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We have a trivia question in order to register to prevent bots. If you have any issues with answering, contact us at cass@bartowel.com for help.
Introducing Light Mode! If you would like a Bar Towel social experience that isn't the traditional blue, you can now select Light Mode. Go to the User Control Panel and then Board Preferences, and select "Day Drinking" (Light Mode) from the My Board Style drop-down menu. You can always switch back to "Night Drinking" (Dark Mode). Enjoy!
Crazy Beard Wild Apple Ale...
- groulxsome
- Posts: 470
- Joined: Mon Apr 30, 2012 3:24 pm
Crazy Beard Wild Apple Ale...
I... don't know what to say. Often I find misplaced ill will toward contract breweries, with blame being placed upon them for having more sizzle than steak. And I get that. There are some really pretty cans out there containing some pretty uninspired beer. But there are some interesting ones too, so I've never really been a contract hater.
This, however, is perhaps the logical conclusion of the contract brewing movement. A woodsman's beard overflows over the front of the can with a tiny placard (adorned with tiny maple leafs!) reading "Wild Apple Ale." The back features a story about "crazy beard" hunting for the ambrosia of perfect apples growing in a northern orchard and brewing, only for the hardiest of those in his company, a single barrel of ale to reward their efforts.
Great! So an ale then? Or what about those apples...? Wait, it said it was wild! What about that barrel... do they mean a real barrel? Perhaps a Graff, even?!
Rolling to the least adorned part of the can shows the nasty truth... "carbonated water, malt, sugar, citric acid, maltic acid, natural flavour, sodium citrate, neutral spirit, caramel." While in the LCBO this resides along side the growing cohort of big brand ciders, it's not a cider... or an ale... or wild... it's a fizzy alcopop. In small text the can reads "alcoholic malt beverage."
It tastes about as the ingredients would let you think... something like a more caramel-forward Jones "Green Apple Soda" with a splash of vodka. There is no aspartame, but it has some of that chemical finish associated with it. I have no idea the final sugar count in the product, but it would seem to be considerable. I imagine a night of several of these would make their poor underage target demo ill in several ways.
It is manufactured in Oakville by Sage Mixology who have the same street address as the black hole of Ontario beer, Trafalgar Brewery/Meadery/Distillery. I suppose this is a natural evolution as Trafalgar evolves into a distillery. With so much extra unaged spirits lying around, they can be bathed in chemicals and sold off as this industrial waste.
I suppose it's also fitting that Trafalgar is involved in the logical conclusion of contract brewing. All marketing flare (they even have the great Gery Dee signed on!) around a waste by-product of a fledgling distillery and a soda pop. To be fair, had they called this a hard soda I'd never be writing this, but using "wild apple ale" to conflate it with either beer or cider... well, that's not crazy, that's just sleazy.
This, however, is perhaps the logical conclusion of the contract brewing movement. A woodsman's beard overflows over the front of the can with a tiny placard (adorned with tiny maple leafs!) reading "Wild Apple Ale." The back features a story about "crazy beard" hunting for the ambrosia of perfect apples growing in a northern orchard and brewing, only for the hardiest of those in his company, a single barrel of ale to reward their efforts.
Great! So an ale then? Or what about those apples...? Wait, it said it was wild! What about that barrel... do they mean a real barrel? Perhaps a Graff, even?!
Rolling to the least adorned part of the can shows the nasty truth... "carbonated water, malt, sugar, citric acid, maltic acid, natural flavour, sodium citrate, neutral spirit, caramel." While in the LCBO this resides along side the growing cohort of big brand ciders, it's not a cider... or an ale... or wild... it's a fizzy alcopop. In small text the can reads "alcoholic malt beverage."
It tastes about as the ingredients would let you think... something like a more caramel-forward Jones "Green Apple Soda" with a splash of vodka. There is no aspartame, but it has some of that chemical finish associated with it. I have no idea the final sugar count in the product, but it would seem to be considerable. I imagine a night of several of these would make their poor underage target demo ill in several ways.
It is manufactured in Oakville by Sage Mixology who have the same street address as the black hole of Ontario beer, Trafalgar Brewery/Meadery/Distillery. I suppose this is a natural evolution as Trafalgar evolves into a distillery. With so much extra unaged spirits lying around, they can be bathed in chemicals and sold off as this industrial waste.
I suppose it's also fitting that Trafalgar is involved in the logical conclusion of contract brewing. All marketing flare (they even have the great Gery Dee signed on!) around a waste by-product of a fledgling distillery and a soda pop. To be fair, had they called this a hard soda I'd never be writing this, but using "wild apple ale" to conflate it with either beer or cider... well, that's not crazy, that's just sleazy.
Last edited by groulxsome on Fri Mar 06, 2015 10:02 am, edited 1 time in total.
- groulxsome
- Posts: 470
- Joined: Mon Apr 30, 2012 3:24 pm
Clearly I'm part of the Crazy Beard Media Team, since there is a tasting (and signing!) of cans today at QQ:
Did you peel back the label to see if they're still using William's cider cans?
http://bensbeerblog.com/2015/03/02/what ... azy-beard/
http://bensbeerblog.com/2015/03/02/what ... azy-beard/
- groulxsome
- Posts: 470
- Joined: Mon Apr 30, 2012 3:24 pm
I kinda want to keep the can intact for posterity. I also like how in the article the claim that:walz22 wrote:Did you peel back the label to see if they're still using William's cider cans?
http://bensbeerblog.com/2015/03/02/what ... azy-beard/
Um... no kidding buddy. I also suspect that the "our alcohol content is derived from malted barley" is referring to the fact that they are using Trafalgar's white whiskey as their neutral spirit. I'm just going to go drink this nice Canadian Club... I tossed a hop leaf in it... it's an ale!We now understand that “Ale” could [be] misleading but our alcohol content is derived from malted barley which does contain hop extract.
Is Trafalgar actually distilling or is this speculation? I hadn't heard about this before.groulxsome wrote: It is manufactured in Oakville by Sage Mixology who have the same street address as the black hole of Ontario beer, Trafalgar Brewery/Meadery/Distillery. I suppose this is a natural evolution as Trafalgar evolves into a distillery. With so much extra unaged spirits lying around, they can be bathed in chemicals and sold off as this industrial waste.
- darmokandjalad
- Posts: 262
- Joined: Fri Jan 11, 2013 8:04 pm
- Location: Ridgetown, ON
It's true. They even ditched their old website name (alesandmeads.com), for obvious reasons.JerCraigs wrote:Is Trafalgar actually distilling or is this speculation? I hadn't heard about this before.groulxsome wrote: It is manufactured in Oakville by Sage Mixology who have the same street address as the black hole of Ontario beer, Trafalgar Brewery/Meadery/Distillery. I suppose this is a natural evolution as Trafalgar evolves into a distillery. With so much extra unaged spirits lying around, they can be bathed in chemicals and sold off as this industrial waste.
Behold: Trafalgar Moonshine
- groulxsome
- Posts: 470
- Joined: Mon Apr 30, 2012 3:24 pm
Dave Jameson from Trafalgar was on the Ontario Craft Brewers podcast last fall talking about it (and the folly of even thinking about aging beer and other gripes). It's worth a listen.JerCraigs wrote:Is Trafalgar actually distilling or is this speculation? I hadn't heard about this before.groulxsome wrote: It is manufactured in Oakville by Sage Mixology who have the same street address as the black hole of Ontario beer, Trafalgar Brewery/Meadery/Distillery. I suppose this is a natural evolution as Trafalgar evolves into a distillery. With so much extra unaged spirits lying around, they can be bathed in chemicals and sold off as this industrial waste.
http://www.ontariocraftbrewers.com/blog ... connection
http://www.ontariocraftbrewers.com/blog ... -halloween
Few people realize that when you malt barley, there are hops present as a result. You get chocolate hops when the barley is kilned for a good long while.groulxsome wrote:We now understand that “Ale” could [be] misleading but our alcohol content is derived from malted barley which does contain hop extract.
In Beerum Veritas