Review: Big Rock Life of Chai Ale

Yesterday right before work, I got a call from John, the Manitoba rep at Big Rock telling me that he had some beer for me to try out! He came right to my place with these two gigantic boxes full of beer, one box was full of their new "Family Jewels" taster pack and a bunch of Life of Chai. Sure I had to work immediately after he left, but whenever I get random beer, I'm always giddy to try something new! I also have to say that more breweries need reps like John, insanely passionate about beer, love talking about how some small towns in Montana have more microbreweries than gas stations! Apparently he wasn't a beer geek until fairly recently, previously was a wine-o. But hey, I know a lot of wine connoisseurs who eventually made the move to beer, because there's much more to golden lager and ales out there, oh so much more.

Let's drink up some Life of Chai!

Appearance: Pours a clear, nice red-caramel. Reminiscent to the standard Big Rock Traditional ale, a nice caramelly ale, one of my go-to beers at the pub. Minimal snow white head that's gracing the side of the glass, decent carbonation.

Aroma: This is obviously going to be the autumn beer for Big Rock, it's an aromatic, sweet ale, reminiscent of the changing of the leaves right before the long and gloomy winter begins. Rich aroma of chai tea, caramel malt, rich cinnamon scent, sugar, nutmeg, ginger and a bit of a spicy heat in there. Also a bit of a breadiness in there.

Taste: Very much like the aroma, rich chai tea taste.. this ain't your CLIT (Coors Light Iced T for those who forgot that monstrosity existed). A bit of heat to the palate, likely from the cinnamon, a nice cinnamon & nutmeg sweetness in here. Reminiscent about just about any Big Rock beer out there, especially reminiscent of the Traditional Ale, but quite a decent tea ale, especially perfect for a chilly October.

Overall Thoughts: A decent tea ale, nice autumn notes of cinnamon, ginger and clove to help you savour the leaves changing colours and have one last pint outdoors before your patio is under 3 feet of snow. If you're a fan of their Traditional Ale, you will appreciate this beer. I wish it had a bit more of a cinnamon zest, akin to their oldschool Winter Spice Ale.. thaaat was good. Though my favourite by theirs of all time was their oldschool Espresso Stout. 6.0% ABV

www.bigrockbeer.com/beer/life-chai-ale