Trailhead IPA
Six Corners Brew Works

Hazy gold with an overexuberant head. It went everywhere as soon as I cracked the can. Happened with both purchased cans. Not appreciated. Strong overripe fruit nose. Medium malt body with some spiciness and DIPA level alcohol burn. Solid mouthfeel.

 

 

I basically created a profile to say this IPA left me with the distinct taste of shiitake mushrooms in the aftertaste. Or maybe garlic, if you don't know what I mean. It's not terrible, but it's there. Bottled, no pour.

 

Another rotating local option at Westhills National.
This beer arrived looking a clear, copper gold color, short dense head. Thin rings of lace left on the side of the standard pint glass.
Has all the smells of an IPA, pine needles, citrus, and slight caramel malt.
Waitress warned us it was quite strong flavor, so I was prepared for a big dose of hops, was not disappointed. Leafy, floral hops, a bit of earthiness, balanced out by a solid malt finish.
Smooth, not overly carbonated, refreshing aftertaste keeps you going back for more.
As it warmed, the alcohol warmth started to come through a bit more.

Now, if I only would have been able to find a can for the collection...

 

 

 

Sampled on tap at Craft Beer Market toward the end of an extended visit, so my thoughts might be have been a bit muddled. This is a really interesting beer, full of strong citrus and pine flavor. It really made me imagine acres of foothills forest one might find at a trailhead. This is not for the faint of hop, however. It is an extremely full flavored IPA, one of the most unique I've tried in a while.

355ml bottle poured into tulip 6/12/15

A golden liquid with a slight haze, slow bubbles popping up everywhere feeding a thumbs width of foam that hangs around for a few sips ending up as a thin film leaving lots of random lace

S heaps of pineapple juice, some lemon, some caramel, bread, lots of spruce and pine, has a floral thing going on with a little spice

T lots of pine, some vitamin C chewable, not as much pineapple, grapefruit comes out, differs from the nose but still solid

M has some weight and well carbonated, has a strong bitter snap that works well, a little sticky on the lips with lots of rind on the finish

O the 7.5% never pops up at any point and for a first attempt from a local newcomer I'm pretty pleased

Respectable IPA right off the bat, drinkable for the strength and its super fresh, a little pricey for a local but It was on sale at the Co-op so game on

Tasting notes: Very unique hop profile. The nose is red grapefruit and perhaps starfruit. The flavor is difficult to pinpoint precisely but I'm getting more starfruit, cherry pipe tobacco, pina colada (!?), strawberry, maybe red licorice. Sweet but gentle malt backbone. Snappy but not caustic carbonation. A little pine and pepper in the finish. Some melon rind and sour gummy. A little booze winks through. Have heard that not everyone likes this hop but I'm on board for something different. And this is a solid IPA, style-wise.

As one of the other users said, it's got a hop profile that's hard to put your finger on, but definitely a tasty brew. Heavy on the bitterness, but not lacking in malt character.

In terms of the location, apparently they're building a brewery right in Okotoks, but are still working on the approvals and all that jazz. Sounds like the Saskatchewan connection was just to get things off the ground. So far so good. Can't wait until it fires up in earnest!

 

 

355ml can. Agog was I when it appeared before me that a beer (nay, a freaking IPA!) is now being made in Okotoks, AB, that bedroom community in which I grew up. Now, I'm not so sure - it seems more like a marketing company that has its brew made over in Saskatchewan - sigh.

This beer pours a clear, medium copper amber colour, with three pudgy fingers of puffy, densely foamy, and mildly bubbly off-white head, which leaves some attractive sudsy layered lace around the glass as things quickly get a move on.

It smells of somewhat dank pine needles, bitter generic citrus rind, bready, and slightly doughy caramel malt, a suggestion of earthy yeast, and further leafy, floral, and lightly perfumed hops. The taste is gritty, bready pale and caramel malt, a piney leafiness, still muddled citrus flesh notes, and more complex leafy, minty, and mildly musty hops.

The bubbles are fairly understated in their low-key frothiness, the body a solid medium weight for the style, and pretty smooth, these experimental hops apparently not the meddlin' kind. It finishes off-dry, a lingering caramel sweetness playing off of the pesty (in a good way) leafy, spicy, and floral hops. A touch of booze heat evolves as things warm up a tad.

Not a bad IPA, I gotta say, and the concept (heretofore a running Phillips gag) of releasing commercial beers made with so-called experimental hops seems to work - I can't nail down (not that I really wanna know) even a general idea of the hop bill here. Overall, a tasty version of one of my favourite styles, with at least a tangential connection to my hometown - what's not to like about that?