to hunt a bit, but it is worth the search. CJT Let's Stay "Social" Follow my adventures here @pintjockey The Pintjockey Online
Twitter:@SawdustCityBeer A brewery I had not heard of yet, but glad I have now. The Brewery is from the town of Inveralmond, in county Perth, Scotland. The third beer in their "Inspiration Series," This English style Porter is supposed to evoke the tastes of the 19th century when porter was the drink of choice for the hard working dockmen of the ports in the UK. Let's see how it does... Pours an inky black with a short off-tan head made up of small bubbles. Aroma is chocolate, coffee, tamarind,licorice molasses and deeply roasted malts. First sip is dark malty bread some burned sugar, deeply chocolate malts smoke and charcoal. mouthful is very light and refreshing , and despite the dark flavours the beer is sweet and light.aeration gives us smoky brandy notes with lots of charcoal and some ash. Finish is raisins and fruit. Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional
Cost: 5/6 PASS Colour: 5/6 PASS Beer Style: 6/6EXCEPTIONAL Re-Order: 5/6 PASS Experience: 5/6 PASS Christmas Cheer: 6/6 EXCEPTIONAL Final Thoughts: This is a stunning porter. Such a layered complexity, wonderful warming flavours. A great beer to just sit back and contemplate. I would suggest instead of milk... leave one of these out for Santa... you might get some better presents under the tree. Cheers CJT Follow me on Twitter: @pintjockey Like me on Facebook: Pint Jockey Online
Re-Order: 5/6 PASS
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