The Bar Towel

now availible at the LCBO:

500ml bottle from the LCBO. bright clear orange with a lasting off white head that laces beautifuly. pungent hoppy nose, bright with a full on citrus blast. the flavour is a few notches below the nose. well constructed and super sessionable pale ale. black creek makes really good beer.

matt7215 wrote:now availible at the LCBO:

500ml bottle from the LCBO. bright clear orange with a lasting off white head that laces beautifuly. pungent hoppy nose, bright with a full on citrus blast. the flavour is a few notches below the nose. well constructed and super sessionable pale ale. black creek makes really good beer.

Had a couple bottles of this last night and completely agree. Talked a bit about it in the "what are you drinking now" thread, but most people probably missed it. I wrote "This Black Creek Pale Ale is wonderful. Fine, fresh, pungent hop character on the nose, good mix of caramel malt and resiny hop flavour. Medium bitter finish. Not quite unlike Hoptical. A very nice surprise addition to LCBO shelves. I'll definitely buy more. Black Creek's two bottled offerings have impressed me greatly thus far." I'd also add there is a tannic, black tea bitterness in the finish. I'll be buying lots of this. Agreed, Matt, great brewery.

It used to be that if did a search for "Trafalgar" on the LCBO website, the Black Creek Porter would show up. I assumed Trafalgar was at least bottling this beer and perhaps brewing it under license. But the Black Creek Porter does not show up on this search any more. Does anyone know if Black Creek is bottling their own beer. By the way, I very much liked the Porter and look forward to getting some of the Pale Ale.

My understanding has been both are brewed at Trafalgar under arrangement with the latter. Can't explain though why those search results come up as described. Wherever brewed and bottled, both the porter and pale ale in bottles are excellent. I would encourage those who like them to try the same products in growlers from the tiny brewery on the heritage site. They are truly remarkable especially if kept a little while and allowed to condition in the growler.

Gary

Just tried it, and must get accustomed to expecting good things from this brewery, another great beer. Very similar to Hoptical for me aswell, maybe a little brighter and less bitter. Still can't believe this comes out of Trafalgar; shows that they're facility is fully capable of making good beer, so there must be something else at foot.
I've been wanting to check out the Pioneer Village location for a while now. Last time I tried to go on St.Patty's day they said it was closed until late April or May, so perhaps call ahead if your heading over anytime soon.

114 bottles of the Black Creek Pale in Owen Sound, but none in Thornhill, Maple or Richmond Hill. Looks like its a trip up to Aurora later in the week

I just finished a bottle, thought it was another good beer from Black Creek, but to me it seemed more bitter than others were describing it, about at the limit of what I'd enjoy. However, I'm not a fan of the hop-bomb kinda beers.

If y'all haven't tried this one, you're missing out! It's a very well constructed APA. Lotsa mid-addition hops. No faults that I could find. Hopefully, this becomes a regular member of the LC lineup.

I agree - I'm very glad to see so much quality brew in Ontario. There are great things happening here. I'm definitely glad to see the industry maturing so rapidly. This was a solid, fresh and citrusy APA. The bitterness was almost into IPA territory although as the bottles age, I suspect that edge will fade pretty quickly. I hope to see it regularly, although it's all gone from the two LCBOs closest to me.

Just had a bottle of this, and wow, it's a great little beer! Lots of citrus, a bit of lychee and tropical fruit, long finish. If the quality stays up on this one, I'll be drinking the hell out of it this summer.

This actually didn't do much for me. I enjoyed their porter, I'm a hop-head, and yet this one still didn't work for me. The bitterness was kind of abrasive and unpleasant. And I love abrasive and prickly hops. Weird.

JesseM wrote:This actually didn't do much for me. I enjoyed their porter, I'm a hop-head, and yet this one still didn't work for me. The bitterness was kind of abrasive and unpleasant. And I love abrasive and prickly hops. Weird.

Did you get the bottle from King & William?? Cause I felt the same way about it.

Uptown? Yeah, that's where I got it. Bad batch maybe? Mishandled shipment? It just wasn't that good to be honest.

I agree (and I didn't get mine in K-W). It is bitter, but the hop flavour is, as you say, abrasive (at least to my palate). I did not find it to be citrus flavoured at all. I wonder what hops are used in this beer.

I had a few bottles 2 weeks ago, and I enjoyed it. I found it to be a tad bit mineraly as well. Wonder if the off taste is due to water treatment or not. Overall an excellent brew that I will purchase again next time I see some bottles.