Featured Beer Review – Two Coffee beers

Who will reign caffeine supreme between Half Acre Beer and Bellwoods Brewery?

Starting with the latter first, A Stout with Coffee from Bellwoods has a real big coffee aroma to it that is real nice. There is a creaminess to it as well that works really well. Thirdly, there is a bit of honey sweetness as well so you get a bit of an iced latte effect. The only downside here is that this is really thin to me. At 5% this is closer to being a brown ale than a stout.

Big Hugs pours with a lovely espresso head. There is less coffee on the nose and double the ABV of the Bellwoods beer. There is a creaminess to this as well but punctuated by an anise like sharpness. I have to admit that I like the black can as well. It fits with both coffee and imperial stout. This is a simple beer. Not getting layers of flavors. Would not label as a coffee beer actually and that is why, the winner is Bellwoods.

NBA City Brewery # 3 – Bellwoods Brewery in Toronto


Our last NBA city to visit is Toronto, home of the Kawhi’s. Sorry, Raptors. Before the season began there was a lot of back and forth about making the coaching change and adding Kawhi Leonard. But so far, so good for the team that always seems close but hasn’t gotten over the hump.

The brewery for the purpose of this post is Bellwoods. They have grown to two breweries as well as bottle shops. Below are my choices for an initial taster tray before or after the Raptors play.

Jutsu – “an American pale ale made with a blend of two different yeasts. This APA is highly drinkable with low bitterness and refreshing citrus and melon notes.”

Bring Out Your Dead 2018 – “Our annual (so long as we didn’t open a production facility that year) imperial stout aged in cognac barrels has emerged from oak classy as ever, ready to impress in a glass near you.”

Goblin Sauce – “a huge imperial IPA that utilizes a simple pale malt bill while harnessing the unrivaled intensity of Lupulin Powder – a magical, concentrated hop potion that contains exponentially more alpha acids and way less vegetal matter than regular hop pellets. And we loved the first dry hop round so much that we decided to double up.”.

Grisette – “earning the esteemed title of our very first beer fermented entirely in oak (aka The Foeder Pyramid™). It’s a low ABV, refreshing sipper dry-hopped with French Strisselspalt hops (a variety that’s as fun to say as it is delicious). The beer itself is dry, with soft brett aromatics, and complementary herbal, floral, and citrus notes.”

Hoppy Table beer – From the Ossington brewpub comes a sessionable, refreshing beer brewed with wheat and pilsner malts, that we lightly dry hop with a mix of noble varieties (and a pinch of citra). Quenching, subtly fruity, and incredibly easy to make disappear.