LCBO Food & Drink Early Summer 2021

TOPS IN HOPS

Craft lager Hop City El LIMERO Ginger Lime Lager LCBO 20138, 473 mL, $3.20 Zesty lime meets fresh ginger in this light lager that uses Citra hops. Innovative IPA Collective Arts GoodMonster DIPA LCBO 20118, 473 mL, $4.25 Expect notes of tropical mango, passion fruit, juicy peach and citrus fruits in this New England-style double dry-hopped ale. Low-carb/low-calorie Sleeman Clear 2.0 Peach LCBO 20091, 473 mL, $2.75 A golden light beer with fruity, herb- al tones and aromas of peach, citrus, sweet malt, and delicate hops. Best served ice-cold. styles and ingredients, leading to exciting taste twists. Add these new beers to your tasting flight. What we’re drinking this summer Craft brewers are playing with unique

A classic dating back to 1844, this saison goes great with mussels, asparagus or grilled Mediterranean chicken skewers (recipe at lcbo.com/fdearlysummer21).

Resurrecting old-style ales

There’s a lot to love about old-world ales— lambic, Weisse, gose, saison and other styles that were invented before modern brewing equipment. For Kevin Freer, head brewer at Block Three Brewing in St. Jacobs, Ont., the adventurous flavours make these ancient ales so special. Bored with “cranking out IPA,” he says he’s been experimenting with the “golden oldies” at the brewery. “Most continental European classic styles are fairly dry and effervescent,” says Freer. “Some can have an acidic component, while oth- ers are sweeter, with more yeast characteristics.” Historically, brewing techniques varied across time and place, gifting each style with “little quirks,” he says. Some German brewers used decoction mashing—removing a portion

of the mash, boiling it and returning it to the mix—whereas lambic brewers often used a turbid mashing method—a labour-intensive process that takes the mash through multi- ple temperature rests—to produce a cloudy, starchy wort (the liquid extracted from the mashing process). “It’s the brewers’ ingenuity at the time to work with what they had that gave rise to these styles and their differences,” says Freer. Freer uses a mixture of German and North American malts to create Hollinger Helles (LCBO 16539, 473 mL, $3.50)—a floral, hay-like lager inspired by the classic south German beers you might find at Oktoberfest. PS: Freer says it “goes great with shareable snacks like nachos.”

Gose Henderson’s Radicle Salted Lime Gose LCBO 19607, 473 mL, $3.85 A classic European style, it was first brewed in Germany. Ex- pect a bright, tart flavour with notes of floral coriander and fresh lime zest.

Saison Saison Dupont LCBO 551697, 330 mL, $2.95 A dry, bitter copper-­ blonde beer, it has aromas of fine hops.

Kellerbier Hacker-Pschorr Kellerbier LCBO 16936, 500 mL, $2.50

A zesty, fruity Bavarian lager with notes of caramel, honey and plum that add a subtle sweetness. Great for an ice cream beer float.

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EARLY SUMMER 2021 FOOD & DRINK