Lake Of Bays Spring Maple Belgian Ale

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

750ml bottle
7.0% ABV
King/Spadina LCBO Outlet (Toronto, Ontario, Canada)
March 9, 2013
The beer pours a hazed light gold colour with almost no head. The aroma definitely has maple in it, fruit, yeast and grains. Mouthfeel is light to medium bodied with mild carbonation. The flavour is yeast, grains, and light fruits. Quite refreshing, moreso than flavourful.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 3 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 4 | Overall: 4

The flavour and after taste did not appeal to me, period. Will not buy again. It seems odd to me to add maple syrup to a blonde belgium - I have enjoyed other beers that have syrup, but they were dark beers.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8

Bottle from LCBO – one of the things that really POs me about craft brewers is this race to get seasonals out before others do – this seems to be the tick here with a Maple brew out in Feb. before the sap is running – I was naturally suspicious of the “fresh made” aspect of this beer. But I was pleasantly surprised. This clear golden ale has Belgian yeast esters and maple in the aroma (a welcome nonconventional amalgam). Pale gold hazed look with a 2 finger white cap. Possibly too well carbonated but it is probably done to approximate bottle conditioning. What I like about this brew is the light character with Belgian yeast esters and dry biscuit malt notes mingling with understated maple tones. A really nice drink – but too expensive to make it a habit.

Aroma: 5 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Not sure about the Belgian Blonde Ale part, but definitely spring maple. Very maple, with maple syrup from Ontario. Pours a clean amber colour with a frothy warm cap, average retention and decent lace. Big maple syrup nose with burnt sugars, butterscotch, caramel and cereal malts. The taste is sweet, but not overpowering, with hints of apricots, mild hops and roasted malts. The Belgian Ale yeast shows up in the finish with mild maple sweetness aftertaste. A pretty interesting brew with the maple syrup that actually is there, and not subtle like most maple beers.