First Draft Campus Ale
Niagara College Teaching Brewery

A- This Ale pours with some aggressive carbonation and a very nice head that is about one finger thick....talk about great retention....it's like a cloud floating on top of the brew! The beer itself is yeast hazed and a golden/coppery color....as for the lacing, well, it's not the best....it slides quickly back into the beer, but hey it can't be all perfect!

S- This is pleasant smelling with initial hints of citrus, followed by a body of caramel malt sweetness and piney bittering notes on the finish. There is also a bread yeast quality that keeps it rich and smooth on the nostrils....diacetyl?....nah!

T- Tastes like a typical Ale....in fact, for an ale produced by students that are trying to learn the craft, I think there is quite a pleasant flavor overall! It has some caramel sweetness from the blend of malts, some balancing hop bitterness on the finish and slightly tart citrus note throughout....nothing offensive and even though I find it a little rough around the edges taste wise, it's very nice!

M/O- Solid Light/Medium body and decent carbonation keep this a highly drinkable ale!....I would rather enjoy this during a session.....nothing that overpowers anything else and a solid effort! I would drink this again and hope to find it out my way one day!

 

 

 

 

I'm quote confused about what I am drinking here. The bottle states this is an amber ale yet the BA listing and the appearance suggest otherwise. Bottle date of G19201. July 19?

A - Slightly hazy medium orange with golden yellow around the edges. Half a finger of egg shell coloured head.

S - Bready malts, sweet caramel and a musky floral hop aroma.

T - Bready/grainy malts with a slight cereal/caramel sweetness. Crisp bitterness with a floral hop profile. The hop profile is somewhat musky/dank as the nose indicated.

M - Light body with a slight chew. Moderate carbonation.

I happened to notice six-packs of this beer near the checkout in a local liquor store. I was buying a four-pack of Old Speckled Hen, which is a nice ale from the UK, and as I was waiting in a large lineup, I thought I would go ahead and support the local new brewing school at Niagara College, near to where I live. $12 for a six-pack. It might be a good idea for the College to reduce the price considering the source and the quality of the product.

Their label is nice and the name is a clever pun: a first "draft" being a rough start on a sheet of paper---although "draft" beer is preferably spelt as "draught" beer in Canada, although not universally so--- we do adopt US spellings at times. I like the joke in the name.

The colour was a little more yellow than many typical Canadian industrial lagers or Canadian craft brewed lagers, for that manner. Not that I mind that: it is similar to European lagers in colour. That's a plus.

It wasn't overly carbonated, so there was little of the acid, edgy taste of many lagers. It was mellow and smooth. A small "zing" of carbonation on the tongue when I took each mouthful. When there was only an inch of beer still remaining in my tankard, there was still a small 1/8 inch head of white bubbles at the edges. Another plus!

It seemed moderately creamy in the mouth--- pleasant in that way---possibly related to the lower carbonation, but perhaps ingredients/adjuncts?

But, there was not much hop odour or flavour or bitterness. Really, barely anything. Maybe trying to imitate the macro/industrial beers? That is the wrong route to take. Give us more hops. All three times.

Previous reviews here make some reference to malt flavour, etc. I did not taste much of that. Maybe the batch they were tasting was produced earlier. This batch which I tasted in September 2012 had the prevailing and overpowering flavour of very strong diacetyl. It covered up any malt flavour that might have be there. And that should most certainly NOT be there in a lager. Butterscotch flavour. I am amazed that the previous reviews of this beer do not make a note of this defect. It hit me on the first sip. I was surprised!

Did the Niagara College instructor not include information about a "diacetyl rest" in his lessons to the college class that produced this beer? It is pretty necessary for these cold fermented beers. Maybe it was not done properly.

I will try their next efforts. If they make some English style ales, the diactyl flavour is less of a problem, if one at all. Cheers!

Purchased from the brewery in May and this bottle has aged better than I expected. A phenomenal institution and I look forward to sampling many of their future beers.

This one pours a hazy burnt copper amber, darker than typical for a blonde. Lots of carbonation, yielding an impressive head that dies away fairly quickly. Aroma is full of grains, both roasted and green. I like the taste, although again I wouldn't call it typical for "a blonde". Caramelized malts, grain/breadiness and a pleasantly bitter hopped finish.

To have a true college teaching the craft of brewing is a huge step forward for this province - well done Niagara!

Bottle courtesy of northyorksammy. Thanks!
Clear gold with a foamy, whitish cap. There was a little bit of short-lived lacing. Mild crackery malt aroma with some light lemony hop notes, a little fruitiness and spice. The flavour started out with some malt sweetness, but quickly shifted to a fruitier, hoppier character, citrusy for the most part. Light to medium bodied, lowish carbonation, with lingering citric bitterness. The texture was on the coarse side, but wasn't overly distracting. Overall, a decent beer.

Pours a golden orange colour with thick white head. Really nice head retention, some lacing on the glass. Smells of malted barley, pretty much the smell I recognize from whenever I enter a brewery. Very mild hop aroma, but I can tell some hops are there. Small bitterness in the flavour, nice sweetness. This is an easy drinking beer and I wouldn't pass this up, though I wouldn't seek it out either. I suppose for its category, this is a nice beer.

Pours golden with foamy white head. Very mild hoppy aroma. The mouthfeel is average, a bit above average carbonation. Very fresh, with a decent hoppyness, though a bit harsh. Needs better balance, still good drinkability.
Bottle from the brewery, thanks Mr. Murphy.