Sleeman 20th Anniversary Ale

Sampler. Golden colour. Thin to no head. almost similar to a lager but a bit sweeter. Slight hint of malt. Not so good.

[1572-20080809] Tap. Bready yeast and strong grainy dough aroma. Clear, dark yellow body with a long-lasting creamy white head. More bready dough and lightly skunky grains flavour. Grainy medium body. Fair.
(@ Woolwich Arms; Guelph, ON)

Bottle at ’Toronto Festival of Beers 2008’. Pours a clear orange with a small diminishing white head. Aroma of grain, very light grassy hops and some faint sweet malt. Flavour: Ugh. Not awful but not good either. Grainy with light hops, some pale malt and a slightly unpleasant, light bitter finish. Average bodied. Shame on Sleeman, for an anniversary beer this is average at best and this rating is generous in my opinion.

Bottle pour. At Toronto Festival of Beers 2008. Shame shame SHAME on this wretched brewery for fobbing off this shite as a "special" anniversary beer - good lord it’s lame. Clear pale amber pour, flat-looking, a diminishing head (a reluctant 3/5). Smells like dry corn and caramel and paper, dead and weed-bitter, hints of skunk and plastic for added effect. Dead plastic taste - I’d swear it had been sitting in a plastic jug in the sun all day if I hadn’t seen the girl pull it from the ice chest myself - watery, dead, hints of cooked vegetable and an aftertaste that reminded me of pond water. Bad. Sleeman’s outta be ashamed. But they won’t be.

2008-08-10. Copper amber body with a modest white head. (3+) Mild grainy aroma with light yeast, and a grainy character that stirs vague memories of some other Sleeman’s product but I do not recall which. The grains carry over to the flavour, light astringency in the finish. Average palate. Bit dull, which I assume explains the severe boredom evidenced in the server’s face when she poured it.Bottle, Toronto Festival of Beer