Prospectors Ale
Bancroft Brewing Company

Can: Poured a clear golden color ale with a large white foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma of dry citrus hops notes with light undertones and bitter notes. Taste is also a mix of citrusy notes and light undertones and a bitter finish. Body is about average with good carbonation. Good enough English style IPA with some bitter notes.

473 mL can from the LCBO; dated Sep 27 2022 and listed at 5.8%. Served barely chilled.

Pours a clear, ruddy orange colour, crowned with nearly an inch of puffy, foamy, pale beige-tinged head that steadily falls off within five minutes or so. Gobs of sticky lace cling to the glass, hanging above a frothy collar of suds - it's a great-looking glass of beer, no doubt. Mildly floral, tea-leafy hops on the nose, with hints of sponge toffee, doughy malts and graininess.

A serviceable English-inspired ale: malt-forward for the most part, with caramel, toffee, toasted bread and grains coming through initially. Leafy hops and a low-key earthy, herbal bitterness on the back end, with doughy malts and toffee fading into the aftertaste; some metallicity is evident. Medium-light in body, with low carbonation that limply rolls across the tongue, resulting in a smooth, relatively flat mouthfeel that syncs up well enough with its English bitter-like flavours. I could drink a couple of these in a row, at least in theory.

Final Grade: 3.61, an adequate B grade. Prospector's Ale ain't bad, but it ain't exactly impressive, either. Rather mediocre if graded strictly as an IPA, but if taken as a generic English-style ale I think it's passable stuff... just close your eyes and pretend it's an ESB. Nothing to write home about, but I'd take this over most of Bancroft's other mainline brews.

Nov 26 2023