Day 211-Beer 211 Montagnarde,Brasserie de l'Abbaye des Rocs, Montignies Sur Rocs, Belgium

A good day on the course, a lot of fun with fellow golfers, Jerry, Len and Daryl but the course Otter Creek for the most part beat us up and left us a little bruised and thirsty. Tonight's brew is a Belgium Strong Dark Ale (7.5%ABV). They are similar to the Belgian Dark Ale, but with a higher ABV and more of an all around character. Look for lots of complexity within a delicate palate. Hop and malt character can vary, most are fruity and may have mild dark malt flavors. Phenols will range from minimal to high and most will be light on the hops. All in all most are spicy and alcoholic.


Here goes, it poured a very murky copper/amber colour with adequate head that left some sticky lacing. The aroma is caramel, sugar, banana and hint of spice, cloves. the taste is brown sugar, toffee with some hints of spicy hops with a slightly sweet finish of pralines and caramel. The alcohol taste is well hidden and the beer finishes quite crisp and refreshing. A very good brew for its style, 3.7 out of 5

Day 210-Beer 210 Estrella Damm, Damm S.A., Barcelona Spain

The last of my Spanish beer in stock, Estrella is a Euro Pale Lager 4%ABV. A Euro Pale is similar to the Munich Helles. Many European countries reacted to the popularity of early pale lagers by brewing their own. Hop flavor is significant and of noble varieties, bitterness is moderate, and both are backed by a solid malt body and sweetish notes from an all-malt base. Other beer in this variety would be Stella Artois,
Grolsch Premium, Heineken, Birra Moretti and Kronenbourg 1664.


This one poured a very clear light golden yellow colour with just a little head that dissipated quickly and left a minimal amount of lacing. The aroma is that of wet hay and grass with a hint of  sweetness and wheat, very similar to most euro lagers. The taste is slightly sweet with a malt background and almost no detectable hop bitterness. It's a nice easy drinking clean crisp beer but nothing out of the ordinary 3.6 out of 5

Day 209-Beer 209 Cerveza Alhambra Reseva 1925, Grupo Cervezas Alhambra, SL,Granada Spain

Back to Spain after a short trip to Canada, this beer is a Euro Strong Lager(6.4%ABV).
Many breweries around the world brew a stronger version of their regular lager. For the US there is the Ice Beer & Malt Liquor, both have a high amount of rice or corn to lighten the flavor. Many European & Asian breweries have a strong lager similar to the Malt Liquor though there is more malt use or it is all malt.


Reserva 1925 poured a golden amber colour with okay head that left a thin layer of lacing across the surface. The aroma is sweet malts, honey, nut and a hint of grassy hops. The flavour is not a sweet as expected but rather a nice balance of malt and hops with crisp dry finish. A fairly good Euro Strong Lager 3.6 out of 5

Day 208-Beer 208 100 Mile Lager, Ontario Beer Company, Toronto Ontario

Bill O' stopped by to help get rid of a few coyotes, but no luck tonight. Then of course where Bill is, there is a card game in the making. Tonight it was Bill's version of three handed euchre.  He also brought a few beers for me to try and 100 mile is one of them.


100 mile is an American Pale Lager, they are referred to as "all-malt," as they are brewed without cereal adjuncts (mainly rice or corn). Though often still yellow and fizzy, these beers will display a broader depth of malt flavor and a more complex bitterness vs. their adjunct counterparts.


100 mile poured a golden yellow colour with okay head that dissipated quickly leaving almost no lacing.     the aroma has a hint of malt with a lemon/grass hops background. The taste is has a grassy hop bitterness with hints of malt and grain, with a slight grapefruit/ lemony aftertaste with a faint lingering citrus. Overall an okay lager 3.5 out of 5

Day 207-Beer 207 Rhyme & Reason,Collective Arts Brewing, Burlington Ontario

Oops a slight deviation from the flight plan, I was suppose to land in Spain again but ended at M.B and J.B.s in Burlington Ontario so when in Canada.... Tonight's brew is from Burlington and is an American Pale Ale. they tend to be leaner and hoppier, while British version tends to be more malty, buttery, aromatic and balanced. So here goes.


The labels are unique as each bottle has a different label featuring a different local artist. this one poured a hazy golden/orange colour with white head that dissipates quickly. The aroma is grapefruit, orange and pine with just a hint of sweet malt in the background. The taste is citrus, grapefruit, pine and hops. Overall a good APA 3.5 out of 5.

Day206-Beer 206 Burrobeer, Burrobeer craft beers,Alicante, Comunidad Valenciana, Spain

Burrobeer, "White Ass Wheat Beer" is a Weizen style brew
"  Quality Spanish craft beer made with the same stubbornness and affection that an ass can give you. Clear golden colour with a white creamy head, refreshing and busting with flavor. We are all natural and without any funny colourings or additives."
It poured a very murky lemon colour with lots of white bubblehead that dissipates quickly. The aroma bready yeast with a hint of fruit, maybe apricot. The taste is lemon and apricot with some spice background. Not the best weizen I tasted  and not the worst but maybe close to it. 3.1 out of 5.

Day 205-Beer 205 La Bella Lola, Barcelona Beer Company, Barcelona, Spain

Tonight's brew during Spain week is another American Blonde Ale but this one is also in an unfiltered wheat beer style. It poured a murky golden straw colour with lots of bubbly carbonation head that settled quickly to a thin layer of foam across the surface. The aroma has notes of lemons and straw. The flavor is sweet with notes of lemons, straw, and wheat, leading to a dry wheaty finish.  overall an okay brew but nothing I'd  take a trip to Spain to find 3.3 out of 5

Day 204-Beer 204 Er Boqueron ,La Socarrada Cervesa Artesanal De Xativa, Valencia Spain.

A great day on the course and some good wine tasting afterwards at Rockway Vineyards. Daryl laid down the gauntlet and shot an 80 and no one answered but as someone said we had a really fun day ... at Bill's expense... it wasn't his best day of golf, but he tried, and then he challenged us to a euchre game and life got worse for Bill, 0 wins five losses , oops.  Anyhow,  interesting day requires an interesting beer so off to Spain for a few days and a few beers. This one is an American Blonde,  Ale, that is. An American Blonde Ale  is similar to German Kolsh style brew. They should be pale straw to deep gold colour,  usually an all malt brew with a  subdued fruitiness. Hop character is of the noble variety, or similar, leaving a light to medium bitterness. A balanced beer, light bodied and lager like.


Tonight's brew has an added variable, it is made with sea water, and those that know me know I am not a lover of sea food so here goes. It poured a cloudy golden straw colour with a head that just kept growing, I thought I was watching a tsunami, and after overflowing my glass it settled fairly quickly leaving a nice covering of foamy lacing. The aroma was mainly malt with hints of toffee. The taste was a little sweet with just a hint of hops in the background, as for the sea water and or sea food, you could not taste it so I am not sure what the additional ingredient does to the brew.  Overall an okay drinkable brew, but nothing special in taste or smell, 3.4 out of 5

Day 203-Beer 203 Thornbridge Chiron, Thornbridge Brewery, Bakewell, England

Off to England for an American Pale Ale, believe it or not, the style originated in England and is now popular worldwide. Generally  there should be a good balance of malt and hops. Fruity esters and diacetyl can vary from none to moderate, and bitterness can range from lightly floral to pungent. American versions tend to be cleaner and hoppier, while British tend to be more malty, buttery, aromatic and balanced.


Chiron is a British version, it poured a clear golden yellow colour with good head that left nice sticky lacing.  The aroma is very hoppy, citrus, grapefruit, orange, mango,  with a background of caramel malts. The flavour is fruity hops upfront with just a hint of sweet malts in the background. Notes of grapefruit, orange with a earthy background, grassy hops and yeast. Not overly bitter like many IPA's this APA is very flavourful and easy drinking, a really good brew, 4 out of 5

Day 202-Beer 202 Harpoon 100 Barrel Series, Brown IPA, Harpoon Brewery and Beer Hall, Boston Massachusetts

Tonight's brew is an American Brown Ale with an added touch IPA. The American version of an English Brown Ale simply uses American ingredients. Some versions have additions of coffee and nuts and in this case additional hops to enter into the IPA category.
This brew is from a small batch series produced by the company and has 5.7%ABV.
"Science ... a good excuse to brew and drink more beer"
It poured a very dark brown colour with a tan coloured head that settle to a thin foamy layer of lacing across the surface of the beer. The aroma was predominately citrus, grapefruit with just a hint of something sweet in the background. The taste is caramel malts up front with a hint of dark chocolate with a nice follow of citrus, grapefruit hops. The finish is sweet, honey maybe and  some lingering hop bitterness. Not a great IPA and not a great Brown Ale but it is an interesting combination 3.4 out of 5.

Day 201-Beer201 Veille Provision Saison Dupont, Brasserie Dupont, Tourpes Belgium

Time for a little side trip from Germany over to Belgium, this one is a Saison, a farmhouse ale at 6.5%ABV. A farmhouse ale is traditionally brewed in the winter, to be consumed throughout the summer months. Not so long ago it was close to being an endangered style, but over recent years there's been a massive revival; especially in the US.  It is a very complex style; many are very fruity in the aroma and flavor. Look for earthy yeast tones, mild to moderate tartness. Lots of spice and with a medium bitterness. They tend to be semi-dry with many only having touch of sweetness.


Tonight's brew poured a cloudy golden yellow colour with lots of bubbly head  and a continuous stream of carbonation bubbles and nice sticky lacing.  The aroma although it has a slight musty smell has hints of bread yeast, pear, lemon and grassy hops. The taste is orange grapefruit, some herbal notes and just a slight sweetness from the malts. Very well balance, lots of carbonation, providing a very smooth dry finish. A very drinkable beer and certainly one that would be rated high in its class, 3.9 out of 5

Day 200-Beer 200 and going strong, Erdinger Kristall, Erdinger Weisbrau, Erding Germany

Tonight's brew is the last of five Erdingers brought back from Frankfurt by my daughter Kristal, so its fitting that it is a Kristalweizen.  A kristalweizen is typically a filtered Hefeweizen showcasing bright and clear bodies from pale straw to light amber. Overall character will be should more clean and softer on the palate, and the common banana and phenols will be more subtle. This one is 5.3%ABV.


 It poured a clear golden yellow colour with some very bubbly head that dissipated quickly leaving no lacing. The aroma is  sweet malts with a hint of grassy hops and wheat. The taste is sweet up front, caramel malts with a slight hint of banana and just a hint of bitter hops. Overall a good kristalweizen, a little more carbonated than most but a nice dry finish. 3.8 out of 5

Day 199 Beer 199 Erdinger Weissbier Pikantus - Erdinger Weissbräu, Erding Bavaria Germany

Another Erdinger, this one is a Weizenbock it is a more powerful Dunkel Weizen (of "bock strength", this one is 7.3%ABV), with a pronounced estery alcohol character, perhaps some spiciness from this, and bolder and more complex malt characters of dark fruits. Here goes, it poured a murky dark brown, chocolate colour with very little head that dissipated quickly and left no lacing at all. Having had this before I know that I am in for a treat.  The aroma is dark fruits, hints of plum, spice and bread yeast, certainly not as aromatic as I expected. The flavour has hints of plum, caramel malt, bread yeast some rye with hints of some grassy hops, banana and clove. Quite a bit of carbonation for the style but overall very good, the high alcohol does not affect the flavour nor is it over malty and many bocks are. 3.9 out of 5

Day 198-Beer198 Urweisse, Erdinger Weisbrau, Erding, Bavaria,Germany

Another Erdinger, this one a hefeweizen, poured a very murky golden yellow colour with lots of nice head that settled to a thin layer of foam lacing.  The aroma is sweet, and fruity with hints of wheat, banana and hops. The taste is made up of sweet malts, wheat, bread yeasts and some spice. Overall very smooth and creamy, a very drinkable brew, 3.7 out of 5

Day197-Beer 197 Erdinger Weissbier, Erding, Bavaria, Germany

More of Germany and more of Erdinger thanks to my Daughter who brought them back from Frankfurt. And more to the note was today's golf game, my best in my life, I shot an 83 at South Brook, a fairly tough course. It poured  a cloudy golden straw yellow colour with okay head that settles to a thin foam cap. The aroma is a typical German Wheat beer, wheat, malt, hints of cloves and citrus but not the common banana smell. The flavour is bready yeast with hints of sweet caramel malts and a slight background of  lemon hops, Id rate this one above an average beer which is unusual for me and straight wheat beers 3.7 out of 5

Day 196-Beer 196 Erdinger Weissbrau Dunkel, Erdinger Weissbrau, Erding,Bavaria, Germany

Erdinger advertises as the worlds largest wheat brewery, brewing since 1896.  Today's brew is a Dunkelweizen, which for your information is similar to a Hefeweizen, these southern Germany wheat beers are brewed as darker versions (Dunkel means "dark") with deliciously complex malts and a low balancing bitterness. Most are brown and murky (from the yeast). The usual clove and fruity (banana) characters will be present, some may even taste like banana bread. Now that we know what it is here goes. It poured a murky dark chocolate/brown colour with lots of creamy off white head  that settled to a thin layer of sticky foam lacing. The aroma is caramel and roasted malts with a hints of chocolate, bread yeast and banana.  The taste definitely has wheat background with the taste of dark roasted malts, chocolate and caramel, a hint of banana and hops. Overall quite refreshing, it would be a really nice beer on one of those hot summer days, 3.8 out of 5

Day 195-Beer 195 Echt Veldensteiner Landbier, Kaiser Brau, Neuhaus/Peg. Germany

Ah Germany, this one, a Munich style dunkel lager, is brewed according to the German purity law of 1515. It pours a dark amber/brown and copper colour with good head that leaves very little lacing. The aroma is sweet, malt, caramel and a nutty background. The flavour is dominated by sweet roasted malts with hints of toffee and some mild hop bitterness to balance it out. Another very good German Dunkel, 3.7 out of 5.

Day 194-Beer 194 Dab Maibock, Dortmunder Actien Brauerei / DAB | Dortmund, Germany

Well we started on this German thing so we might as well keep it going for a while and make this German Week or two. This is a starkbier at 7% so here goes. It poured a clear golden yellow with lots of head that left very nice foamy lacing across the entire surface. The aroma was honey, bread yeasts with a hint of grassy hops and green apple. The taste  is sweet bready malts with hints of apple and a fruitiness and a slight background of grassy/earthy hops as well as a nice alcohol warming. Overall a good and very drinkable maibock 3.7 out of 5

Day 193-Beer 193 Weihenstephaner Hefewiessbier Dunkle, Weihenstephaner Brewery, Freising, Germany



June 13 Watching Germany Win the World Cup

Not all of us were rooting for Germany today, but none the less it was a great game, so in honour of their victory tonight's brew is from one of the world's oldest breweries, established in Germany in 1040, that's almost as old as the combined ages of the people in this picture. Tonight's brew is a dark hefe, it poured a hazy amber/copper colour with a large off white head that settles to a sticky layer of foamy lacing across the surface. The aroma is caramel with hints of orange, banana and vanilla. The flavour is caramel malt up front with hints of nuts and bready yeast and a nice background hint of citrus hops. One of the better hefe/dunkels  I have tasted to date. 3.9 out of 5 .
Cheers to all that enjoyed the game.


Day 192 - Beer 192 the Tom Green Beer, Beau's All Natural Brewing Co. Van Kleek Ontario

Off to a beer festival today, my first ever, tried too many brews to remeber what they were and how they tasted so here's tonight's brew.  Tom Geem is a milk Stout, it poured dark brown with an off white head.  the aroma was malt and chocolate. The taste caramel malts, dark chocolate, a hint of coffee and a touch of smoke. |Overall nothing special an okay stout, 3.6 out of 5

Day 191-Beer191 Stone Smoked Porter with Chipotle Peppers, Stone Brewing Co. Escondido, San Diego California

Game of Thrones has ancho chilies to spice it up, well this one has chipotle peppers, very interesting and very different. They have taken  smoke jalapenos and melded it with smoldery peat smoked malt, beer with a bite, so here goes. It poured a dark brown/black colour with a creamy tan coloured head. The aroma was dark chocolate, coffee and a hint of smoke. The taste on the other hand  starts with hints of chocolate, espresso and caramel and smoked peat and then the peppers kick in, and it definitely has a kick to it ! If you like a bit of heat in the summer this in one you might want to try, overall  a good beer , very different smoke porter with some zing, 3.6 out of 5

Day 190-Beer 190 Wag the Wolf, Beau's All Natkural Brewing Co. Van Kleek , Ontario

Tonight's brew is a hopfenweiss which as far as I understand is a hopped up hefeweizen (wheat beer). It pour a very hazy straw colour with lots of head that settled to a thin coating of lace. The aroma is  citrus, lemon zest and cloves, banana, wheat malt and some herbal malt tones. The taste is a typical hefe wheat, pinapple, banana with a very nice background of citrus hops that gives it a nice zing.3.5 out of 5.

Day 189-Beer 189 Game of Thrones Fire andBlood, Ommegang Brewery , Cooperstown New York

sign us up for the game of thrones

Off to Malcolm and Pam's for some euchre and another Ommegang brew, this one a red ale with ancho chilies. It poured a dark brown/copper colour with lots of long lasting head that left a thin foam lacing. The aroma was somewhat grainy with a sweet background and something I couldn't quite put my finger on which I can only presume was from the chilies. The flavour consisted of caramel malts, molasses and a background of bitter hops with a hint of spice. Overall an okay brew( but not as good as our cards tonight, Malcolm and I cleaned up big time)  3.5 out of 5

Day 188-Beer 188 Hop Stoopid Ale, Lagunitas Brewing Co. Petaluma California

Like the name states this one is hop stoopid and 102 IBU's and 8%ABV.  It poured a clear golden/copper colour with nice sticky head that lasts a long time. The aroma is strong, hoppy, hoppy, pine tropical fruit lemon, tangerine and grapefruit. If you sniff it several times you can pick up a hint of toasted and caramel malts  but its definitely hidden behind the hops. The taste is sweet up front  as most IPA's but it finishes with a strong grapefruit flavour with a hint of toffee, much more balanced then I expected. The bitterness doen't linger forever either, actually a much better brew than I expected from the IBU count. 3.9 out of 5.

Day 187-Beer 187 Creme Brulee, Southern Tier Brewing Co. Lakewood New York

Tonight's beer packed a punch for a beer that taste like a dessert. At 9.5%ABV and a 22 oz. ( 650 ml) you should have someone to share this beer. It pours dark brown/black with very little head and almost no lacing. The aroma , wow the aroma is strong, dark milk chocolate, burnt sugar, vanilla and a hint of cream, crème brulee in a bottle. If aroma was the only scoring factor this one hits max but there is more to a brew than aroma. the taste is somewhat of a stout but with crème brulee as the mainstay, coffee, milk chocolate, burnt sugar and vanilla, a true desert beer. You could serve this one as an after dinner  liquor and no one  would think it as a beer. Overall  a good brew but you need to share this one, it does have a kick to it. You could probably find a few recipes to share some of it with, both marinades and desert recipes would work well and leave enough for you and your company too. 3.7 out of 5.

Day 186-Beer 189 Innis and Gunn, Oak Aged Beer, Rum Finish, Innis and Gunn, Scotland

Tonight's brew is matured for 57 days before release . It poured a dark amber/copper colour with okay head and lacing. The aroma was caramel and rum. The taste was caramel, malt, some spice and fruit with a rum finish. Not all that impressed for the price one pays for this brew, 3.4 out of 5

Day 185-Beer 185 Mosaic Mikkeller Imperial India Pale Ale, De Proef Brouwirij, Lochristi Hijfte, Belgium

Tonight's is a strong brew at 8.9% ABV. It poured a hazy golden/amber colour almost apricot, with decent sticky head that left some nice lacing. There is lots of aroma from this beer,   grapefruit, tangerine, caramel malt, bread yeast, and alcohol. The taste is bitter grapefruit up front with background of tropical fruits, mango and pineapple, honey and caramel. The alcohol is not as pronounce as it is in the aroma but it does give the back of the throat a little burn. It finishes very nicely, smooth, dry and just enough lingering bitterness. Overall a very good IPA, its not cheap but its worth the try, 3.9 out of 5.

Happy 4th of July Day 184- Beer 184 Wookey Jack Black Rye IPA, Firestone Walker Brewing Co. Paso Robles California

This one poured almost black in colour with lots of sticky creamy tan head that eventually left some very nice lacing. The aroma was pine, citrus(grapefruit) hops with a hint of roasted malts. The taste was roasted malts, espresso and grapefruit/hop bitterness and in the background a hint of rye.  Overall an above average black IPA 3.8 out of 5. It comes in a large bottle, enough for your best beer recipes and marinades and lots left for you to enjoy.

Half Way to New Years Eve, Day 183-Beer 183 Worthington'sWhite Shield, Worthington's White Shield Brewery, Burton Upon Trent, England

Thought I needed something special to celebrate the passing of half way point in my beer quest so this one is from a brewery that was established in 1744, its almost as old as dirt. White shield is one of the longest surviving IPA's and one of England's most decorated brews, so here goes. The ale pours a clear orange/copper colour with lots of nice cream coloured head that lasts a long time and sticks to the sides of the glass. The aroma although not strong has hints of lemon, English hops with the scent of sweet toffee and fresh baked bread in the background. The taste is not as hoppy as I expected but rather well balanced for an IPA with flavours of bread toffee, yeast and lemony/grapefruit hops. The finish is quite dry is only slightly bitter. A very good but not great IPA 3.9 out of 5. And so the second half begins and my continued search for the world's most outstanding brews.

Day 182-Beer182 Wellington Special Pale Ale,Wellingtong County Brewing Co. Guelph

Tomorrow is s half way, wow so I thought it should be a special brew tonight but this one was just okay, it didn't quite live up to its name. It poured a nice clear amber colour with a good head that dissipated quickly and left no lacing. The aroma was caramel malts and some earthy tones.  The taste was that of a light lager, some sweetness from the toasted malts and not much else. Overall an okay lite lager, very drinkable especially on a hot day like today but certainly nothing I would call special.4 out of 5

Day 181- Beer 181 Tap 5 Hopfenweisse, Schneider & Brooklyner, Kelhelm Bavaria Germany

Inching on of half way tonight's brew although posted a little late was a great wheat-dopplebock beer, and that's hard for me to say. A typical pour is was a very cloudy golden orange colour with minimal head that left a sticky residue on the edge of the glass. The aroma  was not a typical wheat beer as the first to hit you was the hops  and citrus scents with a clove background. The flavour/ taste was also unique, wheat, banana, cloves and just a nice hint of bitter hops. Its a strong beer at 8.2%ABV but that does not override the taste. It finishes dry with a hint of sourness. Outstanding for a wheat beer, 4 out of 5