Grand River Plowmans Ale

Fresh growler from the Brewery..... Only 4.7%..... A: Copper-bronze, fluffy off-white head, good retention, great lace..... S: Grapefruit, grassy and slightly spicy hops; bready/biscuity malt with a little toffee..... T: Grapefruit, nectarine, grassy, hints of pine, toffee, bread, caramel, assertive bitterness..... M: Moderate body is creamy (great for its weight), modest carbonation, hop acidity..... D: Incredibly drinkable..... I’d say this is one hell of an American Pale Ale, especially considering its weight!

Powerful. Very punchy, forward hops, and more than enough malt. Rating is for the earlier recipe, they’ve changed it a bit since. I’ll rate the new version as soon as I get a chance to try it.

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.

I went directly to the brewery to get some of this. It comes in a 2L growler. Pours a nice deep amber colour with a ton of sticky head. The aroma is very malty, almost like maple syrup, with a bit of hops thrown in. It smells very sweet, and pretty enticing. The taste upfront is sweet, toffee, a touch of caramel, biscuity, then the malts make ways for some huge hops. Amazing malt backbone all the way through though. The finish is very bitter, with a significant hop bite, but also filled with delicious barley malts. The body is sticky with a decently fuller mouth-feel. Wow, this one’s pretty different than anything else I’ve had. Not all that smooth, not exactly easy drinking, but still a pretty amazing brew. It’s just so tasty!

1.9 l growler from the brewery. poured auburn with a huge frothy white head that leaves beautiful lacing all down the glass. very hoppy aromas. super alpha for sure. excellent bitterness but it is well rounded by the malts. roasty flavours near the finish that make you smile. an excellent brew.

This poured a nice reddish color with lots of head. Smell was a bit musty with a very strong hop aroma. Flavor was extremely bitter, hops very prominent here. A little bit much at times. Overall however it is quite a good brew, if you’re a hop-head I’m definitely sure you would appreciate this one.

Deep copper-amber in colour, thin beige coloured head, light lacing. The aroma is quite hoppy, lots of pine and orange with some light caramel malt undertones. The flavour is again quite hoppy, good amount of sweetness, the pine carries over and grapefruits are introduced, the caramel malt provides the balance. Bitter mouthfeel, medium body, tingly carbonation. Finishes long, hoppy and dry. This completely blew me away. Totally unexpected, a brewery to watch in Ontario for sure.

Cask at <a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp?PlaceID=1632 target=blank>Volo in Toronto, Ontario on October 20, 2007.

Pours a deeper shade of amber, topped with long lasting off white head, leaving good lace. Gorgeous, fresh aroma of leafy, floral hops, bursting with pine essence, citrus (lemon, orange), and hints of butterscotch and cotton candy. The inviting aroma is matched by assertive floral hops, lemon zest, grass, a touch of sweet malty caramel and bubblegum. Medium body, with a very forward and enjoyable bitter finish. As with other beers from this brewer, the focus is on balance, full flavour, and lower ABV. It seems they can’t go wrong. Excellent.