Kazmanian Devil
Innocente Brewing Company

 

500 mL bottle from the brewery, the second of three pale ales I picked up at Innocente last week. Listed at 5.7% and served well-chilled.

Pours a translucent golden-yellow colour, producing nearly two fingers of soapy white froth on top. The head lasts for the better part of five minutes, wilting away steadily until only a thin, foamy collar and bubbly cap remain. Good lacing. Not sure what to make of the aroma - there's some spicy, peppery notes, lots of leafy hay, a few hints of caramelized sugar and a noticeable vegetal quality. Smells quite earthy and dirty, too, with maybe a bit of citrus. Interesting, though not necessarily universally enticing.

The nose is an accurate harbinger for the flavour profile. Grainy, doughy pale malts and some light caramel sweetness comprise the backbone, with the Kazbek hops giving this a very unorthodox flavour for the style. The brew has a distinct vegetal quality to it, which (as pootz mentioned) is reminiscent of canned peas, as well as a profoundly earthy, dirty, leafy hop character that begins to dominate by the finish and into the aftertaste. I cannot fairly say that I dislike the way it tastes, but it is definitely not as approachable as your average APA. Light-medium in body, with middling carbonation levels and a relatively crisp, smooth mouthfeel. Not something I'd want to drink in large quantities.

Final Grade: 3.61, a B grade. Kazmanian Devil is actually one of the most unique pale ales I've had in a long time, so I will happily dole out a few bonus points for creativity. It makes for an interesting diversion, if only because it is nothing like any of the other Ontario-made pale ales I've tried previously. The unusual flavour will be a bit surprising even to experienced palates, but it is really the only feature that makes this pale ale at all memorable. An acquired taste; I wouldn't turn this one down, but it's not one of the better beers I've had from Innocente.

Bottle from the brewery - Poured a cloudy gold color with a smallish White cap - aroma has that Russian lager funk to it ( like boiled peas) I can never get past that, but this is the result of the kind of hop used. Flavor follows aroma with more malt intervening between this funky boiled pea water taste and a fair brew. After a while you become comfortable with this funky Slovenian Kazbek hop taste and the beer seems solid with a remarkable earthiness - probably something Borat would drink.....I have to hand it to this brewer for guts and innovation. This is probably the first time beer was brewed here using this hop - a hop which was responsible for many a sink-pour of the Russian and Baltic commercial brews imported by the LCBO - people mistaking the weird funk from that hop for spoiled beer....at any rate this brew is not spoiled, it is fresh tasting if nothing else and I would recommend anyone try this just for the experience of tasting this just for the Kazbek hop.

Really unique hop flavour, which I'm not paricularly fond of, but this is another solid brew.