The Beer Wrangler

Beer reviews, styles, food pairings and more

Archive for category 3 Tankards

Maredsous Abbaye Triple

Mar 2

Posted by Wrangler in 3 Tankards, Ale, Belgian Golden Ale, Belgium, Trappist & Abbey Ales, Tripel, Wallonia, Wrangler | No Comments

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Maredsous Triple is golden amber in  colour, a touch darker than many triples, and has a strong, spicy, alcoholic aroma, which is not surprising when you see the 10% ABV on the traditionally styled label.  The palate gives off a strong hit of the solvent-like alcohol at first, and is followed up by grainy dried fruit, with over ripe pineapple and boozy marmalade oranges leading the way. The finish is dry, with a hint of orange peel and herbiness. This powerful triple is not as refreshing as some and struggles to balance its flavour with its alcoholic strength; having said that, it is still a worthwhile beer to try, and if you are comfortable with the warming mouthfeel, then savour the notes of fried fruit and spice with pleasure.

ABV: 10%

Best Served: 7°C

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Swan’s ESB (Buckerfield’s Brewery)

Jan 22

Posted by Wrangler in 3 Tankards, Ale, British Columbia, Canada, ESB, Pale Ale & Bitter, Wrangler | No Comments

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Swan’s ESB is brewed by Buckerfield’s Brewery on Vancouver Island in a popular hotel and brewpub in Victoria, that tends to brew British style ales and German style lagers. The ESB has a nice dark amber colour and is gently carbonated, in the tradition of ales from the other side of The Atlantic, but has a slightly more robust hop aroma than some. There is a nice malty body to this beer, with plenty of sweet caramel notes; these lead to a bitter hoppy finish that seem to envelop the initial malt sweetness.

Although I really enjoyed drinking this one, the flavours are not that well integrated, and the hops on the finish seem strangely separate fom the mid-palate. Never the less, it’s definitely one to try for fans of the style, as it goes down easily, and as it is lower in alcohol than most ESBs, makes a good session beer.

ABV: 5%

Best Served: 9°C

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Driftwood Brewery Blackstone Porter

Jan 6

Posted by Wrangler in 3 Tankards, Ale, British Columbia, Canada, Porter, Wrangler | No Comments

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Driftwood’s Blackstone Porter is a very dark version of this classic beer that has its origins in 18th Century London. It is a completely opaque black in the glass, looking like a stout, and is made with a partial sour mash, similar to the method used for some Tennessee whiskies. This imparts a subtle tartness to the beer, making it less sweet than many Porters. The main flavours that come through are cocoa and coffee bean, and is followed by a smokey finish. There are vague notes of hop in the background, but they are bit part players, (a welcome break for some!) supporting the dark bitter-sweet malt that dominates. This would be great with smoked meats, or flame grilled pork.

ABV: 5.1%

Best Served: 12°C

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Rogue Mogul Madness Ale

Jan 4

Posted by Wrangler in 3 Tankards, Ale, Oregon, Specialty Ale, United States, Winter Ale, Winter Warmer, Wrangler | No Comments

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Rogue Mogul Madness Ale is a  Winter warmer with bite. It has a dark ruby-brown colour and a fairly creamy tan head that stays with the beer. There are some caramel flavours with some faint notes of banana bread. The unusual thing for a winter warmer, but not unusual for Rogue, are the obvious handfuls of hops used in the brew. They offer a pleasant bitterness on the finish that tastes a little grapefruity, and tends to last for a while after the beer has been swallowed. This is an enjoyable beer, but tastes like a good ESB to me. Rogue don’t seem to want to make a beer that has been lightly hopped, and perhaps are now victims of their own dogma, producing a lot of excellent but similar tasting products. I would love to see them do a really rich malty winter warmer, as they are brilliant brewers but are in danger of becoming just a bit one-dimensional.

ABV: 6.5% (approx)

Best Served: 12°C

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Swans Coconut Porter

Dec 1

Posted by Wranglerette in 3 Tankards, Ale, British Columbia, Canada, Porter, Wranglerette | No Comments

coconut porterWrangler Rating:

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I have to admit that I’m bit torn about Swans Coconut Porter. I love a good porter and really enjoy porters that are layered with other flavours (Kona’s Pipeline Porter with coffee is my personal favourite) so when I saw this coconut porter I became very excited. This beer is very dark in colour with a frothy cappuccino colour head and a strong caramel malt nose with a hint of roasted coffee bean.  The flavour of dark bitter chocolate fills the mouth and slowly gives way to a toasted coffee aftertaste. Unfortunately (for me anyway) I don’t taste any coconut which, considering the reason I bought the beer was to try the coconut, is disappointing. That said, I think this beer stands well on its own as a porter and would taste great with some strong English cheddar

ABV: 5.5%

Best Served: 11°C

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Tree Brewing Black Tree Dark Ale

Nov 25

Posted by Wrangler in 3 Tankards, Ale, Black and Tan, Blended Beer, British Columbia, Canada, Wrangler | No Comments

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Tree Brewing are based in The Okanagan, where this summer (2009) there were large scale wild fires that destroyed thousands of trees. This beer was released in aid of the BC Fire ReLeaf Fund that aims to replace all the trees lost in the fire. This is described as a dark ale but is in fact a blend of two beers, probably the Cutthroat pale ale and the Spy porter. This makes up a well appointed version of a Black and Tan beer. The dark mahogany ale has a roasted malt note throughout that serves as its backbone. There are pleasant hop notes on the nose as well as the palate that continue through to the finish along with a dry, toasty flavour. This is a simple yet effective beer, whose smoothness and balance make it really drinkable and can be enjoyed with a grilled steak in the knowledge that it all goes to help a good cause.

ABV: 5%

Best Served: 9°C

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Propeller Extra Special Bitter

Nov 17

Posted by Wrangler in 3 Tankards, Ale, Canada, ESB, Nova Scotia, Pale Ale & Bitter, Wrangler | No Comments

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Propeller ESB is a rich dark amber / brown and is brewed in the traditional style of a British Extra Special Bitter. It has a nice fruity aroma, with strong hints of malt that remind me of a classic pub pint in the UK. This Nova Scotian brew is a breeze to drink, as the balance of malt and hops are good and makes drinkability a key factor in recommending this beer. The malt has a touch of sweetness to it, but mainly you get to taste its richness. The hops are North American though, and there is a nice herbal note and a refreshing bitter finish. This might not be a show stopper, but it’s a well made and drinkable beer, almost making it a session ale due to the alcohol being on the lighter side of a typical ESB. Pair this with a richly flavoured lamb dish, like a roasted lamb shank, as the bitterness will offset the rich fattiness of the meat.

ABV: 5%

Best Served: 9°C

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Anderson Valley Brewing Boont Amber Ale

Oct 27

Posted by Wrangler in 3 Tankards, Ale, Amber Ale, California, Red Ale, United States, Wrangler | No Comments

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Anderson Valley Brewing Boont Amber Ale comes in the large 650 ml bottles, and it’s a good thing too, as this is a rather quaffable ale. It is a nice bright mid-amber in colour, with a medium frothy head that doesn’t linger for too long. There is a hint of sweetish toasted malt on the nose and maybe a touch of hop, but not a whole lot else. This has a nicely balanced palate with the malt leading the way followed by some spicy hop notes. There is a bit of light fruitiness in the background but not enough to take away from the nice drinkable toasted caramel flavours of the malt. This is a well made west coast amber ale, and finds itself regularly in my mix of brews in the fridge! This would go great with a big plate of nachos or a juicy burger.

ABV: 5.8%

Best Served: 7°C

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Hacker-Pschorr Münchener Gold Helles

Oct 18

Posted by Wrangler in 3 Tankards, Bavaria, European Premium Lager, Germany, Helles, Lager, Pale Lager | No Comments

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Hacker-Pschorr Münchener Gold is a golden-straw coloured Helles lager from the great brewing city of Munich. The light frothy head dissipates, leaving a little lacing down the sides of the glass. The aroma has a pleasant light sweet malt note with a hint of the noble hops promised by the ‘edelhell’ tag on the bottom of the label. The body is light, crisp and refreshing, as a Helles should be, and feels very well balanced. The finish is subtly hoppy with a touch of sweet pale malt, and is supremely thirst-quenching. This is an ideal session beer to drink all afternoon on its own, or with delicately flavoured seafood. It won’t blow you away, but it does what a Helles lager is supposed to do – be easy drinking, pleasant and a good social lubricant!

ABV: 5.5%

Best Served: 5°C

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Granville Island Brewing Pumpkin Ale

Oct 12

Posted by Wrangler in 3 Tankards, Ale, British Columbia, Canada, Flavoured Beer, Fruit Beer, Pumpkin Ale, Specialty Ale, Wrangler | No Comments

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Granville Island Pumpkin Ale is a tasty bright ruddy amber coloured beer. The aroma is really quite sweet, and is reminiscent of a Belgian strong pale ale, smelling of candied orange peel and sweet spice. The flavour is thankfully not as sugary as the nose suggests, containing toasted pumpkin seed, and the roasted flesh of the pumpkin. The beer notes are not lost though, there are plenty of roasty malt flavours and a nice refreshing bitter finish. Why not pair this with some cold roast meat and chutney left over from a Thanksgiving lunch – it’ll go perfectly!

ABV: 6%
Best served: 8°C

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