Part of being an unabashed craft beer fan is that it is very easy to shop for me.
My law partner was at a wedding in Port Perry, Ontario last weekend, and very generously brought back a goodie bag from Old Flame Brewing Co., which has been on my “to try” list for quite some time now.
I’ve had friends from Durham and Peterborough Regions raving about their brews, so I was thrilled to give it a try. Housed in a heritage building where the former Ontario Carriage Works was located in Port Perry, it is a lovely location that I look forward to visiting.
I started my sampling of Old Flame with Scary Mary, a limited release Double IPA. Clocking in at 8.0% and a whopping 108 IBUs, just the look of the mid-amber pour made my mouth water. The head was very light and loose and it was clearly quite malty.
The first sip was extremely boozy and packed a bigger punch than I would have expected, and not much of the flavour came through. As I continued through the glass, a really nice malt came through, offsetting the high bitterness.
Because of the bitterness and strong malt, I couldn’t detect much of the hop, but despite the style, that was clearly not the focus here. However, the dry hopping added a very subtle citrus note that complemented the profile very well.
Overall, the finish was very dry and bitter, but not with the inky flavour that I find some DIPAs can have with a high bitterness profile. It had a warming quality and was quite smooth for the high ABV.
This one certainly isn’t for the faint of hops or for those averse to bitter brews. If you enjoy a high IBU pour, this is absolutely one worth trying. It will definitely have me coming back to Old Flame!
- ABV: 8.0%
- IBU: 108
- Style: DIPA
- Taste: Malty and strong
- Rating: 4.3/5.0
- Untappd Reviews
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