The Bar Towel

Belgian wrote:

sofakingdrunk wrote:Bellwoods-witch shark. It's been probably 5 years or so since I've had a witchshark, so I may be wrong....but this seems like a completely different recipe than it used to be. Tasty as all hell, lots of orange pith, mango and passionfruit. Much more of a neipa now I think.

Yes they ditched the previous style which I thought wasn't much to my liking - it certainly got more hop-hazy but also they improved the hop flavors quite a bit, so that now it's way less harshly peppery on the palate. I never used to drink WitchShark and sort of gave up on it but now it's top-shelf stuff, along with SunSplit and Greenwood and a few others. 'Tasty as hell now' as you say - very different ale.

I also tried a sample of WS right next to the Stone City Ales' own new NE-DIPA which while good is not as tweaked as Bellwoods has got WS right now. SCA does work on their beers over time and are worth re-visiting.

I havnt had a chance to try anything from Stone City.....I havnt got out that way in years. Never seen them on tap anywhere around these parts, either. I hear good things though.

Masterplan wrote:The Deschutes Fresh Squeezed IPA is still okay, but IMO is beyond best before. Hardly "fresh squeezed" and a bit more malt forward. It's also a fair bit darker than I expected.

Those same thoughts passed through my mind when I tried my first bottle.

I don't want to discourage American breweries from sending their beer here (god knows the LCBO itself is enough of a deterrent), but IPAs are probably not the best choice. Doubly so if you are on the opposite side of the continent from us. My observation has been that they (the LCBO) are always going to dick around and hold onto the first shipment for way too long. After they're done with their initial testing, subsequent stock usually ends up on the shelves a bit faster.

Stone city has a sour on at Barhop 1 right now. They're on there and Volo from time to time.

I like the Deschutes IPA! It's kind of a throwback for me, maybe a bit like a really good batch of Tankhouse back when Mill Street was more on our wagging BarTowel tongues. Maybe a slightly fresher more open hop profile but that good malty thing to it.
Not all beers have to conform to one stylistic ideal I suppose! Some days I would LOVE to knock back a Church Key-brewed Scotch Irish IPA as I remember it oh, maybe ten or more years ago. Resinous and dry and amazing, an epiphany at a time when Ontario breweries were still afraid to make some beers with character.

At Milos' Craft Beer Emporium - Rounds 1 & 2:
Halo Subterfuge (draft)
Sawdust City Tepache (draft)
Bellwoods Monogamy Bru-1 (draft)
St-Ambroise Baltic Porter (draft)
Forked River Curses! (draft)

Over the week at home:
Great Lakes Electric Circus Tropical Pale Ale
St-Ambroise Black IPA

Belgian wrote: Some days I would LOVE to knock back a Church Key-brewed Scotch Irish IPA as I remember it oh, maybe ten or more years ago. Resinous and dry and amazing...

I hear you. While I appreciate a well-made NE-style IPA, the haze craze is starting to wear thin on me, and I'm not loving the fact that some breweries have seemingly abandoned the West Coast style altogether. Granted, we still have great interpretations like Octopus, Lone Pine, Instigator, Kapow, etc. available. But I'd like to see a bit more return to balance when it comes to embracing the WC style.

Belgian wrote:I like the Deschutes IPA! It's kind of a throwback for me, maybe a bit like a really good batch of Tankhouse back when Mill Street was more on our wagging BarTowel tongues. Maybe a slightly fresher more open hop profile but that good malty thing to it.
Not all beers have to conform to one stylistic ideal I suppose! Some days I would LOVE to knock back a Church Key-brewed Scotch Irish IPA as I remember it oh, maybe ten or more years ago. Resinous and dry and amazing, an epiphany at a time when Ontario breweries were still afraid to make some beers with character.

Agreed, it's refreshing to find an IPA that actually features the malt component. I actually picked up a can of the freshly organic certified Tankhouse out of curiosity, so I think I'll do a side-by-side. I have fond memories of Tankhouse, but felt it hasn't been the same since Mill Street was taken over. I like to revisit it whenever there's a format change though, hoping it tastes a bit more like I remembered.

Stopped by Muddy York the other weekend and sampled a few beers, gotta say I've really been enjoying them as of late.

Infinite Zest Belgian Wit IPA with Lime Zest: Gotta say I didn't think I'd like this since I a) more often than not don't enjoy "Belgian IPAs" and b) don't like lime in beer (bad memories of shitty Corona with lime wedges perhaps?) That said this one turned out to be my favourite, super refreshing with a good balance between the elements. Lime zest added a nice palate cleansing note to the finish.

Cervesia Saison: I found the base Cervesia to be a bit underwhelming and didn't love the soursop, but the guava was fantastic. Took on a totally different dimension, I'd struggle to even call it a saison at that point (honestly some of these fruit beers are really just glorified beer cocktails), but it came together nicely.

Fox Hunter Dry-Hopped Sour: Really nice, not too sour with a bit of funkiness and floral dry hopped aroma. Great patio refresher.

Gaslight Helles: A solid helles which is also now available at LCBO. Side Launch Mountain Lager remains my favourite local helles, but this one comes close.

Stormglass IPA: A solid hazy IPA, tropical and citrus fruit. Has a bit of a detectable bitterness too though(!), so it occupies a nice middle ground.

Boneshaker. The various Collective Arts IPA and DIPA offerings over the past year caused me to take my eye off this one. Still, a solid, go to IPA

Dupont Avec les Bons Voeux ('With Best Wishes') 2016 bottling, fragrant and silky. These 375mls are ageing well.

This is more than best wishes, this is some actual love from Dupont.
I put a 750ml of the Saison in the fridge as well, that should be a cellar champ.

Allagash Map 40. One of the nicest aromas I have ever experienced in a beer. Allagash can do wrong.

Ballast Point High West Victory at Sea. Another great one. Bonus points for the 12 ounce bottle.

Belgian wrote:I put a 750ml of Saison Dupont in the fridge as well, that should be a cellar champ.

Its a 2012 on the cork! From a box of them that has not moved since I set it down in a cool space. Carbonation is vibrant, flavor has mellowed nicely.



I'd like to age some 750mls of Duvel again, it's a cellar candidate that comes out very wine-like. Plus that insane large tulip glass deserves to get used for its namesake beer now and again.

A 2014 Orval. There are imitators but none equal to this Trappist.



The gorgeous big rocky head, a gradually mellowing bitterness, layered subtle flavors of fruit and spice.

When the heck are we getting more of this fine elixir, pretty please?

At Bellwoods Hafis Road:
Bellwoods & Aslin Beer Jelly Master (draft)

Over the week at home:
Deschutes Fresh Squeezed IPA
Smithavens Kellerbier
Storm Stayed Maelstrom
Bellwoods Blueberry MOG
Bellwoods Runes - Simcoe & Sterling

Belgian wrote:A 2014 Orval. There are imitators but none equal to this Trappist.

The gorgeous big rocky head, a gradually mellowing bitterness, layered subtle flavors of fruit and spice.

When the heck are we getting more of this fine elixir, pretty please?

Hopefully soon. I'm just going to suck it up and buy 1 - 2 cases next time since I've run out of my last haul. I had a 2014 myself not too long ago, it was excellent.

Rodenbach 2015 Vintage Oak Aged Ale (Barrel No. 195). Lovely balsamic, mineral and oak undertones.

Collective Arts Life in the Clouds, my go-to Ontario IPA under ten bucks.