Cactus Head by Blood Brothers Brewing

A quick and easy review of Cactus Head, a beer from Blood Brothers Brewing that caught my eye while I was looking through the new IPAs at Sip Liquor Market.

Appearance: Nice can with a cool design. Blood Brothers tends to vary the look and feel of their packaging. Not very consistent from a branding perspective but it always looks good. This beer pours hazy yellow. Nice fluffy head with very fine bubbles that faded to a frothy film that stuck around. Medium lacing.

Aroma: Smells like white wine with a vegetal or grassy note.

Taste: Strong grapefruit and gooseberry flavours with a slightly vinous, acidic aftertaste.

Mouthfeel: Really nice, fluffy body with slightly lower carbonation.

Overall: Tasty! Blood Brothers nailed the mouthfeel for this beer which leaves me eager to try more of their hazy IPAs. For me, a soft, pillowy body is what really defines this style of beer and is the quickest way to differentiate a brewery that gets it versus one that doesn't.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Down the New Zealand Pilsner Rabbit Hole

There are many different beer styles but the majority are well-established and well-known to brewers. Their characteristics and the ingredients that comprise them are generally understood and accepted. That said, the craft beer explosion over the past decade or two has led to an evolution and expansion of traditional beer canon. New styles have emerged. Some have trended then waned—take white IPAs or India Pale Lagers for instance—while others seem to have completely redefined the brewing industry. (Yes, I'm talking about hazy or New England-style IPAs and pale ales.) New Zealand (NZ) Pilsner is a relatively new and seemingly only loosely defined style. Most articles on the style have been written in the past three years. Popular primarily in its country of origin and among homebrewers, its defining features seem to be that it is brewed mostly with Pilsner malt and NZ-grown hops. Much has been written about hops from NZ, especially Nelson Sauvin , a particularly standout vari...

Classic IPA by Nokomis Craft Ales

This is a quick review of Classic IPA by Nokomis Craft Ales from Nokomis, Saskatchewan. Appearance: Classic IPA comes in a traditional 335mL can featuring clean and simple graphic design. The beer pours a little hazy but has a nice copper colour with head that lasts throughout the glass and leaves thick lacing. Aroma: I smell resinous pine and a touch of candy. Taste: Citrus, pine and just the right amount of sweetness. This is a really well balanced. Mouthfeel: Carbonation is slightly less than medium. Body is slightly fuller than average. Perfect for the style. Overall: It's rare to find such a prototypical example of a West Coast IPA released by a brewery that was founded in the last 10 years. I really enjoyed this beer, which is the first I have tasted and reviewed by this brewery. Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Naughty Hildegard ESB by Driftwood Brewery

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...

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