Howe Sound Brewing - S2S Series - Riesling IPA

Overview:

Located in Squamish, BC, Howe Sound Brewing can trace their roots back to the grandfather of North American craft beer, John Mitchell, who started brewing in Horseshoe Bay back in 1982.  The second in Howe Sound's Sea-to-Sky series, their Riesling IPA boasts two kinds of hops, including one variety from Australia. It takes it's name from the addition of riesling grape must, imparting a slight white wine character to the nose and taste. 

Aroma:

Quite sweet smelling, grape aromas come through nicely, very bright. Hints of tropical fruit also waft up from the glass, due to the use of Galaxy hops.

Appearance:

Bright, slightly cloudy golden colour. Long lingering thin head.

Flavour:

The first thing I noticed was the bitter finish this beer has, sharp and lingering. Tropical fruit flavours rush over your tongue, but the beer is largely still, I would've liked a bit more carbonation. The grape must makes itself apparent on the second sip, as you start to notice the slight grapiness this beer has, then it becomes the only thing you really notice once you've found it. 

Overall:

An easy drinking IPA, with a modest 6% ABV. I would've liked a bit more carbonation, I think more effervescence would do this beer a world of good. The grape must started off subtle, then became a bit of a distraction as the beer started to warm up. Drink this one cold.

Rating:

6/10. 

Food Pairing:

Indian cuisine, I feel a nice mango chutney would pair nicely with this. Or a dessert, perhaps a fruit platter to complement the tropical fruit notes. A nice rich creme brulee or fruit pie would also be good.
 

Four Winds Brewing Co. - Vexillum Imperial IPA

OVERVIEW:

Four Winds Brewing Co. is located in Delta, BC, along River Road, somewhat unceremoniously located in the midst of an industrial park. They recently were crowned Best Brewery in Canada at the Canadian Beer Awards. Vexillum is an imperial ipa, clocking in at a potent 9%, but drinking like it's only 5%.

AROMA:

Incredibly fruity, with loads of tropical fruits wafting up from the glass, reminiscent of papaya and melon.

APPEARANCE:

Light amber colour, with a nice light head. Slightly hazy.  

FLAVOUR:

Again, incredibly fruity. Amazing hop profile, with lots of tropical fruit flavours. A well balanced malt backbone give it some body, and it's a fairly carbonated beer, giving it a nice effervescent quality on the tongue.

OVERALL:

A strong beer that drinks way lighter than it's high ABV would indicate. Goes down almost dangerously easy. One of my favourite Double IPA's around.

RATING:

9/10. I'd rate it higher if it were easier to find, and came out more than once a year. *wink wink nudge nudge Four Winds*

FOOD PAIRING:
 

I had this last night with a big bowl of spicy noodles and scallops, and I gotta say, it was a pretty great pairing. IPA's usually go well with spicy foods, and this one is no exception.

Yellow Dog Brewing Co. - Shake A Paw Smoked Porter

Overview:

Yellow Dog Brewing Co. Shake A Paw Smoked Porter is brewed in Port Moody, and as can be seen on the can, is brewed to a relatively sessionable 5% ABV, and a very mild 24 IBUs. Coming in a tallboy can of 473ml makes this the perfect size for a single beer. I picked this up at Firefly Liquor Store in Maple Ridge, but it can be found in stores across the lower mainland, or at the brewery itself.

Aroma:

Strong smokiness, reminiscent of a nice smoked ham or a good smokey bacon, hints of brown sugar and chocolate.

Appearance:

Dark, dark brown, with a cream coloured head that dissipates quickly, very lightly carbonated.  

Flavour:

First thing you notice is the smoke, followed by traditional porter flavours of roasted malts, chocolate and coffee. Very light mouthfeel, this is a fairly thin porter with extremely light carbonation. A lot of smoked beers are too one dimensional, and oversmoked, but this one is very nicely balanced, with just the right amount of smokiness to it.

Overall:

An easy drinking smoked porter, Shake A Paw is a beer I'll often order at the brewery or when I see it on tap. Lots of flavour and perfectly balanced levels of smoke make this a smooth, approachable beer that's always popular.

Rating:

7/10. A great example of the style, that unfortunately loses points due to it's low carbonation and thinness. If you ever get the chance to try this beer on a nitro draft line, I highly encourage you to do so, it brings much more body to it, and leaves a long, lingering head. Nitro, I feel, was the way this beer was meant to be served.

Food Pairing:

This beer would pair quite nicely with a nice side of ribs, or any other smoky BBQ meat. Would also pair nicely with a rich chocolate cake or similar heavy dessert.
 

Purpose, plus a rambling statement about Untappd

Here I'll be reviewing various craft beers and other craft beverages I've had recently. 

Ordinarily I do this through Untappd, but I've started to find the format of Untappd to be somewhat limiting. If you don't know what Untappd is, it's an app available for iOS and Android, and a website that almost no one ever visits. It lets you check in your beers, assign a rating out of 5 Stars (and portions thereof) and take tasting notes up to a small character limit, ala Twitter. You can also push your check-ins to other social platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter. You can add friends, and see what they're drinking as well, and also see where they're drinking, if they decide to check-in at a location. 

It's great for sharing and for making my drinking at home a bit more social. Plus, the creators have found a way to game-ify drinking, rewarding you for checking in your brews with badges and ranks, a system with it's own peculiar set of merits and drawbacks. 

But enough about an app from a company that isn't paying me to tell you about it. Let's talk about the review format.

I'll be following the standard review format, used by, well, pretty much everyone. I'll discuss Appearance, Aroma, and Flavour, as well as give an overall impression and a rating out of ten. I'll also likely give a recommendation for food pairings as well. 

I won't be reviewing every beer I drink, but I'll make a point of reviewing the ones I think are particularly worthy of review - either because they're exemplary good beers, or incredibly bad beers, and probably a few in between those extremes as well.

- Ryan