Grand River Plowmans Ale

Brewed by Grand River Brewing
Style: Amber Ale
Cambridge, Canada

Brown bottle, 500 ml, bottled on August 19 2008, gift from Steve Gamble received on September 13 2008, savoured on November 21 2008; eye: copper, clear, good effervescence, voluminous beige head that eventually diminishes, good lacing; nose: lots of malt, and even more bittering hops, grapefruit, caramelized malt, pine; mouth: bittering hops, lots of malt, more bittering hops, grapefruit, caramelized malt, pine, short and dry finale in bittering hops, light astringency, lightly sweet, rather bitter, medium body, slightly harsh texture, a bit thin, rather carbonated; overall: quite likable FRANÇAIS Bouteille brune, 500 ml, embouteillée le 19 août 2008, cadeau de Steve Gamble reçu le 13 septembre 2008, savourée le 21 novembre 2008; œil : cuivrée, claire, bonne effervescence, mousse beige abondante qui diminue éventuellement, bonne dentelle; nez : beaucoup de malt, et encore plus de houblon amérisant, pamplemousse, malt caramélisé, pin; bouche : houblon amérisant, beaucoup de malt, encore du houblon amérisant, pamplemousse, malt caramélisé, pin, finale sèche et courte en houblon amérisant, légère astringence, légèrement sucrée, plutôt amère, corps moyen, texture légèrement rugueuse, un peu mince, plutôt carbonatée; en résumé : bien aimé

Bottle at Volo. The color is amber with a thin beige head. The taste is of citrus fruits with hops and malt that gives it it’s sweetnes. For me this is an average ale.

In short: An earthy and hoppy amber ale. Good stuff.
How: Bottle 500ml from matt7215, thanks a lot Matt. Consumed very fresh, bottling date October 03 2008, drank 12 days later (October 15 2008).
The look: Clear amber body topped by a medium beige head with medium retention
In long: Intriguing nose, very hoppy for a so-called amber ale with lots of perfumy flowers citrus. Taste has a good amount of earthy caramelized despite a rather light body. Fresh red fruits and even a hint of pineapple. The perfumy note of the aroma translate into earthy leafy hops in the taste with a slight dark tea and green tea flavour. Hopping is actually reminiscent of a ESB but with a dirtier caramelized body. Nice beer. But calling a beer Plowman’s Ale up here in the snowy north is not really appealing, it’s like calling a beer the Dentist’s Ale in England.

Draught @ Winking Judge. Deep amber with small off-white head. Grapefruity hop aroma is subtle, not in your face. Smooth, balanced, quaffable with low carbonation. Solid malts and hops both. Pretty nice but thins out in the finish a lot.

Reddish - and a bit of brown. Earthy aroma with hints of pine. Very earthy, rich, slightly woody, slightly lemony taste. Nice brew.

500mL bottle, bottling date indistinguishable. Pours a deep, clear, ruby-amber color; off-white head with solid web-like lacing. Crystal malts, sweet red fruits, and caramel in the aroma; some earthy bitterness. Medium mouthfeel: dried fruits, earthy hops, some light citrus; basic malt core with slightly rough hop character; some cardboard and toastiness at the core. The least remarkable of the Grand River beers I’ve tried to date. A touch watery at the perimeter. Medium finish: earthy and light mineral bitterness, dry toasty malts; mildly rough throughout.

Not bad this is one of my favourites from the brewery. Clean brown with light head. Aroma has some sweet malts and a bit of breadiness to it. Flavour is a little buttery and like fresh white bread but it has a nice amout of bitter to it. Medium body.

This stuff is good. If you like bitters than this is a beer to rush out in try. The beer is very bitter, ikely the most bitter beer I’ve ever tried. Yet despite this this beer is very drinkable, and is a great session beer. Of all the grand river beers I’ve tried (4), this is the best one. Though they are all very good. Great job on a great beer.