February
15
Talking Valentine’s Day Beers on CBC Montreal’s Radio Noon with Shawn Apel
Click below to listen to the radio spot
February
15
Follow Beerism!
Beerism on Instagram
Glitter in beer. I know, it’s ridiculous. However pouring out Love Dust was so much fun to watch. @baospodcast teamed up with @echosessionales and @broadwaymicro to create a Session Kveik NEIPA (DDH’ed with Sabro) for Valentine’s Day, whose bright colour comes solely from food-grade glitter. Look out for it in the coming weeks
The nose is rich, carrying lots of Sabro-induced coconut and banana, as well as general tropical citrus fruits. The aromas are further layered against some spicy kveik yeast components. The body is impressive for under 4%. The palate is rich and velvety with lots of bright citrus and coconut-like flavours. Kveik is subtle, adding more fruitiness to the rest of the profile alongside that quintessential spiciness that’s hard to describe. Banana and mango meet grapefruit and some tangerine rinds. Love Dust really goes down so easy, and I have to admit, it’s a ton of fun to drink. #glitterbeer #lovedust #baos #beerism #echosessionales
A few weeks back, the south west of Montreal was filled with extremely cold beer geeks who lined up in front of @messorembracitorium in order to procure two collaborative cans - one from the almighty @bbascanada and the other from the increasingly sought after @woodbrothersbrewing2018
Of the two, I got my hands on “Green et Flatte”, the BCC collab, a double IPA brewed with Citra and two South African hop varieties: African Queen and Southern Passion.
The nose carried bright aromas of mango and lots of dank hop funk. It’s a touch grassy as well, with aromas of candied fruit in the background. The palate is similar, delivering some earthy hop funk, followed by lots of tropical fruits - papaya and Mango in particular. It has a slight green bitterness and an astringent finish, but the roundness of the beer balances the whole profile quite well. Overall, this was the first time either brewery experimented with South African hops, which carried certain challenges. However, I quite dig the end result, and I mean, experimenting is what collabs are all about.
@thirdmoonbeer is getting closer and closer to opening their doors out in Milton, Ontario. Right here is a test batch of their Sabro NEIPA with lactose.
The nose is candied lemon, ripe pineapple and that of quintessential coconut and banana Sabro thing. It’s bright, rich, and aromatically intense. Crazy inviting - I want to dive right in.
The palate is more citrus forward, delivering straight orange juice that carries a creamsicle vibe. Layers of tangerine, banana chips, coconut, and slight bitter grapefruit rinds make up the profile. The body is crazy luscious and silky, making it smooth and just so easy to down. The lactose is there, adding a touch of icing sugar-like sweetness, making this a dessert beer of sorts. That said, I legitimately love this beer, it’s bright and aggressively zesty without coming off even remotely green or astringent. This beer might just turn me #teamlactose... @bebothoughts #thirdmoonbrewing #beerism #lactoseipa
Right here is Noirceur Impériale, the latest canned creation from @biereboreale - a cacao and cayenne infused imperial stout! The aromas are big coffee up front, with lots of dark chocolate. There are earthy aromas alongside general dark roasted delicious.
On the palate it’s It’s rich and luscious, carrying big dark chocolate mixed with sharp espress-like roastiness. The dark roasted malts add hints of black licorish, while the heat from the cayenne layers itself perfectly between each sip. The spiciness here is perfect for my wimpy palate, providing a solid burn, but nothing intense at all. I highly recommend this tasty bad-boy. #biereboreale #noirceurimperiale #beerism #imperialstout @gabdulong
Last Saturday, the kind and generous people at @woodbrothersbrewing2018 invited several of their best customers as well as some beer media to an awesome potluck event at their beautiful brewery. The welcoming atmosphere felt like being in someone’s home. We consumed ample haze, and truly embodied the #beerisfun mentality that they put forth. I was more than impressed with the slew of juice they had pouring, and I’ll be making an effort to head out there as much as I can.
I had a chance to grab “Willy Nelson” on the way out. The nose is big papaya, with citrus everywhere, and lots of dank hop funk. Aromatics of grapefruit rinds meet candied lemon alongside hints of spruce. It’s super dank on the palate, carrying loads of fresh cut grass. There are all kinds of tropical delights here, delivering papaya and pineapple in particular, and finishing with some grapefruit pithiness. It’s juicy, but very dry, ending with a touch of astringency. Delicious stuff. #woodbrothersbrewingcompany #beerism #beerisfun
A little late on this one given that it was released a few months back, but it was certainly consumed fresh! This is Above the Nuages from @messorembracitorium , a double dry hopped IPA with Vic Secret and Mosaic, alongside some lactose.
The nose is a tropical paradise. Mango, pineapple and passion fruit blast through with intense aromatics. The palate matches, delivering some bright fruity hop layers that carry an slight ashy burn in the finish. There was a huge mango and passion fruit thing happening. It was three weeks old, but was still surprisingly sharp. The lactose helps round things out though, providing a rich mouthfeel and just hints of sweetness. That said it’s dry as fuck and I wouldn’t have spotted the lactose without reading it.
Gold Star from @ktownbrew started as a barleywine “…brewed with a substantial quantity of unpasteurized organic apple must from Mont St-Hilaire and aged 12 months in a Jack Daniel’s Whiskey Barrel and then blended with a younger Barleywine.”
Wow, the nose here is tremendously unique. Fresh and bright green apple meets rich caramel malts and some serious vanilla notes from the Jack Daniel’s. The whole thing dances well together in a way that’s hard to describe.
The palate is equally intriguing, delivering an almost blended cider/Barleywine flavour profile. That said, despite the 8%, this isn’t particularly rich, making for a smooth, easy drinking experience, all things considered. Up front, just like on the nose you get that juicy green apple presence, followed by a rich malt base that is quickly cut by some tannic oak layers (that also provide serious vanilla). The carbonation is soft and subtle, helping to compliment the mouthfeel.
Although I dig this, overall I like the idea more than the end result. The apple pommace made sense, but I find the heavy “green apple” flavour overpowers things a touch too much for my tastes. That said, the barrel character was so on point here that I’d love to see a different take on this one some day. #kahnawake #kahnawakebrewingcompany #beerism #bil #barleywine
With 2019 coming to a close, It's that time again for me to deliver my list of favorite Quebec beers of the year! Although having some pretty rare offerings, I also chose several more widely accessible examples that really impressed me. The first time I wrote a top list-type post was largely to poke fun at all the awful articles floating around social media at the time – but mostly I just wanted to cash in on the sweet, sweet click-bait action. And although these lists shouldn’t be taken too seriously, I do have to admit that it’s a lot of fun putting one together each year.
I would love your feedback on this. What would you add? What would you remove? Read the full article at www.beerism.ca (link in bio). Featuring beers from: @brasserieauval @bbascanada @messorembracitorium @dunhambrasserie @robinbierenaturelle @microlecastor @brasseriechamplibre @brasserieharricana @4originesbeer @microbrasserie_a_la_fut @bieresavantgarde @ktownbrew @voxpopulimicrobrasserie #topbeers2019 #quebecbeer #beerism
Right here is Minotaur from @ktownbrew - an NEIPA.
The nose is crazy bright, with huge tropical notes. Zesty grapefruit pith and intense tangerine meet mango and general hoppy dank fun. On the palate it bright and sharp, carrying just enough hop burn to cut through everything while still being fun and palatable. It’s juicy to the max, carrying intense citrus and tropical delights all around. The body is big, but not particularly luscious (although this doesn’t bother me). Rich layers of mango, papaya and grapefruit blast my palate, yet it’s still balanced and easy to drink. What an exceptional NEIPA! One of the best I’ve had in Quebec. #kahnawake #kahnawakebrewingcompany #beerism #neipa #haze
For many today is the start of Christmas vacation, and it wouldn’t surprise me if those still holding one of these monsters from @bbascanada might crack one open tonight. What was your favourite of these five? I think Barrel-Aged Guerre et Paix is one of the most special beer last I’ve had this year, but those other crazy nutty stouts are giving it a run for its money. #pastrystout #gatineauistrending #bascanada #brasseriedubascanada #beerism
Categories
Beerism
- Beerism’s Top 13 New Quebec beers of 2019!
- Kahnawake Brewing Co. Continues Their “Building Bridges” Series with Another Bottle Release
- Avant-Garde Throws First Bottle Release After Expansion
- Brasserie Champ Libre Hosts November Bottle Release
- The Dark Side of Brasserie du Bas-Canada’s 2nd Anniversary Release
Friends of Beerism
Beer Shops Around Montreal!
