Beer O'Clock: Half Remembered Dream

You would think that with my reluctance to sour beer, I would shy away from a brewery that is all about the pucker.

Not so with one of Kanata's newish breweries, which will celebrate it's first anniversary next month.

Small Pony Barrel Works (101 Schneider Road, near Carling) ages all of their brews in oak barrels, and when you visit the brewery, barrels are inescapable: small tables let you sit and sample a pint or two (and, hey, the edges of the barrels will contain your drink, should you have the misfortune of spilling it); rows of stacked barrels run the length of the back of the brewery; and the aroma of oak, hops, and malt fill the air.

I briefly visited SPBW on Sunday afternoon and the place was empty, save the young woman who was busy affixing labels to the latest batch. While there is a tasting room, I was interested only in snapping some photos, grabbing a sample of ales, and heading out. Perhaps, if there were others milling about and I had more time, I might have stayed for a pint to get the true feel of the brewery.

I'll have to come back.

If you want to take beer with you, they have a decent selection but they are available in 750 ml bottles only. That's a pint and a half, so it's no large feat to finish a bottle in one sitting. But I was taken aback by the cost of a bottle, where prices ranged from $15 to $18.

I get it: you'd pay that much for a good bottle of wine. But we're talking beer, where the average cost of that much beer is about six or seven dollars. If I go to a pub for a pint, I'm going to pay about seven or eight bucks.

When a can of beer from a brewery is $5, I expect that the contents are going to be good. SPBW is charging at least double that price.

It had better knock my socks off.

Fortunately, of the three bottles I've tried so far, I can't complain about the quality. Ci-Tron (4.3% ABV) is a Berliner Weiss-inspired ale with loads of tart lemon flavour that can cut through a good curry and actually paired incredibly well with lemon-meringue pie. Respect Your Elders (6.4% ABV), also German-influenced, has lovely tart and floral notes, the floral being elderflower (with coriander and sea salt). While the sourness was there, it was a complement to the flavours rather than the centre of the show.

When I picked my bottles, I asked for their flagship brew, and I was pointed to Half Remembered Dream (5% ABV), a blend of sours with rose hips and hibiscus. Let's take a closer look at it.

Appearance: unfiltered, glowing orange with a hint of pink. I was reminded of the soda, Orange Crush. The foamy-white head also had a tinge of pink and poured thick, but quickly settled to a small, thin lace that was composed of an intense effervescence of minuscule bubbles, and then disappeared altogether.

Nose: sour grapefruit and floral notes, with a candied overtone. The back label describes Swedish berries and I thought, ah-ha, that's it! As with its appearance, Half Remembered Dream smelled more like a soda than a beer. (That's not a criticism.)

Palate: initially, the mouth feel brought memories of Orange Crush, but sour. In the finish, however, a touch of sweetness came through to the centre of my tongue. The rose hips and hibiscus are there but subtly play with your taste buds. It's tart, then sweet, then fruity and floral. As with the appearance and aroma, it tastes more like pop than a wobbly pop: it's light, refreshing, and seems more suited to summer patios than autumn leaves.

Overall impression: though SPBW doesn't make me a total convert to sour beer, its selection does strengthen my growing appreciation and respect for this style of ale. Half Remembered Dream is solidly planted in my brain and I would happily drink it again. I also liked the other two brews I tried, particularly Ci-Tron, and I'm looking forward to my fourth and final selection, Wild Blue Yonder (6.4% ABV), which I will likely have before this week is out.

If I can find any fault with Small Pony Barrel Works, I would ask the owners to reconsider their pricing strategy. Yes, your beer is great, but I've had equally great beer that cost a fraction of what you charge. Given a choice on a store shelf, I'd have to pick up the lower-priced beer. It's simple economics: I can buy more with my bucks.

SPBW is a luxury—the question is, can you afford it? I spent $63 on four bottles. For that price, I could buy a lot more beer and be just as happy, but for a lot longer.

Beer O'Clock rating: 🍺🍺🍺 Luckily, I don't take price into consideration when I rate beer. Half Remembered Dream is perfectly balanced, perfectly flavoured, and is a beer that I recommend based on quality alone. Break the bank and treat yourself at least once.

Cheers!