Beam Me Up
Grand River Brewing

 

473 mL can from the LCBO; dated Nov 26 2018, listed at 6.2% and served barely chilled. I do remember picking up a few cans of this during its original retail run (early last year), but I must've forgotten to review it.

Pours a clear, dark copper-russet colour, generating just over a finger of smooth, foamy, buff-tinted head. It disintegrates over the next several minutes, leaving behind a thin, creamy-looking cap and collar, as well as a respectable coat of lacing. Very visually appealing. Its aroma is malt-forward, including notes of toffee, toasted biscuit, hazelnut and light peatiness, as well as some much fainter hints of grassy, earthy hops and dark fruit - dates and/or raisin, perhaps? Works for me.

A nice, straightforward Scotch ale. Of course, it's the malts leading the charge at the start of the sip - I'm getting caramel and brown sugar sweetness, with bready, biscuity notes and hints of toasted nuts developing soon thereafter. Suggestions of prune and date are next to join the fray, but the profile then winds down with hints of earthy, vaguely herbal hops, peat smoke and a (very) minor hint of licorice, followed by a bittersweet, lightly toasted malt aftertaste. Medium-light in body, with low carbonation levels that limply agitate the palate, giving it a smooth mouthfeel. Good drinkability for a wee heavy: it's not too sweet, and slides down the gullet with ease.

Final Grade: 3.83, a B+. One of the more 'senior' craft breweries in this market - and one that I still have fond memories of from back in my early craft geek days - Grand River has never been about gimmicky beers or chasing the latest fads. They mostly brew simple, traditional-style Euro and UK-inspired offerings, and they are quite good at doing that... but the beer scene in this province only seems to diverge from that well-worn template more and more as the years go by. Hopefully the new owners will keep what works, and change whatever needs to be changed in order to remain relevant into the future. Beam Me Up isn't one of their more established recipes, but personally, I think it's one that's worth keeping.

 

473 ml can served cold into an MGD pint glass. Purchased from the LCBO for around $3.25 CDN. No canning date and listed as 6.2% ABV.

Appearance - Pours a clear, dark honey brown colored brewed. Capped with a good looking two fingers of light tan head. Above average staying power and the beginnings of lace are forming at the edges. Half a finger of so of head lasts for many minutes.

Smell - Malty initially with caramel, a little bit of peaty smoke, some caramel and a trace of a sweet tropical fruit, think melon / pineapple mix.

Taste - Some earthy bitterness, peat, trace of smoke. Rich caramel across the board. No tropical fruits as picked up on the nose. Taste is actually a touch thin for my liking of this style, the intensity is there but doesn't linger the way others in the style do. Fullness of flavor improves as the beer warms.

Mouthfeel - Medium body, lightly carbonated, flavor doesn't stick to the tongue the way others do.

Overall - Besides having a great name, Beam Me Up - A Scotty Ale, is a pretty solid representation of the style, creating a reasonably flavorful brew that incorporates some peat and smokiness without going full blown the way a few of the Ontario breweries have gone. A fine tipple that is enhanced as it warms and as the weather gets colder.