Craft Beer Reviews Canada

Odd Company operates two taphouses in Edmonton, the original one centrally located in Oliver not too far from my home and the other, newer location situated in the Ritchie neighbourhood on the southside of our city. I had a half hour of free time south of the river this afternoon so I took it upon myself to stop into the Ritchie taphouse and try this beer. Odd Company's menu advises that Strate is "juicy and crushable." It purports to have "a citrus backbone with strawberry aromas." Does the brewery's description hold up? Let's find out. Appearance: Odd Company has a nice logo and I like the shape of their glassware. The beer itself is slightly hazy. The head settles quickly but leaves heavy lacing. Aroma: There's a slightly husky, grainy smell to this beer and a very, very subtle hint of rubber or BAND-AID that is often characteristic of chlorophenols. These undesirable phenolic compounds typically occur in beer when water with chlorine or chlorami...

The classics never go out of style. Naughty Hildegard ESB is not a new beer to me. Instead, it's an old favourite from earlier days of my foray into craft beer. A friend recommended it to me over a decade ago, advising that it was a decidedly North American take on English Special Bitter. And that it is! Appearance: Naughty Hildegard pours a beautiful copper color that brings to mind classic American craft beers like strong pale ales, red ales and IPAs. I drank this from a classic Spiegelau PA glass. White foam pours thick but ebbs as you drink, leaving just a touch of lacing. Aroma: It smells like fruitcake. In a good way! There's a touch of dessert-like sweetness coupled with the scent of dried fruit. Underneath all of that is a subtle hint of resinous pine. Taste: This beer is sublimely balanced in the old school way with a solid malt foundation and decidedly West Coast hop profile. Caramel malt adds colour and sweetness without overpowering the bitterness and fruit flavour...

I recently found out this blog ranks highly in search engine results for craft beer reviews so it seems the onus is on me to revive it. To that end, I'm going to start adding new reviews and looking for another contributor or two. Today I'm reviewing ESB by Sea Change , a local Edmonton brewery. I purchased this as part of six pack of singles I assembled myself at Sip Liquor Market , a great little beer-focused shop not far from my home. Is this an authentic attempt at an ESB or English Special Bitter? Read on and find out. Appearance: ESB comes in a 473mL can. The packaging features a custom illustration very much in line with Sea Change's highly consistent design language. Once poured, I can see that this beer is much darker than I expected. I anticipated copper or amber and what I got is brown. Visually it reminds me of a British brown ale more akin to Newcastle than a quintessential English bitter. Head retention was little to none and there was no lacing left on the gl...