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Discuss beer travel and regional information, including the best bars and places to check out around in Canada and around the world, and other chat that is not specific to Ontario.
SteelbackGuy wrote:So basically making an IIPA with EKG is like making a real craft beer with corn? Why bother? It can't be the same. Why hide behind the name?
hehe, i dunno about that analogy... EKG isn't a sub-standard ingredient that doesn't belong in beer at all, it's just not the right one for the style. i was trying to think of an analogy that works while writing that last reply, but nothing came to mind...
i guess a better example would be trying to make an english bitter and hopping it with centennial and chinook. decidedly non-english ingredients in an english style is pretty much the same as what they're doing here.
oh, but to see Sid's reaction when you handed him a pint of said bitter...
SteelbackGuy wrote:So basically making an IIPA with EKG is like making a real craft beer with corn? Why bother? It can't be the same. Why hide behind the name?
hehe, i dunno about that analogy... EKG isn't a sub-standard ingredient that doesn't belong in beer at all, it's just not the right one for the style. i was trying to think of an analogy that works while writing that last reply, but nothing came to mind...
i guess a better example would be trying to make an english bitter and hopping it with centennial and chinook. decidedly non-english ingredients in an english style is pretty much the same as what they're doing here.
oh, but to see Sid's reaction when you handed him a pint of said bitter...
Thanks Russ. That makes sense.
You'd think seasoned brewers would kniow better?
If you`re reading this, there`s a 15% chance you`ve got a significant drinking problem. Get it fixed, get recovered!
The post on BA said they were dry hopping with Cascade leaf as well as EKG.
So the EKG is doubly wrong. I doubt much if any character will come through as the EKG's will likely be overpowered by the big US hops. Seems like a waste.
Regardless of the hop mix I'm excited to compare this against other Canadian IIPA's. Just heard that it should start trickiling into Calgary, if not other areas of Alberta, by the middle of this upcoming week, so I should have my thought on it soon-ish.
Loki definitely isn't a massive hop monster, but it's got some interesting things going on.
It pours a fairly dark orange-amber, with tons of sediment and a decent beige head. If it was dry hopped with EKG, you'd never know it. The aroma is a rather unique fruit salad mix, with grapefruit, mango and lychee upfront, with burnt caramel notes coming out towards the end. Flavour is the reverse of the aroma, with tons of caramel and sweet, bready notes to start, transitioning into apricot and then pine as a moderate amount of bitterness finally kicks in. The finish was kind of fuggled (fuggly?), which I presume was from the Williamette hops. I think the malt profile needs to be toned down a bit to showcase the hops a little better, but it does indeed end up being a fairly rewarding mix between US and British styles.
Finally got to try this beer yesterday. Had a nice tulip of it served from a tap at Beer Bros in Regina.
This is a great beer, but it is not what you expect when you think "double IPA." Awesome earthy Goldings, some carmel up front (though not sweet), with well attenuated dry biscuity malt (maris otter-esque) in the finish, along with suitable hop bitterness. The American hops are not assertive, but add citrus complexity to the Goldings.
I would classify it as an outstanding English IPA or English/US hybrid IPA, and well worth seeking out. I enjoyed it immensely.
Perhaps it's better on tap. I had a six pack of it this past week and it was a mess. All kinds of particulate floating in the glass (more than I think I've ever seen), bizarre and unwelcome mixture of flavours...not off but perhaps ill conceived. Harsh finish with too much alcohol and funkiness. I had high expectations but sadly this one didn't come close.
I don't always piss in a bottle but when I do...I prefer to call it Dos Equis.
It may deserve it's own thread, but Paddock Wood just released an awesome Bock. Outstanding actually. Though to keep you scratching your head, they called it a Maibock...
