Toronto's Amsterdam Brewery announced the big news this week that they're moving the bulk of their brewing operations to a new facility in Leaside and will be opening a 900-seat restaurant next spring. The retail spaces in both the uptown production facility and the upcoming waterfront brew pub will feature more room for experimental beers like our subject this week, Calm Before the Storm.
This English Mild ale is the latest release in Amsterdam's Adventure series of small-batch and specialised offerings. Made on the brewery's pilot system, this programme allows brewer Iain McOustra to experiment with unusual styles and ingredients.
In more than just name Calm Before the Storm is a sister beer to the Tempest Imperial Stout. To explain why we need to get a bit technical but I promise to be brief here. The first major step in beer making occurs when an extraction (called a wort) is made from water and grain. In this case, after the wort for the Tempest was drained away, more water was added and the same grain was used again for the Calm. It's the much more delicious, beer equivalent of making a second pot of coffee without changing the grinds in the filter.
In my tulip glass, Calm goes from a Coca-Cola amber at its thinnest, to a deep, foggy-night black at its widest. The tan-beige head sticks around and leaves noticeable lacing on the glass. The flavour and aroma recall breakfast toast with a hint of Nutella's chocolate and a tentative sip of coffee. The slightly bitter, almost acidic finish would combine excellently with the rich saltiness of smoked salmon on dark rye.
Amsterdam Brewery, Calm Before the Storm, $13.95 for six pack. Available from the brewery retail store.
When David isn't busy drinking beer for his articles here, he writes about food and drink for Toronto's online publications including his own site, Food With Legs. For more of his thoughts on beer and life in general follow him on Twitter.
