Separated at birth?

Tapsucker · Post by **Tapsucker** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 12:09 am

Much has been said about about Trafalgar and infected beers. I'm starting to think Les Trois Mousquetaires is the Quebec equivalent. I have had so many exploding bottles from these guys. Different beers, some sourced in Montreal, some at the LCBO.

There must be some sort of quality problem there. I had four bottles of their IPA that I brought back in January. Two geysered, one didn't. The fourth sat in my fridge until tonight. Even gingerly opening it over the sink made a mess.

During this period, two bottles of oktoberfest that have sat in my fridge for months (that shouldn't be that bad for them) also opened violently. Oh, and a keller last summer also blew on me. As far as I know, these beers are not bottle conditioned, so I'll take it as sloppy craftsmanship, not my storage.

Also some of these were corked and some were capped. I don't think it was the packaging.

It's a shame, the beers are good on tap, perhaps with a bartender to clean up the mess. Only some of the bottles were drinkable.

TheSevenDuffs · Post by **TheSevenDuffs** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 8:51 am

That comparison is extremely unfair to LTM.

markaberrant · Post by **markaberrant** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 9:17 am

I got slammed for slamming infected LTM Doppelbock and Maibock last spring.

rejtable · Post by **rejtable** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 9:23 am

I've had dozens of theirs and never one problem.

JeffPorter · Post by **JeffPorter** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 9:36 am

Are they infected? Or is that just their yeast?

rejtable · Post by **rejtable** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 9:48 am

Do they even bottle an IPA? Never seen it. They have an American Pale Ale, do you mean that? Not that it really matters. Just curious.

MatttthewGeorge · Post by **MatttthewGeorge** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 10:01 am

I've never had any issue with LTM.

I used to get regular bottles & big bottles when I lived in Alberta with no problem. I brought back bottles from AB to ON when I moved, and those had no problem. I've had other peoples bottles they got in QC with no problems. I got a private order case a couple of years ago from Keep6 with no problems. Every bottle I've had from the recent LCBO released had no problem.

I'm not saying you haven't had issues, but I am pointing out that I've been buying/consuming from this brewery for 5+ years, from multiple points of purchase, without a single issue. I think the Trafalgar comparison is WAY off base.

boney · Post by **boney** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 11:47 am

I have had several infected bottles in years past. Way less than Trafalgar, but more than just an isolated bottle. All were bought in Calgary from 2010-2012. I have not bought any this year from the LCBO, so I can't comment on those. From my experience, the bad bottles do seem to come in waves a few bottles/labels at a time and then clear up for quite a while in between.

Tapsucker · Post by **Tapsucker** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 11:58 am

rejtable wrote:Do they even bottle an IPA? Never seen it. They have an American Pale Ale, do you mean that? Not that it really matters. Just curious.

Yes, sorry APA.

Tapsucker · Post by **Tapsucker** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 12:03 pm

Well, yes, the comparison with Trafalgar was a bit harsh. I'll take that back.

If it was a one-off situation, I probably would not have posted, but it has happened to me over several batches and different beers. Since I don't buy that much of their beer, it's a pretty high percentage and points to something being done wrong in my book.

Also, since they were several different styles, I would rule out their yeast.

cfrancis · Post by **cfrancis** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 1:59 pm

I've also had many LTM and never a problem, although I probably haven't had any in the last year or so.

jprime · Post by **jprime** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 2:29 pm

Drank a lot of LTM over the past many years. Never had a bad one of any of their styles. None infected, no gushers.

Belgian · Post by **Belgian** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 2:33 pm

Horseshoes for me I guess. Some guys have ll the luck with bottle volcanoes!

And Traf**gar doesn't even seem to care or respond, so yes - another league entirely.

markaberrant · Post by **markaberrant** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 9:38 pm

It was multiple cases of Maibock and Doppelbock this spring, every bottle was bad, would have been sourced via Alberta. The Maibock was hazy, gushed upon opening, and was peppery like a saison. The Doppelbock tasted like pickled cabbage.

Derek · Post by **Derek** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 11:01 pm

I haven't had many LTM, but I've never had a problem. The 'issues' are too common though. As great as they are, I passed them over the last time I was at the Central City Liquor store... it was just too pricie to take the chance when there's other good stuff on the shelf.

I have really liked their lagers though, including the Baltic Porter!