Back for its 29th year, the Great Canadian Beer Festival returned this past weekend to showcase dozens of beers from nearly 60 Canadian breweries, and the verdant field of Royal Athletic Park was buzzing with buzzed beer enthusiasts ready to witness another home run for artisan craft beer.
Mountainview Brewing Co. presented The Dark Side of Town Schwartzbier (5.3%), which combined light and dark in a diplomatic fashion. Possessing a deep caramel flavour one might expect from a dark ale, it has the light hoppy body consistent with lagers, and as such might be a good summer beer for those who want the heft without the weight.
From Mount Arrowsmith Brewing I tried the Weekend Rambler Mango Sour (4.6%). Generally, I find fruity beers a bit of a gamble, but this was a pleasant surprise. Crisp and refreshing, the scent and taste are exactly like mangoes. Gently soured with dry Sabro hops, this light beer is exactly what you would expect from the name.
Fern + Cedar Brewing served their Barbados Rum Lager (4.8%); its namesake suggests a strong beer, but it’s actually quite thin and mild. Pineapple, coconut, and allspice sound like overpowering disasters on their own, but somehow the brewers have found a way to incorporate them with grace and aplomb so they work well as a team. Despite its lacklustre body, the flavour is satisfying.
Beacon Brewing served up their Muffin Top Blueberry Corn Lager (5%). Far less sweet than I expected from a berry beer, this is a bit of a genre crossover with whisky. Since corn is used as a fermentation base over the usual wheat or barley, the distinct bourbon flavour is its most defining feature.
From BC Tree Fruits Cider Co., I tried a Rosé cider (5%), which is a blend of cherry and apples. Extremely sweet and delicious, all I can say is that you’re gonna have an awesome night, and you’re gonna have an awful morning.
Small Gods Brewing Co. showcased their Bella Caramel Macchiato Nitro Blonde (5.5%), which is their take on an alcoholic version of the iconic Starbucks drink. For me this was certainly the most disappointing beer of the evening. While the nitrogen press is supposed to provide a creamy texture, it simply comes off as flat, and the flavour tastes less like coffee and more like week-old coffee grinds.
From Four Winds Brewing I tried the Nightflower Farmhouse Sour (7%), which starts with a fully brewed saison base before chamomile and hibiscus are added to steep for a mere 24 hours before bottling. The herbal tea notes are somewhat harsh in the sip, but fragrant in the aftertaste. As a flavour experiment it’s commendable but it’s not something I would seek out.
Whistle Buoy Brewing poured their Fieldberry Garden City Sour (5.2%), which combines strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries. I was curious to see if any of the three berries were dominant, but they all struggle fairly equally for the spotlight. Technically, this shows they were balanced well, but in practice, what we ended up with was a sour fruit punch that was fairly devoid of any distinct personality.
Probably the most unusual beer of the evening was Howl Brewing’s Mango Jalapeno Tepache (6%). As a side ferment, the peppers were steeped as a tea for only about 10 minutes. In terms of balance, there’s not much: the jalapeno flavour is entirely dominant, but, interestingly, there is no spice whatsoever.
Today’s Ass-Kicking Award goes to Les Trois Mousquetaires’ Porter Baltique Special Edition 2022 (10.5%), which is aged in oak barrels for six months. This frightful concoction is black as night and only slightly less bitter than my ex-girlfriend. Burnt caramel and coffee, molasses—none of these adequately describe how intense this flavour is. Despite being a fan of dark beer, I couldn’t finish it, and that’s saying something.
Preferring to showcase the best for last, I’m excited to rave about Russell Brewing Co.’s Root Beer Stout (6%). After the brewing mixture is boiled, the “whirlpool” process is performed, wherein a centrifugal spin is used to separate the beer base from the sediment. During that phase, a whackload of sarsaparilla is added, to which root beer attributes its characteristic flavour. I’ve tried other alcoholic root beers and have always been tragically disappointed at the devastating bastardization of flavours that had deceptively infiltrated my lips; however, this stuff was everything I wanted, combining the characteristic flavour of a dark stout with root beer, without being too sweet. This is the only beer of the evening I went back for seconds and even thirds.
With magnificent representation of some of Canada’s best concoctions, the Great Canadian Beer Festival was a triumph of modern craft brewing.