Half Bastard
Nickel Brook Brewing Co. - Burlington

 

Something wrong with this beer. In the Advent calendar. Sour. The taste is off. The froth is ridiculous. No one needs 6 inches of head and 1 inch of liquid. i drank 1/4 and gave up, poured the rest out. Loser.

More Advent beer; Day 12

Poured this into a clean glass, and it instantly filled with brown foam.
Waited several minutes, poured a bit more into it, and it foamed past the top (but not over).
Repeat. This is stupid.
It is nice and deep brown, eventually. The smell is yeasty and fruity.
The taste? Sour. Sour stout? I don't know.
I tried to appreciate it. I really did. Can't do it, though.
Pass.

330ml bottle, day 12 of the 2017 Craft BeerAdvent Calendar. I gotta say, I like the name and concept here.

This beer pours a solid black, with subtle red cola basal edges, and an explosive tower (what the hell is it with this calendar's brews and over-foaming?) of puffy, chunky, and somewhat fizzy tan head, which leaves some splattered paramecia lace around the glass as it eventually subsides.

It smells of gritty and grainy caramel malt, bittersweet cocoa powder, cafe-au-lait, some free-range char, a mild earthy nuttiness, and plain leafy, weedy, and floral noble hop bitters. The taste is grainy and bready caramel malt, some sour dark fruitiness, raw chewing tobacco, medium chocolate, day-old coffee, wet smoke, and more understated earthy, musty, and dead floral hoppiness.

The carbonation is totally overwrought in its manic frothiness, the body a so-so middleweight, and not particularly smooth, not with those bubbles and tart fruity esters milling about. It finishes off-dry, the malt generally presiding, and the sour character growing by the sip.

Overall - yeah, methinks there might be a touch of infection going on here, between the crazy head and unexpected tartness. It's not all that badly flavoured, but it's kind of a pain in the ass to drink, if that makes any sense.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Got this one from the LCBO this past summer

From a can into a snifter
IBU: 35

APPEARANCE: Pours out clear black and yields a 1+ finger, medium looking, creamy tan head with good retention. Black body with no carbonation evident. Head slowly fades to a full foamy cap. A splotchy wisp remains until the end leaving some lacing on the glass.

SMELL: Milder aroma with roasted and burnt malts, coffee and tobacco on the nose. A little milder but comes out as it warms.

TASTE: Roasted and burnt malts up front, with some toffee sweetness and tobacco at the swallow. Medium but lingering aftertaste of roasted grain, bitter coffee, tobacco, and some sweet toffee flavors.

PALATE: Medium body and medium levels of carbonation. Creamy enough on the palate, fine going down and finishes a bit dry. A touch of bitterness lingers.

OVERALL: This is alright, just as the bigger imperial version is alright as well. Enough going on here to make it enjoyable, but could be a little more forthcoming to make it memorable. Still a solid beer and well worth checking out if you enjoy smaller stout beer. Cheers!

Can from the lcbo for around $3. Very solid, this should be a regular listing.

 

Bought 473mL can at the brewery. Opened at 12 degrees C.

Appearance - Pours dark brown, with a nice thick tan head, moderate lacing which fades moderately slowly.

Aroma - I didn't think it had a strong smell, but could definitely tell it was a stout; maybe somewhat of a black licorice aroma.

Taste - Earthy coffee, fairly full flavour and very mild bitterness. Doesn't seem as much as the 35 IBU on the label. A pretty standard stout.

Feel - Smooth & somewhat creamy, although I'd like a bit more of that.

Overall - Pretty Guinness-like I thought. A solid stout which I would enjoy again, but not quite a must-have. I had the 2nd half with some food & the flavours didn't mix together quite as well as with my fave the St. Ambroise Oatmeal Stout.

 

Tallboy can, one of four different varieties included in their latest sampler pack, and also the only one I have not tried previously. Canned May 27 2016 and served slightly chilled.

Pours an opaque cola-brown colour with reddish-amber highlights, and briefly supporting a solid two fingers of foamy, light tan-coloured head. Retention is alright; it seeps off gradually over the next five minutes (give or take), splattering a ring of lacing around the interior of the glass as it recedes into a thin, frothy collar. A good lookin' stout, and the aroma's nothing to scoff at either - lots of roasty malt goodness to be had on the nose. Dark chocolate is particularly potent, with additional notes of roasty black coffee, molasses and just a hint of vanilla. Maybe a touch of plum, too, as it warms.

Hard to complain about this one - a basic stout, but a good one. Roasted malt character powers the flavour profile, providing notes of dark chocolate, coffee and roasted grain sweetness, augmented by hints of molasses, prune and vanilla. Bitter notes of coffee grounds on the back end, along with some floral, earthy hop astringency that slowly fades off into the aftertaste. Light-medium in body, with moderate carbonation levels that firmly prickle the palate. Smooth mouthfeel and slightly slick texture, with excellent drinkability.

Final Grade: 4.05, an A-. There aren't that many "session stouts" distributed across Ontario, so I feel pretty confident arguing that Nickel Brook's Half Bastard Stout is one of the best available here. It's full flavoured for the abv, though you can still tell it's a "light" stout, as it lacks the concentrated flavour (to say nothing of the fuller body and silky-smooth texture) of its big brother, Bolshevik Bastard. Just observations, not criticisms; you can only expect so much flavour and weight out of 4.5%. I'd buy this regularly, but only if it's priced somewhat cheaper than Bolshevik. If the cost is basically the same then I'll probably always lean towards the "full strength" version (similar to how I buy Headstock weekly and Naughty Neighbour maybe like twice a year, even though they're both good brews).

 

 

355 ml bottle served cold into a pint glass. Thanks to Claudia and Kevin for the gift.

Appearance - pours a very dark brown coloured beer, with some haze and topped by a finger of long lasting tan head. Some lacing left around thee doges of the glass.

Smell - quite aromatic with plenty of coffee, hints of vanilla and oatmeal and overall graininess.

Taste - moderately bitter throughout, lots of coffee and some oatmeal graininess. Really nice and easy to drink, with tons of flavor for a lighter ABV beer. Impressive stuff.

Mouthfeel - smooth and silky, yet with good carbonation and slightly drying finish.

Overall - Nickel Brook's Half Bastard stout is a fine brew, combining the big roasty flavours of its bigger Bolshevik Bastard, yet remaining very light and incredibly easy to drink. I'm fairly certain that with enough distribution, this will quickly become a household fave.