Another #Beersaturday and a new batch of beers to review. This week I'll be discussing two more Ontario Canada craft beers, a brown ale from Silversmith and a coffee porter from Left Field Brewery. Let's see how they faired, shall we!?
Nut Brown Ale
Brewery: Silversmith Brewing Co
Origin: Etobicoke ON Canada
Style: Brown Ale
Abv: 5.0%
IBU: 24
SRM: Unknown
Marketing: The can was a monochromatic brown color with the brewery's signature stained glass window imagery.
Bold white lettering anounce the style of beer and a short blurb on the back provides some additional info.
Its okay Marketing overall but its very consistent with the other beer cans that the brewery produces. You can definitely recognize the beer as being from Silversmith brewery when you see the can in the shelf. In that way, its a smart design.
Color: Just as the blurb on the back of the can suggests, the beer poured a rich mahogany color with a nice amount of tan colored head on top. The liquid was clear and looked filtered to me, though you can't tell from the photos.
Nose: Malty sweet aroma with notes of biscuits and some subtle caramel.
Taste: Malty and sweet upfront, much like the nose, with a good amount of bitterness in the finish to balance it out. The finish was long and lingered in the mouth for quite some time after swallowing. I got notes of burnt sugar, caramel and biscuits and a pleasant nuttiness.
Texture: Normal, standard carbonation with a smooth mouthfeel beneath.
Impression: I like all of the Beers by Silversmith Brewery including this one. It was fresh tasting and very flavorful. I liked the maltiness of the beer and the balance between sweet and bitter. A nice brown ale that I will buy again periodically.
Bricks and Mortar Coffee Porter
Brewery: Left Field Brewery
Origin: Toronto ON Canada
Style: Coffee Porter
Abv: 6.0%
IBU: Unknown
SRM: Unknown
Marketing: The can had a simple design with a red, white and baby blue color scheme.
No real design image other than the brewery's logo.
Apparently this brewery supports a local shelter and has raised over $49,000 since 2015.
Color: The beer poured a rich black with a frothy head of mocha colored foam. The beer was opaque with almost no light coming through around the edges.
Nose: The aroma of the beer was actually pretty mild, with subtle roasted notes, cocoa and coffee.
Taste: The taste was predominantly bitter that hit like a punch in the face upon first sip. Not a lot of sweetness in my opinion, the beer was almost dry. There was a little tanginess but then the bitterness kicked in and took over. I got some bitter cocoa, dark chocolate and roasted coffee flavors but all were mild and in the background.
Texture: Tiny sharp bubbles over a weighty silky texture beneath. Full bodied.
Impression: I typically really like porters but I wasn't a huge fan of this one. I found it to be too bitter with not a lot of flavor otherwise. I won't be buying this one again myself.