The Bar Towel

Craig wrote:Lake Effect is back in the bottle shop right now, actually.

I bought it in cans at the brewery yesterday.

Will Lake a Effect be in Lobos? East ender here so little change I'll get out to GLB anytime soon

At Milos' and some gatherings in London:
Left Field Grandstand Hoppy Wheat (draft)
Forked River Hansel & Brettel (draft)
Great Lakes Brewing Harry Porter (can)
St. Bernardus Witbier (bottle)
St. Bernardus Prior 8 (bottle)

mgmoney wrote:Will Lake a Effect be in Lobos? East ender here so little change I'll get out to GLB anytime soon

Yeah it's supposed to make its way to the LCBO again eventually. I imagine it'll be in bottles though.

Over the last couple days:
Great Lakes Brewing Lake Effect IPA - drinking ridiculous right now (best batch so far?)
Against The Grain The Brown Note - tasty, well-balanced U.S. brown ale with a really funny label
Rickard's Red IPA - surprisingly decent WC hop character, thin-bodied mouthfeel

Viven Porter is a pleasant surprise. I haven't had many smoked porters, but the smoke is nice and the base beer is great.

How does Innocente's Charcoal Porter compare?

Having and Orval AND a Trois Pistoles. Some things just don't get any better.

cratez wrote:Over the last couple days:
Great Lakes Brewing Lake Effect IPA - drinking ridiculous right now (best batch so far?)
Against The Grain The Brown Note - tasty, well-balanced U.S. brown ale with a really funny label
Rickard's Red IPA - surprisingly decent WC hop character, thin-bodied mouthfeel

Second the Lake Effect sentiments. Had one earlier tonight. Fantastic.

Drinking Cantillon Kriek now. Have concluded I prefer it fresh to aged.

Over the past few evenings:
St ambroise oatmeal stout
Side launch pale ale-tasty as always
Tank house-I'm certain the recipe has changed. I haven't had it for a while but it's different for sure
Great Lakes winter ale-believe it or not this is the first time I've ever had this. Its always been one of those beers that I just overlook for some reason. I thought that it's a pretty great winter warmer. Will definitely buy again.
Right now a 2014 fullers vintage from last years Xmas release that's drinking fantastic. Much prefer it to the 2013 and 12 versions

Drinking Anchor Liberty, Anchor Steam, SNPA and Pilsner Urquell over the last week.

I compared fresh Rhyme & Reason, Cruiser Pale Ale, SNPA and Liberty Ale, and Liberty (bottled October 2015) came out the clear victor. It isn't as fruity as the Ontario pales, but it has a refreshing bitterness and mouth puckering dryness that sets it above our examples. This beer is to be reckoned with, and it has a mouthfeel that is almost Belgian in its creaminess and head retention.

Belgian wrote:Having and Orval AND a Trois Pistoles. Some things just don't get any better.

How do you find the Trois Pistoles compares to Westmalle Dubbel, Rochefort 8 or Chimay Blue?

I find that the Unibroue yeast signature leaves an impression of something weird in the aroma. I haven't had Unibroue now for a couple years after I bought and aged a Trois Pistoles six pack and had a bottle every 6 months or so.

AugustusRex wrote:How do you find the Trois Pistoles compares to Westmalle Dubbel, Rochefort 8 or Chimay Blue?

All different! Westmalle Dubbel and Rochefort 8 have a dry earthiness in common, but still two very different flavor profiles.

Trois Pistoles is probably the closest thing to Chimay Bleue, and in ways it's better, but Bleue also has its own thing going on. You can cook up a mean stew with Pistoles or Maudite, while the Chimay is a bit subtle for that. Pistoles should age pretty gracefully for 7 or 8 years, getting smoother and expressing the portwine-like notes.

Trois Pistoles I just opened is not aged so it's a bit sweet and bubblegummy, doesn't seem as intense and complex as earlier bottlings I recall but has pretty good aroma. I suppose some of the dark fruit sweetness is comparable with Rochefort.

I have the sense all these Trappist-y beers are a bit materials-and-labor intensive & may thus be under threat of slowly being dumbed-down or even disappearing. We should enjoy the truly great ones (or great batches) while we can!

Belgian wrote:

AugustusRex wrote:How do you find the Trois Pistoles compares to Westmalle Dubbel, Rochefort 8 or Chimay Blue?

All different! Westmalle Dubbel and Rochefort 8 have a dry earthiness in common, but still two very different flavor profiles.

Trois Pistoles is probably the closest thing to Chimay Bleue, and in ways it's better, but Bleue also has its own thing going on. You can cook up a mean stew with Pistoles or Maudite, while the Chimay is a bit subtle for that. Pistoles should age pretty gracefully for 7 or 8 years, getting smoother and expressing the portwine-like notes.

Trois Pistoles I just opened is not aged so it's a bit sweet and bubblegummy, doesn't seem as intense and complex as earlier bottlings I recall but has pretty good aroma. I suppose some of the dark fruit sweetness is comparable with Rochefort.

I have the sense all these Trappist-y beers are a bit materials-and-labor intensive & may thus be under threat of slowly being dumbed-down or even disappearing. We should enjoy the truly great ones (or great batches) while we can!

Thanks for the detailed response. I'll give the Trois Pistoles another shot. It's been a long time.

Finally got around this weekend to cracking one of the Gregorius Trappists that I picked up earlier this year and I thought it was excellent. Complex on the nose and palate with the usual assortment of dried fruit flavours for a trappist quad quad/dark strong and I thought that the honey was a nice touch - it adds some intrigue and subtle sweetness without approach the level of say Kasteel Donker (I actually enjoy Kasteel quite a bit but it's so sweet that I think Gregorius would be easier to drink in large volume). Very full bodied with a warming hint of booze in the finish. It reminded me most of Rochefort 10 if I had to pick a traditional Belgian comparable. Happy to have a couple more in the cellar for later consumption!

Hofbräu Original
Hofbräu Original
Orval

At the EBGA Freeze Your Cask Off winter ale festival planning session last night, had the chance to try:

French Quarter Temptress by Lakewood Brewing Company

Black Toasted Malt Stout by Tuatara Brewery - Fantastic looking bottle!

Four Swords Cabernet Barrel Aged 2015 by Deep Ellum Brewing Company