My latest Vue Weekly column ran this past week (I am a little late posting it here as I was too busy judging beer at the Edmonton homebrewing competition). It is a review of Rogue Ales John John Ale – their latest wacky creation. I wasn’t originally planning to review it. I had just picked up out of curiousity. However, after tasting it, I thought it would be worth discussing.
The beer, as you will read, is made with juniper and aged in gin barrels, a rather creative decision. Unusual ingredients are one of the things that get craft brewers all revved up and giddy – it gives them a chance to stretch their legs, as it were. However, it can be easy to overdo it and forget there needs to be a beer under the odd flavours.
At first sip I was unsure about the beer, but the more I lingered over it, the more it grew on me. A perfect drink for summer (if it ever comes). I like how the flavours blend and I never forget that it is a beer I am drinking, which must suggest the two Johns did well.
Read the full Vue review here.
May 31, 2010 at 10:09 AM
Having been on a big gin kick lately, I was excited when I read about this beer – I’m very familiar with the taste imparted by juniper berries in a gin, but I have no idea what these would taste like in beer. I’m going to have to grab a bottle to find out!
On a side note, have you noticed more beers being “finished” or aged in spirits barrels? This has been a big trend in the whisky world, especially with single malt scotches. I’m curious to see if it is starting to move into the beer world as well.
May 31, 2010 at 11:48 AM
Mel,
Indeed, there has been an increase in spirit barrel-aging going on in the beer world, especially in the past couple years. It is a good trend, I think – the wood-aging increases complexity and adds a new dimension to the beer. Even Innis and Gunn, whose base beer is quite boring, is more interesting due to the wood and scotch.
I wonder if any one has made a beer-barrel aged scotch or something?
I know even good old Jim at Sherbrooke Liquor is in on the act. There were three scotch barrels sitting at Alley Kat this weekend when I was there to judge the homebrew competition.
Cheers.
Jason
June 1, 2010 at 2:14 PM
Hey Jason – actually, that “beer-barrel aged scotch” you mention is actually the story of Innis & Gunn: William & Grant were trying to make an ale-finished scotch, so they dumped a bunch of beer in a bourbon barrel, let it sit for a month, then dumped it out and filled the barrel with whisky. However, the distillery workers, ever pragmatic Scotsmen, saved this oak-aged beer because hey, free beer. Turns out that aging in oak makes an ok beer taste awesome, and the distillery went on to start cranking out this beer by the gallon.
The website mentions that their Ale Cask Whisky was a big success, but I haven’t heard anything about it.
Thanks for the tip about Alley Kat – maybe we can expect a whisky barrel beer in the fall?