Review: Trou du Diable - MacTavish In Memoriam Pale Ale

The very first time most Canadians ever heard of Le Trou du Diable was thanks to the Shawinigan based brewery's homage to hometown hero, Jean Chretien, creating the Shawinigan Handshake, before then.. and since then.. their beer has become a hot commodity, so popular that it was impossible to find in most of Quebec until they recently expanded their brewery. When I saw different varieties of Trou du Diable in Quebec City, I had to buy as many as I could! Starting off with MacTavish In Memorium

MacTavish is an American Style Pale Ale, which surprised me as I expected that with a Scottish name like MacTavish on the label, that it would be a scotch ale.. but alas.. Pale Ales are still a treat!

Appearance: Pours a clear golden orange with a bit of a dark copper hue. Very soapy white head, fluffy and absolutely doesn't want to go anywhere, as this beer goes down, the foam remains.

Aroma: Expecting this to be a scotch ale before checking out reviews (post-opening bottle), I was surprised by the nice sweet & citrusy hoppiness in this beer. It's a great aroma of hops like Cascade with a decent mix of Belgian yeast to give it a bit of a zing to it, lightly piney, bit of lemon, solid pale ale.

Taste: A light pale ale with a nice amount of piney hoppiness that doesn't overpower the palate, especially as I haven't had an IPA in weeks now. Bit of a grassiness to it, light lemon, and a slightly bitter aftertaste. Slightly metallic feel on palate.

Overall Thoughts: A lighter Pale Ale than I've had in the recent past, but still quite a tasty one at that, nice light hoppiness for a hot hot summer day, beautiful copper-golden colour, easy drinkability.. now if only Le Trou du Diable sold in Manitoba. 5% ABV, 600ML bottle and absolutely love the bottle, custom made just for Le Trou du Diable!

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