Reindeer Games
Lake of Bays Brewing Company

Review from notes. Served cold into a pint glass.

Appearance - Pours a ruddy honey brown colored beer with lots of haziness. A small half finger of off white head is poured and stays awhile.

Smell - A little pine as well as bready malts, the nose is somewhat muted but unique.

Taste - Fairly bitter with the pine coming through, but then a bread and somewhat sweet undercurrent of toffee seeps in. Splashes of citrus muddled in. Surprisingly complex and deep flavors.

Mouthfeel - Medium-full bodied with a crisp carbonation and dry finish.

Overall - One of the best IPA's from LOB, I would happily enjoy this again as a seasonal (this was leftovers from Christmas apparently).

 

473 mL can from the LCBO, included in Lake of Bays' annual Toasty Toes mixed pack. Dated Sep 8 2023 and served barely chilled.

Pours a fairly clear orange-amber colour, producing two fingers of foamy, soapy, off white-coloured head that recedes slowly. Not quite ten minutes later, it has been reduced to a thin collar and patchy cap, with plenty of beautiful lace generated - looks great to me. Piney, earthy, slightly spicy hop aromas, with toffee and toasted, bready malts also coming through clearly; grapefruit and orange peel are also discernible.

It's described as a West Coast IPA on the back label - an accurate take, given the use of Cascade, CTZ and Centennial hops. Malt forward at the forefront - I'm getting toasted bread, grains and caramelized sugars overlapping with notes of orange, grapefruit and indeterminate berries. The tail end of the sip is more earthy, piney and floral, with a dank bitterness and some peppercorn spiciness rounding out the finish; bittersweet aftertaste with lingering suggestions of toffee and resin. Medium in body, with low carbonation that weakly brushes along the surface of the palate, resulting in a rather smooth, soft mouthfeel. I knocked mine back easily, but I have always enjoyed these old-school IPAs - if you prefer a hazy/juicier pale ale, your mileage may vary.

Final Grade: 3.95, an impressive B+. Reindeer Games isn't a world-beater, but it's a solid WCIPA that I am inclined to praise. In fact, I might go so far as to say that this is my favourite Lake of Bays IPA *ever* - and that's a genuine, legitimate compliment, as I've been reviewing their beers at least a decade and have tried well over a dozen of their IPAs (of various stripes) over the years. If this had come out ten years ago, I might very well be a much more loyal customer of theirs. I don't expect to see this available as a single, but I'd buy more in a heartbeat.

Nov 16 2023