J.R. Brickman Pilsner

341 ml bottle from Premier Wine and Spirits in Halifax, NS (May 2007) drunk a bit above fridge temperature from a Christoffel glass. A big, promising hiss as the cap is popped....light buff large-bubbled head pours huge but dies very quickly, leaving no appreciable residue atop the pale, very clear amber body.....nose is faint, tilted towards the malty/grainy with a more prominent honey tone than needed, and the noble hops, pleasant enough, recede into the background....a decent enough body, the malts are there if a little bit worty and underdeveloped, but where are the hops? just a faint touch of something at the back end, perhaps Saaz but really it’s quite hard to tell; again there is a stronger honey quality, and as it warms just a bit an unpleasant mineralic and vegetal character intrudes on the the mushy finish.....I could be a little harsh here, having just had one of my best pils experiences ever a couple of nights ago (Les Trois Mousquetaires MacAllen Pils) but in any case, this is a dud.

Bottle. Pours gold with large fine white top. Fairly hoppy nose I would even say spicy with light sweetness. Medium bodied with medium deep sweet pale malt and green bitter hoppiness . More of hop character shown in finish. A bit thin in body. Gentle tweaking with barley malt should do the trick. Because of that alcohol was exposed more than intended. Step in the right direction from Ontario medium sized microbrewery.

Golden pils with a creamy white head. A sweet malt aroma with fruity esters and czech hops. In mouth, a clean crispy malt with fruity notes, a good crisp hops. This is one classy pils, very pleasant and quaffable.

Bottle (341ml). At BeerBistro, 2006 Golden Tap Awards. Oily gold pour, average white head. Here’s an improvement - only SOME diactyl caramel nastiness in the aroma (unlike their lame amber, which was redolent with it), some dead perfumy hops. Taste is pretty decent - lightly caramel malt, solid presence of dry, lightly floral/herbaceous hops, quick finish but not too sweet. Average body, quite lively (almost annoyingly fizzy) - quite drinkable.

TFOB 2006. Yellow body with a small white head. Mild aroma of light hops and malt. Light bitterness and some pale malt. Not that different from the regular Brick lager, but its quaffable. Average palate.