Busted Sled
Big Rig Brewery

At my lady Pamela's house; canned and chilled, 473mL in a pint glass. From the University Ave. West LCBO in nearby downtown Windsor. Canned December 11/24. My fifth beer from the Kanata, Ontario brewery, and fourth for 2025. Approved by Gracie the cat...

 

Dec 20 2024

Can from LCBO - pours a light defying roily black-brown with aa 3 finger cocoa colored cap...aroma of roasted malts is intense, coffee, burnt treacle, cinnamon....very layered aroma...a robust stout with rich silky mouth feel....flavor has chewy roasted malts, coffee and spice tones in balance up front....finish is long, wet, and builds in complexity as all the components of this brew unwrap themselves on the palate....a light sweet kiss at the end and a light hop after taste....nice brew rich, satisfying, smooth and complex.....what's not to like?

473 mL can from the LCBO; dated Oct 27 2022 and served barely chilled. Listed as a gingerbread stout rather than a porter - not sure if that warrants listing this as a new beer, given the identical abv, name and gingerbread theme.

Pours an opaque brown-black colour, generating roughly one finger of frothy, soapy, light brown-coloured head that fizzles within a minute or two. It leaves behind several clumps of sticky lace, as well as a tight collar encircling a thin cap - looks fine so far. It smells of both gingerbread and ginger itself, though the 'bread' aspect is emphasized by hints of brown sugar, molasses and cocoa. Might be a dash of cinnamon in there, with suggestions of root beer and vanilla cream.

The flavours follow the nose - dark chocolate, molasses, toasted grains and gingerbread, with creamy lactose sweetness developing prior to a spicy conclusion. The cinnamon and allspice show up first, with vanilla rounding out the finish and lingering into the spicy aftertaste, which starts sweet before drying off a little. Medium in body, with moderate carbonation that adds some bite to this brew's smooth mouthfeel. The low-ish abv helps in terms of drinkability, but in actual practice spiced beers are self-limiting for me, i.e. one serving per night is almost always enough.

Final Grade: 3.54, a B grade. I've got to give Busted Sled a big fat 'meh': this stout elicited no strong reactions from me, good or bad. My natural aversion to (most) spices in beer did drag it down a little, but at least they weren't overused. It's also sweeter than I'd like - though once again, you'd expect a gingerbread stout to be at least somewhat sweet. Basically, I don't care for this beer all that much, and it's entirely because of my own biases. If you like sweet spiced stouts, however, then you might really enjoy it.

 

473 ml can served cold into a pint glass. Canned October 27, 2022.

Appearance - Virtually black and pours a robust fluffy two fingers of tan head. Pretty good staying power.

Smell - Muted gingerbread and cinnamon sweetness over a non-descript roasty porter aroma.

Taste - Roasty backbone, small bready elements that maybe suggest gingerbread, but the spices are dialed back. More bitter than expected although that works as gingerbread beers can be overly sweet.

Mouthfeel - Medium-full bodied, plenty of carbonation and semi-dry finish. Pretty good for a porter with additives.

Overall - Pretty good brew, the gingerbread and sweetness isn't overdone and the spices aren't either. In fact I kind of wish they were just dialed up a bit more, these are sitting at a 5 and probably a 7 in intensity would really make this pop. With that said it's a porter with some slightly sweet and bready elements and that makes it pretty good for the season in my books.

 

On draught on premises.

A very translucent light brown, no head and no real retention. Lots of spices on the nose, but very little in terms of flavour. Very little carbonation and a sharp dry finish. Way off the mark for a porter.