Category Archives: Ale

Wild Thing Blackberry Bourbon Ale – Red Truck Beer

by Mike

From Red Truck Beer in Vancouver comes their “Wild Thing Blackberry Bourbon Ale”.  The beer pours a deep red colour with a light redish white head.  The aroma consists of blackberry with some slight woodiness.  The flavour is of blackberry, wood, semi sweet with a very mild almost tart note and a really dry finish.  The alcohol content comes in at 5.3% with an IBU of 25.  This is not a huge bourbon barrel aged beer but a nice fruit ale with a hint of wood.  This is a tasty brew that will appeal to more than just the beer geek.

Commercial Description:   A fun experiment gone horribly right. It started with a mild ale and a plan to load it full of bourbon and peaches. When we realized we had missed the harvest, we shifted gears and used fresh Fraser Valley blackberries. After adding in the second case of bourbon and the last of the blackberries, we knew we had brewed up something special.  This limited release ale brings together the sweet-tart flavour of Blackberry and the mellow woody finish of Kentucky bourbon. An extremely refreshing and well balanced seasonal beer. Brewed with locally sourced Fraser Valley blackberries, Kentucky bourbon and Pekko hops.

Field Guide Ale – Coast Mountain Brewing

by Mike

From Coast Mountain Brewing in Whistler comes their “Field Guide Ale”. The beer pours an amber colour with a white head. The aroma consists of fruity notes, caramel and grainy malts and some floral hops.  The flavour is of bready, grainy and caramel malts with citrus, mild hops bitterness and maybe some earth.  The alcohol content comes in at 5.2% with an IBU of 30.  This is a tasty what I would assume to be a Pale Ale and will fit right in to the atmosphere in the mountain town.

Commercial Description:  German and English specialty malts provide a beautiful body of biscuits, crackers and light caramels. While generous additions of Cascade hops lead us into to a pleasurable back note of grapefruit. This is the perfect lifestyle wrapped up in a pint, always evolving, relaxed & full of flavour.

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Tippy Canoe Wild Rice Ale – Lake of the Woods Brewing Co.

by Mike

From Kenora Ontario’s Lake of the Woods Brewing Company comes their “Tippy Canoe Wild Rice Ale”.  The beer pours an amber colour with an off white head.  The aroma consists of grainy malts, wild rice and mild fruit.  The flavour is of bready grain, wild rice, caramel, mild fruit, grassy hops but no bittering hops.  The alcohol content comes in at 6% with an IBU of 25.  This beer is no world beater but it is well executed and refreshing.

Commercial Description:  This uniquely northern beer is brewed with malted barley & wild rice. Wild rice (harvested in our area) is added to the boil, giving this beer a distinctive nutty finish. Wild rice, also known as Manoomin, which translates into ‘the good berry’ in Ojibwe, has played a major role in the lives of Ojibwe people in our region for centuries.

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Idle Hands Oaked Orange Ale – Red Arrow Brewing

by Mike

From Duncan BC’s Red Arrow Brewing comes their “Idle Hands Oaked Orange Ale”.  The beer pours a brown colour with an off white head.  The aroma consists of orange, oak, orange rind and some vanilla.  The flavour of orange, more citrus, oak, earth, toffee and vanilla.  The alcohol content comes in at 6.66%.  I am not really not a fan of orange flavour in beer but I am always excited to get new beers from hard to get breweries in Vancouver.  This beer was not really my thing but I am sure that there will be lots of people that quite enjoy this.

Commercial Description:  This belly warming brew clocks in at 6.66% and will help ease the chill of those winter nights. A malty ale brewed with candied orange peel and oak, this beer has a warm embrace followed with flavours of orange blossom and vanilla bean.

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Craftmaster 12 – Red Truck Beer

by Mike

Red Truck Beer Company has launched a mixed 12 case since the opening of their new brewery in Vancouver.  The mixed case is called the Craftmaster 12 and includes 3x IPA, 3x ISA, 3x Ale and 3x lager.

Going with the truck theme of the brewery the box has a pretty workman like look and really resembles a toolbox.  The mix of beer is pretty darn good with two beers that feature more hops an ale that would probably come in as an amber ale and a easy drinking lager.

Red Truck India Session Ale (Currently Mixer exclusive for bottles)

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The India Session Ale or ISA pours a golden colour with a white head.  The aroma consists of citrus, floral and grassy hops and a mild malt note or two.  The flavour is of some earthiness, citrus, grassy, mild malts and a decent bitterness.  The alcohol content comes in at 4.2%.  If you are looking for an IPA with lower alcohol content then this might just be your answer.

Commercial Description:  A lovely light Session ale with a ton of Australian Galaxy hops. Perfect for the Outback…or even better, any local patio.

Food pairing as per brewery:  Thai, Vietnamese, Indian Cuisine (cream or coconut based curries go really well…and Vietnamese food is just awesome!)
Mexican Cuisine (grilled meats, and herbal, citrus flavours do really well)
Grilled or roasted meats such as beef, pork, or lamb (fattier, the better; IPA bitterness cuts the fat really well) Burgers (but that’s a bit too easy tho…isn’t it) Sandwiches, especially with cold cuts Pizza (but what beer doesn’t go well with pizza?) Stronger flavoured cheeses
Note: Vinegar (acidic) hot sauces will exponentially bring out an astringent bitterness in this beer; avoid!

Red Truck India Pale Ale

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The Red Truck India Pale Ale pours a golden colour with a white head.  The aroma consists of lemony citrus, tropical, grassy hops and a malty finish.  The flavour is of citrus, orange, tropical, sweetness, mild pine, earth, caramel and hops bitterness.  The alcohol content comes in at 6.3% with an IBU of 69.  If you are looking for a good day to day IPA then this could be a good option for you.  It won’t stand up to the special release IPA’s but that is not what the aim is with this beer.  This is a great IPA if you just want to sit down to a few in a sitting.

Commercial Description:  A bright IPA filled with lovely floral, pine, and citrus aromas and flavours. A soft sweetness followed with a lingering bitterness makes this beer an easy drinking friend suitable for all occasions.

Red Truck Ale

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The Red Truck Ale pours an amber colour with an off white head.  The fact that it pours amber is fitting as I would assume this is actually an amber ale.  The aroma consists of caramel, fruity notes and a mild bite from hops in the end.  The flavour comes in with fruit, caramel malts, earth and a small but noticeable hops bitterness.  The alcohol content comes in at 5.2%.  I would not kick this beer out of my pint glass.  Again this is an easy drinking beer that may not knock your socks off but it will do exactly what it sets out to do.  It will be refreshing and taste good!

Commercial Description:  A blend of premium Belgian malts, plus German and Pacific Northwest hop varieties gives this luscious, copper-hued ale a wonderful complex aroma, a rich depth of flavour, and smooth drinkability.

Red Truck Lager

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The Red Truck Lager pours a straw yellow with a white head.  The aroma consists of biscuit malts, citrus, sweetness and a grassy finish.  The flavour is of biscuit malts, citrus, sweetness and a grassy hops finish and an ever so slight hops bitterness.  The alcohol content comes in at 5.0%.  If you know me well then you know this is not a style I gravitate to at all.  I will say though that this lager does have much more flavour than any macro brewery and does go down very easily.

Commercial Description:  Made with Canadian Prairie two-row malted barley and hops imported from Germany and the Czech Republic. Red Truck Lager is a beer with world-class credential.