India Pale Ale
Brewsters Brewing Company & Restaurant - Eleventh Avenue

 

Brewsters' spring seasonal, ticked freshness date of June 2010. I came across this bottle at one of Edmonton's less up to date locations...

This beer pours a hazy dark marmalade hue, with two fingers of thick soapy light beige head, which leaves a nice even web of lace around the glass as it recedes. It smells of biscuit malt, and mild grapefruit, orange, and leafy hops. The taste is strong biscuit malt, a bit of caramel/toffee, a bit of citrus and pine hops, but mostly earthy and dusty. The carbonation is fairly even, unobtrusive, the body medium weight and smooth, and it finishes dry, biscuity, and crisp, some citrus and earthy leafiness struggling to represent.

Not a bad IPA, but very much in the English style - practically an ESB. Most of Brewsters' offerings seem to be pulled in this old-world direction - a result of their German expat head brewer? Oh well, still well made, and tasty enough.

Picked up a bottle of the current seasonal. I've heard of it being available in previous years, but this will be my first taste.

Pours a pale amber in colour, with a thick creamy white head. A little on the pale side for the style. Head retention is solid, and lacing sticks well.

Pine hop aroma jumps out first to the nose, and remains the dominant smell. Buried deep in there is a faint white bread smell, but that is really digging.

Cracker like malt backbone with a bit of caramel leads into a fairly strong hop bitterness. Pine and just a touch of mint flavours are carried towards the finish, where all flavours seem to hold together and linger.

Moderate body and decent carbonation together feel pretty good for this brew. Could do with a touch more body, but not much. Easy to down, but can also be comfortably savoured.

I quite like it, there is enough to satisfy the hop heads, but a decent balance as well.