2016 Polkies - IPAs & Pale Ales - Ales Part 4

I pledge allegiance to the hop and raise my glass to those who bring it to me.

This is the one countdown that brings me the most pain and joy to do. So many of these craft beers were like my family and to leave them off a list of favourites feels like I've abandoned them by the side of the road. Pale Ales and their more popular cousin, the India Pale Ale were probably my favourite style of beer most of 2016 and as I began to appreciate the hoppier aspects of their flavour profiles I also turned to the Double and few Triple IPA's that I could find to really give my palate a treat. Onward to the countdown, doubtless many of these are in Saturday's Drunk Polkaroo's Favourite Ten of 2016 Countdown. The difference between my favourite and number 10 is almost infinitesimal and really, any of them could be number 1.


Pale Ales
Most of the beers on this list are in the style of American Pale Ales that is thought to have originated in the late seventies and early eighties with brewers like Sierra Nevada and Anchor from California the first to market them successfully.There is often a blurry line between some of the stronger Pale Ales and IPA's but I've stuck to the brewers description for the purposes of my list because it is their creation and I'll respect what they were trying to accomplish.


1. Halo Brewing Golden Ratio

Big pale ale at 5.9 %, a beer that had me wishing I had bought multiples from this Toronto brewer. Orange, grapefruit and a little dankness on the nose with a whack of citrus, tangerine, orange, peach, pineapple, lemon and a dry, bitter backend with grapefruit lurking. Just enough punch to grab your attention and make you sit up but not so overwhelming with bitterness to scare off a newcomer to the style. Delightful and one I hope to have again and again.

2. Northwinds Brewery Brew Mountain (El Dorado) - Set up to showcase a single hops characteristics, this relatively young (6 years) hop strain was a hit with me. Coming from Ontario Cottage country and boasting an amazing brewpub to go with their great beer, this brewery is a must stop when you head north. Orange and grapefruit on the sniff with a juicy orange, lemon, grapefruit on the sip. Pine and grapefruit on the bitter, dry finish. A hit in late October.

3. Innocente Brewing Bystander - A crushable pale ale at only 4.7 %, this hop forward beer is a favourite that is readily available at the LCBO. Toasty malt body with crisp and bitter pineapple and grapefruit. Piney and resinous on the finish, a delightful APA.

4. Great Lakes Brewery Canuck Pale Ale - The legend of Gordie Levesque is always in the mix when talking great Pale Ales. Loads of hoppy goodness with lemon, grapefruit and bitter pine. Best deal in the LCBO at only $2.65 a tall boy, its almost criminal at that price to get this much of a great beer.

5. Muddy York Brewing Diving Horse Pale Ale - One of my first MY beers, it kicked a love affair with this East Toronto Micro off on the right foot. Crisp citrus notes of mango, pineapple up front with a toasted malt body. Juicy with grapefruit and pine on the finish. A gem of a place with beer to match.

6. Sawdust City Brewing Golden Beach Pale Ale

7. Manantler Brewing The Citra Situation

8. Nickel Brook Brewing Naughty Neighbour

9. Bellwoods Brewery Monogamy (Centennial)

10. Great Lakes Brewery 666 Pale Ale

IPAs

No matter which 10 IPAs I put on this list, I know I am leaving one I dearly love behind. I went from being barely able to stand them to actively seeking out more hops in a year because great beer has made me a better drinker. Happily I will begin my search again in the new year and am forever grateful to the brewers of these hoppy beauties.

1. Great Lakes Brewery Lake Effect IPA

When I first tried Lake Effect in early January it was like someone opened my eyes for the first time to what an IPA could truly be. The Tank Ten series from Great Lakes has become a revelation to me when it comes to exploring flavour and could be deserving of its own top ten list. Citrusy pineapple, grapefruit, peach and mango in a creamy, toasted malt body. Some caramel with a bitter pine and grapefruit finish. We will see this beer again very soon, both in the LCBO and on this blog. This was from January and still I can remember what it tasted like...that's a damn good IPA.

2. Collective Arts Ransack the Universe - One of my go to regular IPAs due to its availability and my closeness to the brewery. Growler fills are a happy occurrence. Big and citrusy with grapefruit, pineapple, peach and orange popping. Smooth but piney and bitter on the finish with more citrus make this a very quaffable 6.8 % IPA that had me clamouring for a quick trip down to the brewery every week.

3. Great Lakes Brewery Octopus Wants to Fight - Another Tank Ten beauty, I wasn't kidding about that series. Wide release in the spring, this big hopped up aromatic beer was filled with dank and resinous pine before releasing the grapefruit bomb. A constant in the beer fridge during its release, it was as beautiful as it was brief.

4. Bellwoods Brewery Roman Candle - Another one that hit me early in the year, this was the first time I felt an IPA was best described as juicy. Dank and resinous off the scent with grapefruit, pineapple and pine tangerine on the warming finish. Sticky and more piney resin on the backend. One I am always happy to trek to Toronto to get when it reappears.

5. The Alchemist Heady Topper (USA) - A Beer saint trade brought this hazy, sediment filled beauty from Vermont to my glass. I experimented with drinking from the can like they advise, but I couldn't get the aromatics, so I poured it into my Spiegelau. Am I glad I did. Big old resinous pine and grapefruit on the sniff with more of the same in a juicy, toasty malt body. Dry, bitter and wonderful on the finish. Only had it once, but it will grace my house again someday.

6. Brimstone Brewing Sinister Minister

7. Halo Brewing Radio Silence

8. Driftwood Brewery Fat Tug (British Columbia)

9. Great Lakes Brewery Thrust

10. Le Castor Yakima IPA (Quebec)

Imperial IPAs

These big and boozy IPAs are where my journey has taken me. From barely able to stand the pine and citrus to actively seeking out bolder and more in your face flavours. These are not to be slammed, but rather sipped and savoured. The closest and most difficult decisions of the year were right here, so many beautiful bitter babies from 2016. My lovelies indeed.

1. Amsterdam Brewing Fracture

Hailed as the King of Hops, this 9.1 %, 105 IBU seasonal release is a constant pickup in the cold winter months. 6 pack on the regular and its dank but bold malt body barely contains it's explosion of resinous pine, grapefruit, tangerine and sweet mango. Warming and a little boozy on the finish, it has more pine, grapefruit and a lingering dankness to seal the deal. Something to be said for slow sipping and loving what Amsterdam brings to my life.  One of the best damn beers I've had. Period.

2. Great Lakes Brewery Robohop - At 8.5 % and 100 IBUs, its arresting in its presence on the palate. Tank ten at its biggest and boldest with a dank and tropical nose that leads to a beauty toasted malt body that has a piney, grapefruit, blood orange and hints of lemon all over it. Juicy and finishing with an evergreen finish with a pinch of mango sweetness. One I hope to see again as the winter turns to spring.

3. Rainhard Brewing Hop Cone Syndrome - A summer beer enjoyed on a hazy, humid day, this 8.5 %, 100 IBUs pool beer was awe inspiring. Loaded up front with citrus on the sniff, it had a crisp and bitter grapefruit, pineapple and tangerine citrus bomb in a smooth malt body. Lingering piney resin on the finish but drinks like a session with more mango and citrus in a balanced backend. Just a beauty.

4. Muddy York Brewing Dereliction D.I.P.A. - At 8.2 % and 225 IBUs (calculated), this was another real eye opener for me early in the year. Big citrus on the sniff with grapefruit, orange and pine dominating. A smooth and toasty malt body holds the grapefruit, pineapple and bitter pine in check before letting go on the bracingly sharp finish. A serious slow sipper that lingers with more pine and grapefruit.

5. Collective Arts Imperial IPA - A late entrant that caught me off guard when its release was announced in mid November. Close to home and fresh in my glass. 8.2 % and 100 IBUs that made me realise how lucky I am to be in the Hammer. This is a grapefruit smasher with lots of dank citrus on the sniff and more pineapple, mango and grapefruit filling that smooth but crisp body. Piney resin on the finish with more grapefruit and orange to round out this gem.

6. Indie Ale House Cockpuncher

7. Boxing Rock Brewery Vicar's Cross (Nova Scotia)

8. Sawdust City Brewing Twin Pine IPA

9. Bellwoods Brewery Witchshark

10. Flying Monkey's Brewery Super Collidor 2.0

Black IPAs

Along with sour beers and Quads, this is the most surprising style that I fell in love with this year. The dichotomy of the hoppy and roasted malt was mind blowing the first time I tried it and any time I could find one I was all in. Not as many made their way into my hands as the other two categories so it's my Favourite 5 on this list.

1. Collective Arts Black IPA

First making me take notice in the late winter, this roasted hoppy treat made a reappearance in December to great acclaim. Not overwhelming at 6.5 % and 75 IBUs, it had grapefruit lurking under the roasted malts on the nose. Dark chocolate, coffee and grapefruit, pine, pineapple and mango in the crisp and smooth body. Bitter with a hit of citrus and bittersweet dark chocolate on the finish. Wowed me when I first sipped and took me away when it came back. A seriously great beer.

2. Great Lakes Brewery Apocalypse Later - Not surprisingly, a Tank Ten beer appears on another list of amazing IPAs. Big and bold with a 10 % ABV and 100 IBUs, this jet black pouring, thickly lacing IPA brought dark chocolate that was laced with pine and grapefruit. Dry and bitter on the backend, it had a warming punch with more citrus and dark roasted malts on the finish.

3. Beau's All Natural Brewing Le Coeur Noir - Late January and my first Black IPA ever took me to a place I'd never been. Bold citrus and roasted malts on the nose with a grapefruit, pineapple and dark chocolate cruising in the darkness. Creamy but dry and bitter on the finish, it made many appearances in my fridge while it was around.

4. Rainhard Brewing Nosebeeratu

5. Nickel Brook Brewing Malevolant

Well folks, that's all the styles I could get my head around in 2016 and now the task remains to pick my favourite 10 beers of 2016. I am sure a few of today's will be there when it comes out Saturday. Until then, I am off to contemplate just what an amazing year this has been.

See you in a few days with the Grand Finale!

Raise your glass and your standards,

One beer at a time.

Cheers!!

What Now?

You start off with the same milestones as everyone. People wait for you to roll over, sit up, walk and run. Then you go to school, get a job, get married, have kids, raise them, retire, be a grandparent and the cycle starts again.


What happens when you hit the one of these and stop?


I know that I am never going to retire, we are not having kids and I am increasingly unsure of what comes next.
My life has always had the next goal, the next achievement, the next chapter. Now I am a little lost because I sometimes wonder what I am working so hard for. Living to work is not what anyone wants to do, but when you have children, you do what is necessary to provide them with the best you can. When you are staring 30 more years in the eye and realising that at best you'll squeeze out 4 weeks vacation a year, you wonder why bother. What is the purpose of life if all it has become is the drudgery of day to day, month to month, year to year. Small things to look forward to are good, but when you are faced with decades more of 50 hour weeks and living on the fringes of what society has deemed normal, it weighs on you. Happiness is fleeting and we hold on dearly to anything that brings a moments respite from the exceedingly ordinary lives we lead.
I hear about folks without kids who go on grand adventures, leave it all behind and pursue a life that they choose. Sounds good, but it is not easy to leave behind the trappings of the regular life. What would I do for work? Where would we live? What about our extended, albeit slightly estranged. families? Will it actually be better? These things run through my mind as I think about just saying no to all I thought I wanted until very recently.
At 43, is it too late to start again?
I wish I had an answer. It has been haunting me for some time now as we move further away from having kids, I want to figure out who I am and where I want to be. I am certain that I was not meant to be 70 and struggling to live, working a full time job and just getting by every day. So many people live those desperate lives of work, eat, sleep, repeat and I don't want to become a drone who only stops working when I stop breathing. Following my passion is all well and good in theory, but a mortgage isn't paid in dreams and my partner in life cannot carry the load while I pursue something that may never become anything of value. Real life means the bills come in, you pay them and whatever is left over is what you can try to live on. We do better than most, we have more than enough food, clothes on our backs, a little fun now and then and a roof over our heads. This should be enough but I can't help but thinking there should be more. We shouldn't be locked down to some conformity that isn't real to us. We are not of the world that we expected and maybe it is time to explore the world we do not know.
Dreams stay just that unless you act on them, but what price is paid for pursuing them. I don't know that I will ever be brave enough to actually give voice to what I want. The internal struggle between what I thought was going to happen and what has happened is very real and I just want to find my place in the world. If I don't, will I lay there, 20 years from now, silently judging and hating myself because I was to cowardly to demand happiness. I know that I wish 20 year old me would have thought a little more about where we would end up because that guy was a seriously shortsighted individual. The pursuit of immediate gratification is my biggest regret and while I can do nothing about the past, I can do something about the future. I don't know where I will be a year from now, but as long as it is moving towards a goal I have set and made real, then I will at least have that.
 Life really is too short and when you start down the back forty of your existence, it is probably time to look at yourself and ask one thing:
"Are you happy?"
If the answer is no...well, maybe it's time you do something about it, because no one else is coming to bail you out or tell you what to do with your own life. This is when you make a choice and whatever that is, wherever that takes you, it is 100 % on you. No excuses, no regrets, no looking back. I know my time is coming and when I reach that fork in the road, I hope I choose wisely.