This is why it is so great to have the LCBO in my life - they use science. It actually came up in the Globe and Mail today in relation to some recent wine forgeries:
The quality assurance process undertaken for every single alcoholic beverage sold by the Liquor Control Board of Ontario, the largest single buyer of alcoholic beverages in the world, reads like a crime scene investigation checklist. Professional tasters ensure that the wine being sold has the appearance and aroma and taste of the varietal and region from which the maker claims it originates. Then the wine undergoes a battery of chemical analyses that search for things such as pesticides and metal content. Lastly, the labels and bar codes are inspected to ensure they are not forgeries. "If somebody is trying to pass off plonk as a top-end wine, I have every confidence that our sensory evaluation panels would pick it out," said Leonard Franssen, manager of quality services for the LCBO's quality assurance department.Wow. That's sorta like CSI Ontario (hmmm...opening theme tune? "Squeeze Box".) Thanks Len. Except no one really cares and no one checks up on the scientists, adding little but expense and delay while ensuring fresh is not a factor.
Why do I mention this now? Well, note the picture above. Someone had to scratch out the 3.7% alcohol by volume information on every bottle being sold in Ontario. Then they had to stick on another sticker that says "4.4% alc./vol." on the back. Trouble is RateBeer says it's a 3.7% beer. And the brewer says it is a 3.7% beer. Who do I believe? Do I think that a brewer would goof up and add 19% or so too many fermentables into the mash and not notice? Not likely. And Beer Advocate really can't even tell me what this is as there is a likely for-Canada-only label that says "Best Bitter Light Beer/Biere Legere" and the nearest number noted in their description of the brewer's whole range for a pale ale is 4.1%. So who knows? And, just 'cause you're wondering, the two numbers are not off by the alcohol by weight compared to alcohol by volume ratio. So there.Anyway, maybe the brewer botched the label and the website...and the style and the LCBO scientists are right. Let's go with that and open the beer by flipping of the slightly crusty cap of a well-aged LCBO import. Orange amber ale under thin whispy white foam and rim. On the nose, bready raisin sweet malt. Drinking, I note a very light ale buttressed by a nod to diacetyl, a cunning use of sharp weedy green hops and some light crystal malt keeping it from thinness. All I can think is whether it's 3.7 or 4.4%...it's maddening. Frankly, it's more like 3.7% to me but I am no scientist. No one is. Except them.
3.50 CND for 500 ml at the Ontario Science Centre LCBO.
Comments
irishkyle - August 23, 2007 5:00 AM
I enjoyed your rant against the L.C.B.O, what I find funny is they say its 3.7% on their website
ST. PETER'S BEST BITTER
LCBO 909739 | 500 mL bottle
Price: $ 3.60
Beer, Non. U.S. Beer, Regular Brewery
3.7% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : 2
Made in: England, United Kingdom
By: St. Peter'S Brewery Co. Ltd.
Just goes to show you how smart they are.
Stonch - August 23, 2007 9:08 AM
British brewers commonly brew their beers stronger for bottling as opposed to cask. St Peter's do this with most of their beers. I think Best Bitter is 3.7% on cask, 4.4% abv in the bottle. I can check at the Jerusalem if you want... they don't see many bottles of the bitter as its always available on cask, but they should have a couple knocking around.
Alan - August 23, 2007 10:09 AM
You check on that, would you? Excellent. Ask why they mislabelled the bottle if that is the case. Shout a lot when you do and use words like "confess" and "boycott". In a bad Spanish accent, please.
Ethan Cox - August 23, 2007 1:43 PM
At any abv, the folks at St Peter's knocked one out of the park with those bottles, I have to say. Thankfully, the beer contained therein is also generally superlative, the ones I've had at least.
Ah, LCBO woes... there are a great many reasons I would like to make a permanant move across the Niagara River these days, but yeah: your beer regulation is somehow worse than NY state's, and that's saying a lot.
Stonch - August 24, 2007 6:17 AM
I've never tried the bottled version of St Peter's Best Bitter as it's always available in cask form at my local. On draught it's certainly a good beer. One wonderful thing about the cask St Peter's beer is the slight inconsistency - for example the Lemon & Ginger is sometimes extremely potent, and the Best Bitter can be massively hopped.
Stonch - August 28, 2007 12:46 PM
I've checked with Dave who says the bottles of Best Bitter served in the JT are 3.7%abv - so that doesn't explain this apparent mix up.
I was at St Peter's Hall on Sunday - absolutely beautiful place. I'll do a write up on my blog with photos in the next day or two.