A Thirsty Beaver

This award winning ale hails from Kelowna, BC

@bhopps83 @cwmoulding #BeerRun @run_beer

“I’d like a thirsty beaver.” I said to our waitress.
With face that looked puzzled she asked “A what?”
I laughed, understanding that she wouldn’t of had many requests for the oddly named beer, so I repeated my selfing adding, “it’s one of the new beers.”

Ordering a Thirsty Beaver from a waitress or waiter may come with a few puzzled looks. But it’s worth the extra time it takes to order. You may remember in our last column we mentioned the Thirsty Beaver as being one of the great beer names of our time, and wouldn’t you know, not long after we wrote about it, Thirsty Beaver is now available (among a handful of other great, new, selections) in Saskatchewan.

This award winning Amber Ale is perfect for anyone breaking into craft beers. Seasoned craft beer drinkers will enjoy it as well. Even if it’s too middle of the road for a more seasoned drinker, the Thirsty Beaver is a great introduction to the Tree Brewing company. A brewing company who declare they “brew memorable beers regardless of style.”

It’s a four-week process to brew a Thirsty Beaver, according to Tree Brewing’s Brewmaster, Stephan Buhl. “We start with darker malts, which gives the beer its hint of hopiness in the beginning, and clean finish.”

A quick sniff, and the scent of the Thirsty Beaver does offer a hint of caramel that would suggest a sweetness, but it also provides a much more sour smell underneath. New craft beer drinkers would be wise to avoid sniffing the bottle, or glass as the scent of the Thirsty Beaver is very misleading. Seasoned craft beer drinkers will also be mislead by this first step because much of what is present in the smell is missing in the taste.

A bottle of Thirsty Beaver will first offer a lovely sweet taste to the tongue, but it won’t linger long on the tongue or in the mouth after swallowed. This lack of an aftertaste is created from the beer’s lower levels of carbonation. With less carbonation the beer has a bit more water in its base, cleansing palate quicker than usual. For those who smelled their beer before taking a sip, you’ll notice the absence of the sourness the scent suggests. For new craft beer drinker this mildness makes the thirsty Beaver easier to consume. Seasoned hop heads will, I feel, be a little let down.

The colour of the beer is also misleading. It’s a darker shade of Amber, which would suggest a heavier finish, however, true to form on how the company defines itself, the beer has taken what know from an Amber Ale, and added something to it. This beer tries to be different.

The Thirsty Beaver was a Silver medalist in the 2012 edition of the Canadian Brewing Awards (under the category of “North American Style - Amber/Red Style Ale”). Although the critics agreed it was a stand-out entrant, they probably had a hard time placing it into the Amber Style category. It wouldn’t come as a huge surprise if Tree Brewing were hesitant to call it an Amber Ale either. If “misleading,” “different, and “not as it seems” are terms we’ve used to describe it, imagine what the professionals think.

“The Thirsty Beaver has always been our most popular beer,” said Buhl, from company headquarters. “It was our full intention to create a beer everyone likes. We don’t want to offend anyone from our brand by introducing a flavour or texture that’s over the top.”

If you’re passing time in Regina, Beer Bros. occasionally serves Tree Brewing’s Hop Head on tap, bringing it in the Summer Months as a seasonal. Locally, Al’s Place is serving the Thirsty Beaver, as well as the MadCap Belgian White Ale in bottles.