September 28, 2026

149/4895) Wvrst, Union Station, Toronto:  Chill Serum by Rorschach Brewing Company of Ontario:  ****1/2; 7.4% West Coast IPA; with pilsner malt; hopped with Citra, Mosaic and Simcoe; pours clear; fruity nose with resin notes; resin is more pronounced in flavours with resiny after taste;

Regretably, this was a part pour as the tap had run out.

150/4896) Wvrst, Toronto:  Rodeo by Matron of Ontario:  ***; 6.6% IPA; hazy; after the above it is a bit bland; juicy nose, mixed fruit flavours;

September 21, 2026

148/4894) Home:  Guiness Smooth by Kenay Breweries Limited of Kenya:  ***1/2; 4.5%; with malted barley, barley and corn starch; dark as night with a foamy tan head; malty nose with mild roastiness; sweeter than I was expecting; beyond that it has the roasty malt flavours one associates with Guinness but in this case, off set by the sweetness;

My wife brought this home from a health care mission to Kenya she went on.

September 18, 2026

147/4893) Craft Beer Market, Toronto:  Mind Flay by Chroncile Brewing of Ontario:  ***1/2; 6%, 67 ibu West Coast IPA; amber, opaque, nose is mildly dank with notes of toasted malt and citrus zest; flavours of citrus zest;

Septermber 17, 2026

146/4892) Home:  Oracle by Rorschach Brewing Company of Ontario:  ****; 6% Double Dry-hopped IPA; grain bill features oats and wheat; single hop Citra; hazy neon orange green; stonefruit and melon nose; mild dankness with grapefruit, melon and peaches;

September 16, 2026

145/4891) Fran's, College Street in Toronto:  Umbra by Brasserie du Bas-Canada of Quebec:  **1/2; 4.3% New Zealand Pilsner; brewed with traditional German Pilsner malt and Riwaka hops; alternately billed as an India Pale Lager; grainy nose and flavours;

This was a bit of a let-down as it took the place of Amsterdam's Boneshaker but the menu had not been updated.

Fran's has been open in Toronto since 1940 and they boast that they invented the Banquet Burger at this time.  It is a very old school diner.

September 12, 2026

144/4890) Badlands Badio:  September DIPA (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 8.2% DIPA hopped with Peacharine, Nelson and HBC1184; murky; nose and flavours of nectarine, gooseberries and citrus with hints of white wine;

September 9, 2026

143/4889) Home Martens by Brouwerij Martens of Belgium:  ***; 10% Extra Stong Beer (lager) with sugar and hop extract; clear, golden with a frothy white head; sweet honeyed malt aromas; considering the abv. there is only the mildest touch of alcohol to the palate; very malty; aftertastes of sweet alcohol; rather an odd one; one reviewer discredits himself to my mind for suggesting Faxe Extra Strong as an alternative - one of the worst bees I have tried;

“Brewing the future since 1758”

September 5, 2026

142/4888) Home:  West of the Moon by Bellwoods Brewery in collaboration with Dominion City Brewing Co., both of Ontario:  ****; 6.5% West Coast IPA brewed with oats, wheat and same hops but different water profiles, yeast and hopping schedules as the second of this conceptual duo; here California Ale yeast and hard water are used with bittering hops; clear, copper; resiny pine aromas; malt is much more prominent in this variant:  it is on equal footing with the pine and resin;

September 4, 2026

140/4886) Home:  Simmer (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario in collaboration with BreWsky and Bad Bones, both of Quebec:  ****; 8.2% DIPA; Badlands modified their malt bill to bring it in line with their collaborators; with Riwaka, Citra and Peacharine hop kief; shortened boil time; murky, pale; nose of citrus and stone fruit; opens with bitterness, sweet after taste yields to dry bitternmess;

141/4887) Home:  Bald Moon by Badlands Brewing in collaboration with Willibald and Third Moon, all from Ontario:  ****1/2; 11% Quadruple IPA; hopped with Galaxy, Tropical Fusion, Riwaka, Citra cryo and Wai-iti cold pressed hop juice; murky, nearly swampy; citrus and tropical aromas; dry citrus, pineapple and tropical flavours; 

While Third Moon are no stranger to QIPAs, this is Badlands’ first QIPA, and perhaps the bst of the lot.  A find way to end off the 9th anniversary release.  

September 3, 2026

138/4884) Home:  The Good, The Bad, The Hilly(2026) by Badlands Brewing in collaboration with Caledon Hills, Goodlot and Sonnen Hill all of Caledon, Ontario:  ****; 6.5% IPA; hopped with Goodlot Estate grown Cascade, Peacharine, Nelson Sauvin and New Zealand Cascade; cloudy; nose of stonefruit, gooseberries; tastes of stonefruit, gooseberries and white wine;

139/4885) Home:  Haze Positive (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario in collaboration with Superflux Beer Company of British Columbia and Changing Colours Brewing Project, also from British Columbia:  ****; 6.5% IPA; with New Zealand hops:  Motueka, Superdelic and Nectaron; cloudy; nose of pineapple and lime; mildly dank; pineapple, lime and berry flavours;

We are still on the 9th Anniversary releases.

September 2, 2026

137/4883) Home:  Grim Shapes (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario in collaboration with Track Brewing Company of England and Messorem of Quebec :  ****; 8.2% DIPA; hopped with Nectaron, Peacharine and Nelson cold pressed hop juice; murky, nearly swampy; nose of peaches and gooseberries; tates of peach, citrus and gooseberry;

Described as a mash-up of Messorem’s Reaper and Track’s Shapes.

September 1, 2026

136/4882) Home:  North South (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario in collaboration with Le Ketch and Brasserie du Bas Canada, both of Quebec:  ****; 6.5% IPA hopped with Riwaka and Nectaron hop kief;  murky; mostly pineapple aromas; tastes of pineapple with sweet tropical fruit;

The two collaborating breweries are from oppostie sides of the province.

August 31, 2026

135/4881) Home:  Hoodoo Ranger (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario in collaboration with The Establishment Brewing of Alberta and The Dandy Brewing Company, also of Alberta:  ****; 8.2% DIPA hopped with Nelson, Motueka, Peacharine and Wai-iti cold pressed hop juice; murky, opaque; nose of candied hops, line and mixed citrus; lime, citrus and stonefruit flavours; thick mouth feel;

August 29, 2026

134/4880) Home:  Nine (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 6.5% IPA hopped with Peacharine, Nelson and Riwaka; pours cloudy, the colour of pale orange juice; aromas of gooseberry and stone fruit; no dankness, just flavours of gooseberry and stonefruit;

From Badlands' Ninth Anniversary collection.  I am still not driving so I had these delivered.  In spite of protestations to the contrary, no one of any age was required to be at home, in practice, and no signature was required.  It was simply left on my front step.

August 27, 2026

133/4879) Home:  Resin Rodeo by Cameron's Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 6.8%, 50 ibu West Coast IPA; wheat added to the usual four ingredients; hopped with Simcoe, Amarillo and Centenial (sic); golden, translucent; nose of dry maltiness and resin; dank resiny malt flavours with hints of citrus and pineapple; more balanced than the name might suggest;

August 26, 2026

131/4877) Home:  Default Setting (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 6.5% IPA; hopped with Citra and Riwaka; cloudy; nose of citrus and berries; mildly dank citrus and berry flavours;

132/4878) Home:  Fox Furr (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 6.5% IPA; hopped with Citra, Mosaic and Motueka; cloudy; mildly dank nose of citrus; similar flavours;

August 25, 2026

130/4876) Home:  Augusta Pils by Kensington Brewing Co. of Ontario:  ***; 5% Pilsner with “sugars (maltose)”; Hallertau Magnum hop, German Pilsner malt, Vienna malt, Carmel pils malt and South German lager yeast; clear, light gold; bready, grassy nose; tasts of honey and mild citrus; 

The date of Kensington's aquisition by Mascot was April 2023.  I seem to have missed the memo. 

August 24, 2026

128/4874) Home:  Between the Palms IPA No. 33 by Collective Arts of Ontario:  ***1/2; 7.1% New England IPA with wheat and oats added to the grain bill; hopped with late harvest Motueka, Nelson Sauvin, Motueka and Nelson Sauvin hop kief; cloudy; aromas of white wine and citrus pulp; tates of lime, white wine, overall quite dry;

129/4875) Home:  Summer Ale by Collective Arts of Ontario:  **1/2; 4.5% "Sunny Pale Ale"; grain bill of barley and oats; hopped with Galaxy and Citra; translucent; citrusy nose; mild, washed out citrus flavours; pretty bland; pretty ordinary;

August 21, 2026

127/4873) Home:  Sharkducks by Burdock in collaboration with Bellwoods Brewery, both of Ontario:  ****1/2; 8% “super juicy extra hoppy double IPA”; “swapped hops and melded malts”; hopped with Citra, Amarillo, Azacca CGX, and Columbus; cloudy; nose of pineapple; tastes of pineapple and citrus;

  “a(N?) harmonious marriage of Witchshark & Ducks IPA"

August 18, 2026

126/4872) Home:  Cloud Town by Beyond the Pale Brewing Company of Ontario:  ***1/2; 6.0% Juicy IPA; grain bill is malted barey and oats; dry hopped with Galaxy and Cascade; hazy, nearly cloudy; nose is mostly pineapple; tastes of pineapple with citrus zest;

August 17, 2026

125/4871) Home:  Little Sipper by Beyond the Pale Brewing Company of Ontario:  ***; 3.6% Hoppy Session Ale; grain bill is malted barley and malted wheat; mildly hazy, pale yellow gold; nose of citrus zest and lemon; a bit washed out, as expected; mild citrus zest, lemon with a hint of tannins;

August 15, 2026

124/4870) Home:  Dig DIPA by Beyond the Pale Brewing Company of Ontario:  ****1/2; 8.3% Double IPA; described as Little Sipper’s bigger, louder sibling; hopped with Southern Cross, Amarillo and Simcoe; grain bill is malted and flaked barley; pours translucent; nose is citrus with pine in the background; resiny pine far is more upfront in the flavours; also notes of citrus and stonefruit;

Same mixed pack as before; from their Flash Series;

August 11, 2026

123/4869) Home:  Tasty! by Beyond the Pale Brewing Company of Ontario:  ****1/2; 4.9% North West style pale ale; brewed with four ingredients; translucent; nose of resin and pine against a caramel malt backdrop; dry, tastes of bitter, resiny pine; the malt is much more in the background in the the flavours;

From their Hoptastic Voyage 2026 IPA mix pack.

August 10, 2026

122/4868) Home:  Father of the Sun by Blood Brothers of  Ontario:  ****; 7% West Coast IPA with turpenes; hopped with Simcoe and Pineapple Paradise turpenes; translucent; juicy pineapple nose with pine in the back ground; bitter, resiny pine and fruity, juicy pineapple flavours;

August 8, 2026

121/4867) Home:  Supermarket Haze by Kensington Brewing Co. of Ontario:  ***1/2; 5.5% New England Pale Ale; featuring double dry hopping and the use of a "hop stand" which is further explained as four hop varieties blended in a hop stand; hazy, nearly foggy; blend of orange and pineapple to the nose; similar flavours, “juicy” as they say, but not overly so;

I wonder if the hop stand is a variation on "Randall the Enamel Animal" which Brock demonstrated at a Cask Social more than a decade ago at the Burger Bar and Tequila Tavern.  Brock went on the create Kensington Brewery, which untapped.com tells me is now a subsidiary of Mascot Brewery.

Yes, it has been a while - I suffered a detached retina in the other eye in early July which has kept me from drinking beer.

July 4, 2026

120/4866) Home:  La Vermontoise by Brasserie de Blaugies of Belgium in collaboration with Hill Farmstead Brewery of Vermont:  **1/2; 6% Farmhouse Ale/Saison; brewed with malt, spelt and American hops; translucent; musty, peppery, malty aromas; musty and peppery with hints of lemon and a touch of sweetness;

June 30, 2026

119/4865) Home:  Molina by Fairweather Brewing of Ontario:  ***1/2; 6.9% IPA; dry hopped with Cryo-Mosaic and Cashmere; hazy; nose is a tropical fruit salad; similar flavours, mildly sweet;

This is a retooled recipe.

June 18, 2026

118/4864) Home:  Brewer's Gold by Great Lakes Brewing of Ontario:  ****1/2; 6.2% 45 ibu West Coast IPA hopped with late harvest Brewer’s Gold hops among the four standard ingredients; clear, golden; bitter, floral, grpefruit and citrus zest nose; Old School caramel malt backdrop with floral notes, bitter zest and grapefruit;

June 17, 2026

117/4863) Home:  #Select Superdelic (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 6.5% IPA; cloudy; mild dankness and berries to the nose; tastes of berries with a sharp dankness;

June 16, 2026

116/4862) Home:  #Select Riwaka (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 6.5% IPA; a further New Zealand hop; cloudy; dankness and dark fruit to the nose; not so dank to the palate but otherwise similar dark fruit flavours;

June 14, 2026

115/4861) Home:  #Select Peacharine (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 6.5% IPA; swampy, straw coloured; dank peach and nectarine nose; similar flavours, save that the dankness is more up front;

June 12, 2026

114/4860) Home:  #Select Nelson Sauvin (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 6.5% IPA; New Zealand hops seem to be the theme of this release, in this case a blend of three different lots; murky; nose is gooseberries and white wine; passionfruit, glooseberry and white wine flavours;

June 11, 2026

113/4859) Home:  #Select Nectaron (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 6.5% IPA; another New Zealand hop; pours translucent; dank pineapple and peach aromas; tastes of dank pineapple and peaches with a hint of tropical flavours;

June 9, 2026

112/4858) Home:  #Select Motueka (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 6.5% IPA; Motueka is a New Zealand hop; murky/swampy; berries overshadow lime in the nose;  mildly dank blend of berries and lime;

June 8, 2026

111/4857) Home:  #Select Mosaic by Badlands Brewing of Ontario:  ****1/2; 6.5% IPA; with Mosaic hops from Oregon; cloudy; nose of dank berries and tropical fruit; tastes of bluerberries with tropical flavours – uncommon;

June 5, 2026

110/4856) Home:  #Select Citra (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario:  ****;  6.5% IPA hopped with Idaho Citra; cloudy, yellow; fresh citrus nose; fresh citrus flavours, mildly juicy but not sweet; 

The release of Badlands' annual #Select series is marked by a start of summer celebration.  This was also supposed to be the last weekend of the Badio, to be replaced by a much larger, indoor, space with proper bathrooms but things often take longer than they need to.

June 4, 2026

109/4855) Home:  Ruby Striker, IPA No. 32 by Collective Arts of Ontario:  ****; 8.0%, 32 ibu Double IPA with grapefruit; hopped with New Zealand Cascade, Cascade, Chinook and Citra, added pink grapefruit juice; cloudy; sweet pink grapefruit juice aromas are offset by a dry hop edge; almost a radler with pink grapefruit, dry, nearly astringent earthy hop notes and zest;

June 2, 2026

108/4854) Home:  Paulaner Weisbier Dunkel by Paulaner Brauwerij of Germany:  ****; 5.3% dark wheat beer brewed with malted wheat and malted barley; rich brown colour; aromas of cloves, banana and dried fruit; flavours of dark fruit and cloves with a  hint of banana and a hint of chocolate;

June 1, 2026

107/4853) Home:  Dora #90 by Badlands Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 6.5% IPA; this time around Badlands used a modified agitation process during dry hopping; hopped exclusively with Citra; cloudy; nose is mostly citrus; tastes of citrus with a touch of  mango;

May 30, 2026

106/4852) Badlands Badio:  Forks of the Credit (2026) by Badlands Brewing of Ontario:  ****1/2; 6.5% IPA;hopped with Galaxy, Simcoe and Mutueka; tastes of citrus, pineapple and peaches;

May 24, 2026

104/4850) C'est What Brewing At The Market, St. Lawrence Market, Toronto:  Tailspin IPA by C'est What Durham Brewery of Ontario:  ****; on cask; 6.5%, 32ibu East Coast IPA; 6.5%,a bit grainy and a bit hoppy with a mildly bitter finish;

105/4851) C'est What Brewing At The Market:  DIPA by Double Trouble of Ontario:  ****; I will go along with the discription from the menu card which reads, "big, rich, and complex with a clean, bitter finish;

C'est What Brewing at the Market is their newest venture, located in the lower level of St. Lawrence Market.  On weekends I would recommend entering from the outside as the market gets absurdly busy.  Today was a Cask Social.

May 19, 2026

103/4849) Home:  Fine Young Cannibal Chickens by Great Lakes Brewery of Ontario:  ***1/2; 8%, 40 ibu Hazy Double IPA with pineapple; also added are oats and wheat; hazy; pineapple and grapefruit nose; big bold pineapple flavours followed by melon and citrus;

May 17, 2026

102/4848) Home:  Frills by Bellwoods Brewery of Ontario:  ****1/2; 6.5% IPA; hopped with Freestyle Peacharine, Subzero Hop Kief, HBC586, Mosaic and Simcoe; oats added to the grain bill; hazy/cloudy; their site suggests flavours of yellow Starburst candies and egads, they are spot on; also candied citrus flavours;

Hop Kief is a concentrated lupulin hop liquid with hop resins and oils but no vegetal matter.

May 16, 2026

101/4847) Home:  Whistle Stop by Railway City Brewing of Ontario:  ***1/2; 5%, 30 ibu Hazy Pale Ale; grain bill includes wheat and oats; fruity aromas; fruity with a dry edge at the finish;

May 14, 2026

100/4846) Home:  Light Moves by Flying Monkeys Craft Brewery of Ontario:  ***1/2; 4%, 39 ibu “Small IPA” with brown rice flakes and rice hulls; hopped with Idaho 7, Sabro and El Dorado, dry hopped with El Dorado, Sabro and Dolcita; mildly hazy; nose of berries, melon and peaches; flavourful for a light beer with notes of  berries, melon, peach; not significantly muted as is often the case with light/session beers;

May 13, 2026

99/4845) Nickel Brook Taproon, Etobicoke:  Riff No. 2 by Nickel Brook of Ontario:  ****; 6.5% “No Coast”  IPA; grain bill includes oats and wheat; Cryo-Fresh Simcoe and Strata hops; hazy; nose is grapefruit with a hint of pine; tastes of grapefruit and pine;

I also bought some from the retail counter.  I hope this place is busy at night because when I go there during the day I am their only customer.

May 10, 2026

98/4844) Home:  Kombine by St. Bernardus of Belgium in collaboration with Weihenstephan of Germany, the world’s oldest brewery:  ***1/2; 6%, 25 ibu unfiltered Helles’/hazy blonde; dry, malty, yeasty nose; it tastes sweeter than the nose would lead one to expect – yeasty, spiced, malty; 

It's a a bit unusual, especially the story:  this is a  bottom fermented beer produced b a brewery known for top fermenting beers.  The word oxymoron is used, as an unfiltered Helles is a contradiction in terms.  In addition, this is the first St Bernardus beer not to undergo bottle fermentation.  They used Weihenstephan 's yeast and hops from each brewery. 

May 6, 2026

97/4843) Home:  St. Ambroise Ale á l’erable/ Maple Ale by Brasserie McAuslan of Quebec:  ****; 4.5% 25 ibu Maple Ale brewed with Crystal malt, local maple syrup and wheat; hopped with Golding and Willamette; clear, copper/dark brown – the same colour as maple syrup; nose is not overly sweet natural maple syrup; maple candy/syrup flavours;

Fram McAuslan's Influencer series.

May 5, 2026

96/4842) Home:  Whatevs by Refined Fool Brewing Co. of Ontario:  **1/2; 5% 25 ibu lagered IPA; “Lightly dry hoppedwith Luminosa and Sabaro”; golden and mildly hazy; faint tropical and peach aromas and flavours;

“As if we even care”

May 4, 2026

94/4840) Mugshot Tavern, Toronto:  Outside Jokes by Town Brewery of Ontario:  ****; 5% pale ale; golden, hazy; mildly sweet citrus nose; pleasantly sweet citrus flavours, particularly grapefruit;

95/4841) Home:  How To Pretend You're A Normal Human Family by Refined Fool Brewing Co. of Ontario:  ****; 6% Hazy IPA; grain bill includes wheat and oats; hazy yellowish colour; nose of orange, tangerine and grapefruit; juicy, mostly orange and tangerine; just a touch sweet;

May 3, 2026

92/4838) Home:  Kicked Out Of Another Tickle Party by Refined Fool Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 7% “West Coast Style IPA”; clear, golden with a frothy white head; dank, citrusy nose; dry astringent citrus flavours;

93/4839) Home:  Uncles In The Wild by Refined Fool Brewing of Ontario:  ***1/2; 5.6%, 30 ibu IPA with wheat; hopped with Sabro, Simcoe and Citra; hazy, golden, white foamy head; nose of citrus and stonefruit; tastes of citrus and stonefruit with a hint of coconut;

From their IPA Fun Box, 12th Edition mixed pack.

May 1, 2026

91/4837) Home:  Donnybrook Easy IPA by Cowbell Brewing of Ontario:  ***1/2; 4.3% 24 ibu; with oats and wheat; hazy, amber; lemony citrus nose; tastes of mixed citrus with lemon the most prominent;

“Named for a well known local crossroads – and a good old fashioned Canadian barn burner."

April 30, 2026

90/4836) Home:  White Faced Monster by Whitewater Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 6.5%, 17 ibu Canadian Hazy IPA with oats and wheat; cloudy, golden with a creamy white head; nose of fresh mango; similar flavours;

 The name was “inspired by legendary wave on the Ottawa River”, a Class IV rapid it turns out.

April 28, 2026

89/4835) Home:  Paddy O'Beer by Great Lakes Brewery of Ontario:  ***1/2; 4.7% Irish Red Ale; grain bill includes wheat; deep, dark red; malty nose; malty with notes of toffee;

April 27, 2026

88/4834) Home:  Witchshark 14th Anniversary Edition by Bellwoods Brewery of Ontario:  ****; 9% Double IPA; brewed with Skyform Pineapple Terpene, oats and wheat; cloudy, yellow; dank pineapple aromas; dry, dank pineapple flavours;

April 26, 2026

87/4833) Home:  Jutsui (2026) by Bellwoods Brewery of Ontario in collaboration with Kilter Brewing Co. of Manitoba;  ****;  6.5% IPA; with oats and wheat with the addition of Manilita, "a relatively new experimental New Zealand hop"; between cloidy and murky; nose of mango and strawberry, similar flavours;

This is their second collaboration - I missed the first - described as a "recipe blend' of Kilter's Jucii IPA and Bellwoods' Jutsu:  for Bellwoods's 14th anniversary.

April 25, 2026

86/4832) Home:  Double Monogamy Riwaka by Bellwoods Brewery of Ontario:  ****; 8.5% Double IPA; cloudy; nose of strawberries; flavours of strawberries and tropical fruit; 

April 24, 2026

85/4831) Home:  Strange Anmial by Merit Brewing of Ontario:  ****; 7.1%, 33 ibu “Juicy IPA”; brewed for Merit by Lake of Bays Brewing Co. grain bill is flaked oats, wheat malt and barley; hopped and dry-hopped with Sasquatch – Canada’s first homegrown hop – and Mosaic; cloudy; nose of pineapple with hints of melon; flavours of pineapple and berries;

Was it inspired by this?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJMKXgrJDnc

April 21, 2026

84/4830) Home:  St. Ambroise West Coast IPA by Brasserie McAuslan of Quebec:  ****1/2; 7%, 65 ibu; dry hopped with Sabro, El Doradoand Citra; pours clearand golden; pine nose; flavours of pine with hints of caramel;

From their Influencer series.

April 17, 2026

83/4829) Home:  Flipped by Aqua Nova Brewing Co.in collaboration with Sawdust City Brewing Co., both of Ontario:  ****1/2; 7.2%, 12 ibu “DDIPA”' opaque; nose of grapefruit and yeast; tastes mostly of grapeefruit with a dry finish;

March 30, 2026

82/4828) Home:  Home and Home Mosaic by Great Lakes Brewery:  ****; tropical and citrus nose and flavours;

March 28, 2026

81/4827) Home:  Gnome Offerings by Great Lakes Brewery of Ontario:  ****; 7.1%, 14 ibu Belgian Golden Strong Ale; clear, golden; persistent, frothy white head; sweet aromas with a hint of coriander, bananas and clove; tastes of candy sugar, cloves, mild citrus zest and coriander; 

“Drink responsibly.  Gnomes have been known to collect interest.”

March 25, 2026

80/4826) Home:  Riff IPA No. 1 by Nickel Brook of Ontario:  ****; 6.7%; with oats and wheat; hopped with Krush and Nectaron;  hazy/cloudy with globules; nose of berries, pine and tropical fruit; dry resiny flavours with mixed tropical fruit and berries;

Small Batch series

March 24, 2026

79/4825) Home:  Old Primeval Bourbon - Vino de Naranja 2026 by Bellwoods Brewery of Ontario:  ****1/2; 11.5% Bourbon barrel aged Imperial Stout aged for twenty one months in second fill bourbon barrels intially home to Vino de Naranja; grain bill includes rye and oats;  thin tan head, deep dark brown; nose of wine, bitter orange, dark roasted malts, oak; orange notes, wine, oak, mild bourbon; thick heavy mouth feel;

Vino De Naranja is an orange wine, a style which seems to be fashionable of late.

March 23, 2026

78/4824) Home:  Old Primeval Bourbon Red Vermouth 2026 by Bellwoods Brewery of Ontario:  ****1/2; 11.5% Imperial Stout aged for sixteen months in second fill bourbon barrels that initially held red vermouth; brewed with wheat and oats; deep brown with a scant tan head; nose of oak, bourbon, vermouth and alcohol; Manhattan-like throughout, as Bellwoods suggests, dark roasted malts, raisins, vermouth, bourbon, alcohol;

Old Primeval is the nickname of a giant snapping turtle in Georgian Bay.

March 19, 2026

77/4823) Home:  Hop Gun by Aqua Nova Brewing Co. in collaboration with Shawn & Ed Brewing, both of Ontario:  ****1/2; 7%, 28 ibu NEIPA; hazy; earthy nose with citrus zest; citrua zest and earthy hop flavours;

 “a wingman beer collaboration”

March 17, 2026

76/4822) Home:  Saintly by Fairweather Brewing of Ontario:  ***1/2; 4.1%, 4 ibu Dry Irish Stout; dark with a tan head; roasty aromas; mildly sweet and roasty; uncommonly thin mouth feel; 

We are instructed to “Shake the can & pour vigorously.”

March 16, 2026

75/4821) GLB Brewpub, Toronto:  Rookie Card by Great Lakes Brewery of Ontario:  ****; 6.5%, 28 ibu Debut Pale Ale/American style pale ale with oats and wheat; pours clear; peach, white wine nose; wine is muted in the flavours;

March 15, 2026

74/4820) Home:  Double Monogamy by Bellwoods Brewery of Ontario:  ****; 8.5% Double IPA exclusively brewed with Peacharine and Peacharine hop Kief; added oats and wheat; cloudy; strong peach aromas; mostly peach flavours with a hint of citrus; hop kief is a cryogenic dry hop product;

March 14, 2026

73/4819) Home:  Winter Dunkel by Whistler Brewing of British Columbia:  ****; 5%, 24 ibu; with wheat malts, Nugget, Challenger and Williamette hops, chocolate, orange and coriander; featuring 100% organic chocolate from Whister Chocolate Co.; orange zest and coriander added during the boil; chocolate and orange aromas; a festive beer, very much a chocolate orange style like Terry’s with chocolate with sweet orange notes;

March 13, 2026

71/4817) C'est What, Toronto:  The Day We Hit The Coast by Sawdust City of Ontario with Microbrasserie 5e Baron of Quebec:  ***1/2; 7% West Coast IPA brewed with keen euphorics, Motueka and Nectaron; hazy, golden; peaches and pine nose; dry flavours of peaches, pine, hint of citrus, lingering dry after taste;

72/4818) C'est What:  Decadence Milk Chocolate Stout - Cookies and Cream by Rorschach Brewing Comapny of Ontario:  ***1/2;   7% cookies and cream stout; “contains dairy”; pours black with little head to speak of; very sweet coffee nose; flavours of vanilla and coffee;

March 11, 2026

70/4816) Nickel Brook Etobicoke Taproom:  Peppermint Stout by Nickel Brook of Ontario:  ***1/2; 4.5%; deep rich brown; nose is toasty; peepermint mostly appears in the flavours;

March 10, 2026

69/4815)  Home:  Fruit Helmet by Bellwoods Brewery of Ontario in collaboration with Evil Twin Brewring of New Yorkm U.S.A.:  ***1/2; 6.5% IPA with fruit:  gollden raspberry, peach and mango puree; also oats; yellowsih brown, swampy; nose of citrusy hops, raspberries, peach and mango; rather tart owing to the raspberries, with mango overshadowing the peaches; 

On seeing me drinking this murky one my  wife asked if I had opened the mahgo juice she had bought that day.

March 9, 2026

68/4814) Everyside, Toronto:  (Just) Twice As Easy by Everyside of Ontario:  ****; a one off West Coast IPA twist on their Easy IPA; cloudy yellow gold; nose is floral and piney; dry floral flavours with grapefruit and pine;

March 8, 2026

67/4813) Burdock, Toronto:  Bears by Burdock of Ontario:  ****1/2; 5% West Coast IPA with "new age hops"; nearly clear; piney nose;  dry pine flavours;

March 6, 2026

66/4812) Home:  Achel Tripel by De Achelse Kluis of Belgium:  ****; 8.0% Blonde Abbey Ale; referments in the bottle; hazy deep gold; yeasty, fruity, spiced aromas; mild malt flavours with spice and fruit;

March 5, 2026

65/4811) Home:  Monk's Cafe Grand Cru by Brouwerij van Steenberge of Belgium:  ***; 5.5%, 22 ibu Flemish Sour Ale; blend of aged and freshly brewed triple ales; brosn; very tart nose; dry reaspberry like tartness;

March 4, 2026

64/4810) Home:  Baptist by Brouwerij van Steenberge of Belgium:  ***;  5%, 15 ibu wit/blonde/white; with wheat and sugar; undergoes a secondary fermentation; opaque; nose of coriander and cloves; tastes malty with coriander and cloves; a good example of the style;

March 3, 2026

63/4889) Home:  Piraat Triple Hop by Brouwerij van Steenberge of Belgium:  ****; 10.5%, 35 ibu Belgian style golden ale; four different hops added, three times during the brewing process:  Saaz, Tetra and Aurora, these are added twice in the brewhouse then it is dry hopped with Cascade; clear, amber; malty, sugary nose; sweet flavours of many a Belgian golden ale;

March 2, 2026

61/4887)  Bar Volo, Toronto:  Winterseed by Third Moon Brewing Co. of Ontario:  ****; 6.5% hazy IPA; hopped wuth Mosaic, Talus and Lotus, grain bill includes oats, wheat; berry, citrus nose; as designed, earthy notes with berries and a touch of citrus;

62/4888) Bar Volo:  It's Basically Juice by Wood Brothers of Ontario:  ****; 8% hazy DIPA; hopped with Citra, Nectaron and Motueka; citrus, tropical nose; juicy, yes, mainly mango;

March 1, 2026

60/4806) Home:  We're Going To Grandma's House by Great Lakes Brewery of Ontario:  ***; 9.1%, 14 ibu Bourbon Barrel Aged Coffee Cake Imperial Stout; brewed with wheat, oats, coffee, vanilla beans and spices; pours dark with a wispy tan head; aromas of coffee, bourbon, cinnamon and vanilla; tastes of sweet bourbon, vanilla and cinnamon with coffee in the background; very nearly too much -  I couldn’t manage a full pint but mercifully this was a 355ml tin;

February 28, 2026

58/4804) Home:  Brad Still Thinks He's Going To The Big Show by Refined Fool Brewing Co. of Ontario:  ***1/2; 5%, 20 ibu Blonde Ale; with wheat; clear, golden; mildly fruity nose; more hop presence than many a blonde ale; also more bitterness than many blonde ales; 

“An (sic) delicious easy drinker that’ll make you feel 20 years younger, for better or worse.”

59/4805) Home:  Esports Training by Refined Fool Brewing Co. of Ontario:  ***1/2; 5.6% Amber Ale; grain bill includes wheat; pours amber; malty sweet caramel nose; sweet biscuity maltiness with notes of molasses;

February 27, 2026

57/4803) Home:  Twelve Second Injury by Refined Fool Brewing Co. of Ontario:  ***; 5%, 30 ibu Kolsch; clear, golden; malty nose; malty with hints of apple;

With the FIFA World Cup coming to town, this is very appropriate.

February 26, 2026

56/4802) Home:  Riding Around In Tiny Cars With My Friends by Refined Fool Brewing of Ontario:  ***; 4%, 15 ibu light lager; clear; sweet, fruity aromas; crisp and fruity, a standard lager; 

Those were good times.

February 25, 2026

55/4801) Everyside, Toronto:  SmaSH by Everyside Brewey of Ontario:  ****; It is difficult to find details but this is an American Pale Ale, brewed with a single malt and a single hop, in this instance pilsner malt and Mosaic hops; translucent; mixed tropical nose; fresh tropical flavours;

The Brewmaster came downstairs to give what details I am able to report.

February 24, 2026

54/4800) Home:  Mediocre Bowler and Friend by Refined Fool Brewing Co. of Ontario:  ****; 6.8%, 25 ibu Hazy IPA with wheat, oats and pilsner malt, and a touch of lactose”, hopped with Strata, Citra, Galaxy, Mosaic and El Dorado; somewhere between hazy and cloudy; nose of strawberries and lime with mixed citrus; sweet citrus flavours with strawberry standing out; thin mouth feel; 

February 22, 2026

53/4799) Home:  Physical Inactivity by Refined Fool Brewing Co. of Ontario:  ****; 5.0%, 30 ibu pale ale;grain bill includes wheat and oats;  Galaxy, Nectaron, Citra, Vic Secret hops; pilsner and wheat malts; translucent; mango and pineapple stand out in the aromas among a tropical fruit blend; tastes of mango with mild pineapple;

From Refined Fool's Beer League Mix Pack.

February 21, 2026

50/4796) C'est What, Toronto:  Shifty by Wave Maker of Ontario:  ***; 6.0% IPA; hopped with Cascade and Simcoe; nearly clear, pale yellow; mild orange, mango and pine nose; pine is more muted in the flavours;

51/4797) C'est What:  DDH Nectaron Sunsplit by Dominion City of Ontario:  ****; 6.5% IPA; hopped with Citra, Amarillo and Freeestye Hops Nectaron; cloudy pale yellow; nose is pineapple and peaches with a hint of pine; mostly peach and pineapple flavours;

52/4798) C'est What:  Iron Eye by Blood Brothers of Ontario:  ***1/2; 4%  dry Irish stout on nitro; thick, foamy tan head; mocha nose; mild mocha flavours, heavy mouth feel;

February 20, 2026

49/4795) Home:  Macaroon Machine by Moorsleutel Beer Engineers of the Netherlands:  ****; 10% 55ibu Coconut Patry Stout brewed with wheat, coconut and vanilla beans; deep dark brown, scant tan head; nose is alcohol, coconut and vanilla; tastes of boozy coconut and vanilla with a hint of chocolate; heavy mouth feel;

February 18, 2026

48/4794) Home:  Eat The Salad by Fuerst Wiacek of Germany:  ****; 6.8% 44 ibu DDH IPA with oats and wheat; dry hopped with Vic Secret and Citra; absurdly carbonated; honey coloured cloudiness; treopiocal notes to the nose especially pineapple and mango with citrus zest; tastes of pineapple and mango with a hint of zest; 

This was brewed in Ontario for a German brewer.

February 17, 2026

47/4793) Home:  Whirl Domination by To Øl of Denmark:  ***1/2; 6.2% 69 ibu India Pale Ale; grain bill includes wheat and oats; hopped with Idaho 7, Simcoe, Mosaic and Citra; hazy orange gold; apricot notes to the nose; flavours of apricot and citrus;

This is the first IPA brewed in the new brewhouse in Svinninge.

February 16, 2026

46/4792) Home:  Maredret Alstus by Brewery John Martin & Brewery Timmermans of Belgium:  3.5; 6.8% 36 ibu Belgian Abbey Beer; brewed with barley malt, roasted barley, sugar, wheat and “natural flavours”; translucent; nose is spice; tastes of bitter ashes with mild sugar notes; 

Brewed by the sisters of Maredret Abbey with spelt and plants, inspired by Hildegard

February 15, 2026

45/4791) Home:  Hoser Juice by Double Trouble of Ontario:  ***1/2; 10.8% Triple IPA; murky; nose of citrus and pine; tastes of pine, citrus and alcohol with a bitter finish;

It was difficult to ascertain exactly who brews this.  Undoubtedly it is a product of  current events – “Not for sale in the US”.  This was formerly known as “Grim Reaper”.