Gas Lamp Winter Warmer | Dead Frog Brewing

3.62/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

20oz pint at Donegal Irish Pub. This is apparently custom brewed for this chain of Calgary pubs.

This beer appears a fairly dark reddish-brown amber hue, with one skinny finger of tightly foamy, and duly creamy beige head, which leaves some decent striated rock lace around the glass as things slowly abate.

It smells of sweet doughy, almost pastry-like caramel malt, vanilla extract, subtle milk chocolate, rather understated muddled seasonal spice, and faint earthy hops. The taste is more of the same - bakery-worthy caramel malt, a touch of hard toffee, waning bittersweet cocoa, a suggestion of day-old coffee, kludgy vanilla, and laid-back earthy, leafy hops.

The bubbles are on the low side of moderate, performing their duties admirably, the body a bit on the light side of medium weight for the style, and more or less smooth. It finishes approaching the sweetness horizon - as in, apt, but not fully all-in - malt, vanilla, and an increasing metallic twinge as it warms.

A kind of middling offering - all the right moves are there, it's just that they seem restrained, in the sense of not offending or hurting the beginner. Ahh, right, that would be the whole point here.

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3.63/5  rDev 0%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

One of the house brands at the Kilkenny in Calgary.
Dark brown with reddish highlights. Cream colored head fades slowly leaving some strands of chunky lace.
Smell is sweet to start, caramel and some chocolate and cold coffee.
The taste is more of the same, starts caramel sweet, some cocoa and chocolate, little bit of vanilla at the end.
Medium body and mouth feel, might be a bit lighter than expected for the style. Smooth and easy to drink.

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