Light Lager
Blackburn Brewhouse

473 mL can from the LCBO; dated Apr 8 2025 and served slightly chilled. Classy label.

Pours a clear straw yellow colour, producing an inch of soapy, foamy white head. It's steadily worn away over the next five minutes or so, reduced to a thin cap and frothy collar, with a decent ring of lace clinging to the glass. Bready, doughy malts and biscuity sweetness on the nose, with suggestions of grassy hay and honey.

Fairly robust malt flavours for a light beer. Bready malts, biscuits and some honey sweetness greet the tastebuds initially, with notes of grassy, slightly herbal & earthy hops coming through on the back end. Noble hops in a light lager? Yes sir, I like it. Finishes on the malty side, but dries quickly in the aftertaste. Light in body, with assertive, tiny-bubbled carbonation that prickles the tongue continuously, remaining lively for the duration of the glass. Crisp, refreshing and very sessionable.

Final Grade: 3.78, a worthy B+. Blackburn's Light Lager is well above average for the style, which is why I'm giving it a better grade than most of the other Ontario craft light lagers I've had over the years (of which there are plenty). Quality malts and German hops serve to provide this brew with a bit of a "light pils" vibe, which is fine by me. Good stuff - I mean, I'm not going to search high and low for more, but If I lived in the Niagara region (where this is presumably easier to find), I figure I'd drink it pretty regularly. After all, flavourful low abv lagers aren't exactly commonplace.

At my lady Pamela's house; canned and chilled, from the University Ave. West LCBO in nearby downtown Windsor. My first beer from the Niagara Falls, Ontario brewery.

Aug 10 2025