Left Field Squeeze Play Cherry Pie Sour (4.8%)

Valentine’s Day is a mere seven days away, so here is the first in a week-long series of romance-themes drink reviews and food pairings. This one is for Ontario residents only, I’m afraid, but there will be more pan-Canadian features to follow.

Anyone familiar with my writing will know that I am not usually a big fan of kettle sours, and especially not kettle sours containing lactose and extracts. But not every kettle sour is the sort of one-flavour-note tin of boredom that I find so many to be, and occasionally a touch of judiciously added lactose and vanilla and almond extract can yield favourable results.

It doesn’t happen often, but as Left Field’s Cherry Pie Sour proves, it does happen.

Pouring a lovely and only lightly hazy red colour, the nose of this beer combines obvious elements of cherry pie filling – tart and sweet cherry flavours, hints of almond – with notes of vanilla extract and an oddly attractive whiff of heavy cream on the verge of going sour. On the palate, there is an up-front tanginess that makes me think of orange zest muddled with tart cherry, leading to a less tart mid-palate that is fuller than one might expect of a kettle sour – possibly owing to the oats used in the mash – with a lovely note of vanilla, more cherry, including dried cherry, a mix of citrus from naval orange to fresh lime, and a very light suggestion of fresh strawberry. The finish is dry, now more citrus than berry, and quite quenching.

I find it a bit pricy at almost $4 for a short can, but given the complexity of flavours involved I’d say it’s worth the indulgence. Buy a few for your valentine and pair them with an appetizer board of duck liver pâté, hard and soft goat cheeses, and fresh baguette.   

83 ($3.95/355 ml)