# Drinking in the Sun WA Case Swap tasting notes



## Neanderthal (7/12/14)

1. Dent - Munich Helles
2. jyo- Belgian Blond
3. Velu - dark vienna lager
4. Mitch_76 - something pale with maybe a bit of JYO haze for good measure
5. Rad- All Amarillo ale
6. Neanderthal - Byford Bomber APA -* Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014*
7. Milk-Lizard84 - Lemon Saison
8. OBWK - English IPA
9. BRZT - TBA - Possible Split Batch... (Subject to work, either way will drop a case off)
10. Mikeybycrikey - *Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014*
11. Major Arcana - Hop Hog American IPA clone.


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## Mitchlj73 (7/12/14)

1. Dent - Munich Helles
2. jyo- Belgian Blond
3. Velu - dark vienna lager
4. Mitch_76 - Belgian Witbier CPBF Drink now!
5. Rad- All Amarillo ale
6. Neanderthal - Byford Bomber APA -* Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014*
7. Milk-Lizard84 - Lemon Saison
8. OBWK - English IPA
9. BRZT - TBA - Possible Split Batch... (Subject to work, either way will drop a case off)
10. Mikeybycrikey - *Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014*
11. Major Arcana - Hop Hog American IPA clone.


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## jyo (7/12/14)

1. Dent - American Amber
2. jyo- Belgian Blond- *CPBF, KEEP COLD and drink now.*
3. Velu - dark vienna lager
4. Mitch_76 - Belgian Witbier CPBF Drink now!
5. Rad- All Amarillo ale
6. Neanderthal - Byford Bomber APA -* Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014*
7. Milk-Lizard84 - Lemon Saison
8. OBWK - English IPA
9. BRZT - TBA - Possible Split Batch... (Subject to work, either way will drop a case off)
10. Mikeybycrikey - *Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014*
11. Major Arcana - Hop Hog American IPA clone.* Stubbies with green lids.*


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## Velu (7/12/14)

1. Dent - American Amber
2. jyo- Belgian Blond- CPBF, KEEP COLD and drink now.
3. Velu - dark vienna lager- bottle conditioned, ready to drink
4. Mitch_76 - Belgian Witbier CPBF Drink now!
5. Rad- All Amarillo ale
6. Neanderthal - Byford Bomber APA - Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014
7. Milk-Lizard84 - Lemon Saison
8. OBWK - English IPA
9. BRZT - TBA - Possible Split Batch... (Subject to work, either way will drop a case off)
10. Mikeybycrikey - Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014
11. Major Arcana - Hop Hog American IPA clone. Stubbies with green lids.


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## Milk-lizard84 (7/12/14)

1. Dent - American Amber
2. jyo- Belgian Blond- CPBF, KEEP COLD and drink now.
3. Velu - dark vienna lager- bottle conditioned, ready to drink
4. Mitch_76 - Belgian Witbier CPBF Drink now!
5. Rad- All Amarillo ale
6. Neanderthal - Byford Bomber APA - Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014
7. Milk-Lizard84 - Lemon Saison Bottle conditioned. Bottled 4/12/14
8. OBWK - English IPA
9. BRZT - TBA - Possible Split Batch... (Subject to work, either way will drop a case off)
10. Mikeybycrikey - Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014
11. Major Arcana - Hop Hog American IPA clone. Stubbies with green lids.


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## RAD (7/12/14)

Another great case swap Dent thanks for putting the time and effort in, good to see some new faces to.
Bring on the next one :beerbang: :beerbang: :beerbang:

1. Dent - American Amber
2. jyo- Belgian Blond- CPBF, KEEP COLD and drink now.
3. Velu - dark vienna lager- bottle conditioned, ready to drink
4. Mitch_76 - Belgian Witbier CPBF Drink now!
5. Rad- All Amarillo ale - CPBF Drink now.
6. Neanderthal - Byford Bomber APA - Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014
7. Milk-Lizard84 - Lemon Saison Bottle conditioned. Bottled 4/12/14
8. OBWK - English IPA
9. BRZT - TBA - Possible Split Batch... (Subject to work, either way will drop a case off)
10. Mikeybycrikey - Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014
11. Major Arcana - Hop Hog American IPA clone. Stubbies with green lids.


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## Major Arcana (8/12/14)

Posting this here as well,

Thanks for the great day fellas big thanks to Dent for the hospitality, have to apologise for the beer I provided it certainly wasn't my best, didn't attenuate to what I was hoping for and was made by all extract. That was my first case swap so I know for next time what is properly required.

On a plus I did make my first attempt at all grain brewing yesterday and hit my mark spot on, so for the next swap you can expect something better,

thanks again fellas!

Dan

1. Dent - American Amber
2. jyo- Belgian Blond- CPBF, KEEP COLD and drink now.
3. Velu - dark vienna lager- bottle conditioned, ready to drink
4. Mitch_76 - Belgian Witbier CPBF Drink now!
5. Rad- All Amarillo ale - CPBF Drink now.
6. Neanderthal - Byford Bomber APA - Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014
7. Milk-Lizard84 - Lemon Saison Bottle conditioned. Bottled 4/12/14
8. OBWK - English IPA
9. BRZT - TBA - Possible Split Batch... (Subject to work, either way will drop a case off)
10. Mikeybycrikey - Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014
11. Major Arcana - Hop Hog American IPA clone. Stubbies with green lids. (Bottle Conditioned can drink now) 6.4%ABV AIPA


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## brzt6060 (8/12/14)

1. Dent - American Amber
2. jyo- Belgian Blond- CPBF, KEEP COLD and drink now.
3. Velu - dark vienna lager- bottle conditioned, ready to drink
4. Mitch_76 - Belgian Witbier CPBF Drink now!
5. Rad- All Amarillo ale - CPBF Drink now.
6. Neanderthal - Byford Bomber APA - Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014
7. Milk-Lizard84 - Lemon Saison Bottle conditioned. Bottled 4/12/14
8. OBWK - English IPA
9. BRZT - TBA - Possible Split Batch... (Subject to work, either way will drop a case off)
10. Mikeybycrikey - Bottle Conditioned Drink from 20/12/2014
11. Major Arcana - Hop Hog American IPA clone. Stubbies with green lids. (Bottle Conditioned can drink now) 6.4%ABV AIPA

Sorry Gents I was the cock head that didn't make it... Don't hold it against me for too long...


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## jyo (8/12/14)

Rad- All Amarillo Ale.







Pours beautifully, perfect carbonation, good clarity, head is long lasting.

Hop character is on the low end in both aroma and flavour. Maltiness is vienna-like and supports the bitterness well.
This is definitely a quaffer, goes down a treat.

Cheers!


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## Milk-lizard84 (8/12/14)

Rad-All Amarilla Ale
This is also the first beer I cracked. Really enjoyed this one. An easy drinker with a nice amount of hop aroma and taste.
Carb was great and had a nice mouthfeel. Love the Amarillo hop so this was a treat. Cheers.
Kinda wish I had taken a photo like jyo to show it in all its glory.


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## Major Arcana (10/12/14)

Rad- All Amarillo Ale





Very easy to drink with a nice consistent head, not overpowering on the Amarillo, I could have had 5 of these! Very tasty!


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## jyo (11/12/14)

Mitch's Witbier

No pic, I was too thirsty! I really enjoyed this beer. The yeast flavours are right on the mark and the coriander is really forward, which I like. Good mouth feel, could drink a few more of these easily.

Cheers.

ps- Definitely better than the one I brought along on the day, mate.


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## jyo (11/12/14)

Cheers fellas. It's a bit underattenuated and I regretted not bottle conditioning it. It nearly didn't make the cut. Glad you guys are enjoying it. I should have mentioned on my shitty labels that it's 6.4%


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## Milk-lizard84 (11/12/14)

Jyo's Belgium Blonde
Poured with a nice head and good carbonation. (I followed instructions and chilled it straight away) 
Enjoyed the belgium yeast character. Seems to have a slight spiceyness which I enjoy. All up a very enjoyable beer that I needed a nap after drinking haha.


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## dent (11/12/14)

Mitch Wit

This drinks very nicely. The Wit flavours are an interesting combination - this one is quite different to the jyo edition - the Mitchell version is more bitter, less genuine "Wit" character on the nose, but on the other hand it has a nice complexity in the finish. I think it is a great beer, very drinkable. With a little more Wit additions in the aromatics and maybe a little less bittering it would be a real winner I reckon.


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## Neanderthal (11/12/14)

JYOs Belgium Blonde

Pours a loverly Goldern colour with nice clarity, thickcreamy head that disapaits fast with little lacing . Agree with Milk lizard, Belgium aroma and taste and love the spicy finish to it. 

Loved it, Shared the first bottle with a mate over a batch of slow cooked spare ribs and went down soo well. I even had to drink the second bottle I scored tonight, top drop.


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## jyo (11/12/14)

dent said:


> Just noticed
> 
> jyo - "Good clarity"
> dent - "Pretty hazy!"
> ...


Bastard!! Haha


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## dent (11/12/14)

Well that Wit went down pretty fast.

RAD Amarillo Ale

Pours nicely, good dense head. Pretty hazy! I'm not getting a lot of hop aromatics in this. It is actually pretty neutral flavour wise, well balanced but not very interesting. I think there is also a hint of diacetyl that lets an otherwise good beer down. Was this cranked out fast for the swap?


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## Mitchlj73 (11/12/14)

jyo said:


> ps- Definitely better than the one I brought along on the day, mate.


Have to disagree with you mate! I prefered yours, I'm glad you liked mine, but yours was a well rounded Wit, next time I will ease up on the coriander and use the proper Wit yeast instead of the Forbiden Fruit to see if that makes a big difference.


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## dent (12/12/14)

Just noticed

jyo - "Good clarity"
dent - "Pretty hazy!"

same beer.... :lol:


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## Mitchlj73 (12/12/14)

JYO Belgian Blonde.

Well blondes do have more fun!

Poured a beautiful golden colour, head soon dissipated, typical Belgian aromas. Great balanced flavours, and even at above 6% is quite quaffable (even though Dent will say it's not a real Belgian unless it's over 8%), I finished it and wanted more, as they say 1 glass is never enough! 

Top job mate!


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## dent (12/12/14)

Milk Lizard - Kolsch

Sorry we forgot to share these around on the day. 

Pours with little carbonation, very hazy especially for a Kolsch. The beer is a bit on the thin side, with not a lot of Kolsch yeast character on the nose (a lot of that isn't necessarily good anyhow). It is a little tart on the finish which slows down the drinkability IMO. It seems clean enough ferment wise otherwise. I'd mash it a little higher to balance the tartness and malt a bit better, and to improve the mouthfeel. 

Apart from that I think it would benefit from an extended rest in the magic lagering fridge, rather than a week after getting sloshed around on the way here - I'll open the other bottle in a few months and we'll see.


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## dent (12/12/14)

Mitch_76 said:


> (even though Dent will say it's not a real Belgian unless it's over 8%),


That's called a yeast starter.


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## Milk-lizard84 (12/12/14)

dent said:


> Milk Lizard - Kolsch
> 
> Sorry we forgot to share these around on the day.
> 
> ...


Cheers for the feedback Dent. This was the first kolsh I have made so it's good to have some feedback on it and some constructive criticism to improve it. I did lager it at 3degrees for about a month but didn't add any gelatine to help clear it up more. 
How would you go about getting more yeast character?


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## dent (12/12/14)

Eh, I don't think more is required. I reckon the subtle character will stand out nicely once it has a chance to settle out. I was just pointing out it wasn't full on Kolsch stink like I have gotten with reusing a lot of that yeast.


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## dent (12/12/14)

JYO Belgian Blonde







This is nice! I've had quite a few commercials that were disappointing compared to this. It's a great beer - excellent all-round Belgian character, good ferment, good balance, superb drinkability. What yeast you use on it?

Put another kilo of black&gold white sugar in this same recipe and BAM you got a good biggo swap beer.


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## Major Arcana (12/12/14)

jyo said:


> Cheers fellas. It's a bit underattenuated and I regretted not bottle conditioning it. It nearly didn't make the cut. Glad you guys are enjoying it. I should have mentioned on my shitty labels that it's 6.4%


Least you had labels mate! Poor effort on my behalf, my only excuse is was my first case swap and didn't know the rules lol


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## Major Arcana (12/12/14)

Dent, mate that is some bloody nice photo work there!


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## dent (12/12/14)

Thanks, man.

Major Arcana Green Lid Special






This is very similar to Danestead's hop hog clone from the last swap. A limited amount of hop aromatics, good balance, easy drinking. The ferment is a little flawed but not enough to seriously hurt the beer - some more time in the bottle might help anyhow. Overall it is pretty good - I think to be a complete clone the hops have to be more prominent, and the ferment cleaner - the malt side is pretty damn close. But it is a good beer in its own right. Thanks.


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## jyo (12/12/14)

dent said:


> JYO Belgian Blonde
> 
> This is nice! I've had quite a few commercials that were disappointing compared to this. It's a great beer - excellent all-round Belgian character, good ferment, good balance, superb drinkability. What yeast you use on it?
> 
> Put another kilo of black&gold white sugar in this same recipe and BAM you got a good biggo swap beer.


Cheers, mate. It's good ole Belgian Ardennes ran at 18'. Such a lovely yeast. And thanks for not mentioning the haze :lol:



Major Arcana said:


> Least you had labels mate! Poor effort on my behalf, my only excuse is was my first case swap and didn't know the rules lol


 Don't stress, man!


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## Major Arcana (13/12/14)

dent said:


> Thanks, man.
> 
> Major Arcana Green Lid Special
> 
> ...


Thanks mate, I agree it didn't finish off properly I wanted it to get down to 1012 FG but she finished up around 1015 way too high in my opinion, do you have any advice on how to achieve this at all? It is all temperature controlled, I was just thinking maybe it is just an extract thing, I know they finish a bit higher etc. looking forward to the next swap Dent! cheers!

Dan


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## Velu (14/12/14)

JYO Belgian Blond. 
A great beer to start my tasting of the Summer Case Swap. Looks great in the glass, lovely (dried) fruitiness and spicy flavours, finished a touch sweet, but still balanced. 
Cheers


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## O-beer-wan-kenobi (14/12/14)

jyo - Belgium Blonde

Poured with good clarity and long lasting head. Distinct Belgium flavours that went down so well you never would guess it was 6.4%. Shared it with the Mrs and we both wanted more - the sign of a good beer.
Really enjoyed this thanks


Mitch_76 - Belgium Wit

Another good beer that went down easy on a warm day. Could taste some spices and had a bit of a crisp bitter finish. Very nice thanks.


Milk-Lizard84 - Lemon Saison

Not much of a head or carbonation for the style. Nice fruity and spicy flavour with the dry bitter finish. Could taste some lemon flavours. Well balanced. Thanks


Rad - All Amarillo Ale

Was expecting lots of Amarillo aromas and flavours but there wasn't much. Beer poured nice and clear with long lasting head, although the beer didn't last long in the glass. Good session ale. Thanks


These were all good beers and I don't think mine will measure up to them. It was supposed to be an English IPA but turned out much darker, I think I have my crystal malts labelled wrong. There are other things I think are wrong, will be good to see if you guys come up with the same.


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## Velu (14/12/14)

Mitch-76 Belgian Wit
After a morning sweating it out in the garden this beer was the perfect tonic. A lovely bit of funk in the aroma, small white head, cloudy appearance. A good hit of spicyness and bitterness which hit the spot after hand sawing most of my front garden into sawdust. Left me wanting more! (And the recipe!!)
Cheers


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## dent (14/12/14)

Major Arcana said:


> do you have any advice on how to achieve this at all?


Not really - I'm not much of an extract brewer - I don't think that beer was particularly underattenuated in the glass anyhow, seemed OK to me.


OBWK - what was the status of your beer - conditioning/ready?


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## O-beer-wan-kenobi (14/12/14)

dent said:


> OBWK - what was the status of your beer - conditioning/ready?


Already bottled conditioned and ready to drink.


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## Milk-lizard84 (14/12/14)

Milk-Lizard84 - Lemon Saison

Not much of a head or carbonation for the style. Nice fruity and spicy flavour with the dry bitter finish. Could taste some lemon flavours. Well balanced. Thanks

Thanks for the review OBWK. My beer was bottle conditioned and only a week in the bottle so probably why it was low on fizz. Glad you enjoyed it though.


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## jyo (14/12/14)

Major Arcana

I enjoyed this. Great balance between malt and hopping rates. Aroma was good. I didn't perceive underattenuation, all was good in my glass.

A nice beer, cheers!


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## Major Arcana (15/12/14)

jyo said:


> Major Arcana
> 
> I enjoyed this. Great balance between malt and hopping rates. Aroma was good. I didn't perceive underattenuation, all was good in my glass.
> 
> A nice beer, cheers!


Thanks for that mate!! :icon_cheers:


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## Velu (15/12/14)

Hi,
I drank a couple of my Vienna lagers over the weekend and they are not quite carbed up yet, best give them until after Christmas I think. 
Cheers Ned


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## mikeybycrikey (15/12/14)

Cracked jyo's blonde. Love it. What yeast did you use?







Also side note. I tried one of my bitters last night. Bit embarrassed. If anyone wants a beer refund next time they're down Armadale way I'll be happy to provide you with a better, less "old extracty" tasting beer.


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## Velu (15/12/14)

Rad - All Amarillo ale.
Excellent clarity, nice white head, a bit of hop aroma, but you have to search for it. Nice bitterness and a fruity aftertaste. A great introduction to the Amarillo hop. 
Cheers Ned


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## dent (15/12/14)

Seems like my one is gonna take a while to clean up. I did throw it in a keg, carb and bottled it off that morning, so right now it is giving jyo a run for his money.


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## Neanderthal (16/12/14)

Mitch Belgium Whitbier.

Nice beer, has a nice lemony tang to it that goes down very well.
Low carbonation and a little whit aroma on the pour. lightly spicy and would be great warm weather session brew..

Have never really been interested in this style but after drinking this will definately give one a go before the end of Summer.

edit.
Even went and got my brewing classic styles. going to try the Wittebrew


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## Neanderthal (16/12/14)

RAD Amarillo Ale.

pours with small head low carbonartion ( maybe shouldof opened it sooner) and is a little hazy. Low hop aroma and little hop presence. light biterness to finish but very drinkable.

Was hoping for more Amarillo but a nice drinking beer overall.


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## Neanderthal (19/12/14)

The worse things about case swaps is running later and your brews going out green. Then its just waiting to see how it turns out.

Sorry had a few drinks before tasting these. It is xmas after all.


Ob1.
Nice beer. Pour very low carbed but it didnt detract the flavour.
Sweet malty with minumin hops but just a smooth finish.

Nice beer, happy to drink this again.

Green cap IPA
Nice beer. A little hazy, thin head but nice glass lacing.
Hoppy arome and a balance sweet finish.

Godd job.


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## jyo (22/12/14)

Zigs American Amber

Cleared up in the bottle pretty well.
Aroma is sweet caramel malt and muted hops. I can't quite put my finger on it, but there is something strange going on here. Definitely not infection, I just think the yeast needs to do some cleaning up. It finishes with the same sort of flavour I can't quite describe, but it really takes away from an otherwise good beer. Maybe taking them out of the fridge to let the yeast do some more work may help?


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## dent (22/12/14)

Yeah didn't seem super awesome out the fermenter, though it had been in there long enough. I think I had a couple of leftover bottles, so I could do a side-by-side with one in the heat. I still have half a keg of it too which isn't bad - what I get is the hop flavour side is overbalancing the rest in a kind of shitty way. It was falconer's flight, and I didn't put very much in there.

I tipped the Helles in the dirt - the VDKs healed up but it was too warm and the heat killed the beer. Considered blending it but why risk another batch to make an even bigger quantity of uninspiring beer.


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## jyo (23/12/14)

I was trying to pick the hop! Never tried falconer's flight. I reckon put one in the magic largering fridge and see how it goes.


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## jyo (25/12/14)

Velu- Dark Larger

This looks great in the glass. Good clarity and head retention. It has decent maltiness and good hop balance. For a bottle conditioned larger, it's pretty clean. Only thing I can pick is that it finishes with a metallic taste that detracts from it bit. Other than that, I enjoyed it, cheers!


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## Neanderthal (26/12/14)

Lemon Saison.

Pours very clear with a light fluffy head..

Not too experienced with this style but this is drinkable.

Definate Siason yeast easters with a tangy and spicey finish.

A little bitter on the finish and clean on the palete,

It wouldnt take me too long to get used to this and it would go down wellon a warm day.


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## Milk-lizard84 (26/12/14)

Hey Neanderthal how was the carbonation? The ones I've drank we're abit light on carbonation wise.


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## dent (26/12/14)

I heard that the carb was low - I took mine out on the shelf a couple weeks back - they're hard as a rock now.


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## Neanderthal (26/12/14)

Cant see it in this cropped pic but there was a steady line of bubbles heading to that head.

Drank well.


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## Velu (29/12/14)

Review for Dent- American Amber ale/Lager

A lovely drop, a touch darker than I expected, and low carbonation, but a great balance between maltiness and bitterness. Went down a treat while figuring out the new BBQ. 
Cheers Ned


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## dent (30/12/14)

Thanks for the kind review. I think the jar suits that beer.

Neanderthal C No Evil IPA -- Case swap bonus bottle






Super carbonated! I had to blow off the foam like in a cartoon a few times to fill the glass. Unfortunately all the CO2 action stirred up all the yeast in the bottle. Apart from that, a pretty good IPA - not super hoppy in the aroma, but enough to make it enjoyable. A nice example of the style. Thanks.


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## dent (30/12/14)

Milk-Lizard84 - Lemon Saison

I never would have brewed this, but it's not a bad idea. Luckily this one is pretty light on in the Saison department, I think it would be a bit full on otherwise, and the drinkability would suffer. 

I left this on the shelf until just earlier this week, so it is well carbonated - a flat version of this would not be very inspiring, so that's great. Pours very hazy. Not a lot of yeast in the aroma, a bit of light malt, all good. Ferment is clean. Overall I think this is a well balanced, very easy drinking beer. I think the non-lemon version of this would be pretty boring, and lacking in the agreeable contrast this one has.

A great beer, well done.


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## Milk-lizard84 (30/12/14)

Thanks for the review Dent. It's the first saison so I'm pretty happy with it. Didn't push the ferment temps to high on this. Glad you enjoyed it. Will be getting stuck into your one in the next few days.


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## Velu (1/1/15)

Review for Neanderthal - Byford Bomber APA
The smell of the hops comes right out of the bottle, hit me as soon as I cracked the lid. Nice head retention, drinks well. A touch too high bitterness for the body for me, but only a touch. Excellent carbonation and quite enjoyable. 
Cheers Ned


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## Neanderthal (2/1/15)

dent said:


> Neanderthal C No Evil IPA -- Case swap bonus bottle
> Super carbonated! I had to blow off the foam like in a cartoon a few times to fill the glass. Unfortunately all the CO2 action stirred up all the yeast in the bottle. Apart from that, a pretty good IPA - not super hoppy in the aroma, but enough to make it enjoyable. A nice example of the style. Thanks.


Cracked one of these myself today to check out the batch and mine was the same. Way overcarbed. Interesting I have used the coopers drops heaps of times and never had the same issue. Pints or 750ml.

These were after the keg was pulled off might of mixed up a bit much yeast., cold crash before kegging might of helped it.


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## Velu (2/1/15)

Review for Milk-Lizard84 - Lemon Saison
Saw it in the shed and the lid was bulging so thought I'd better cool it and drink, and glad I did! I liked it, good carbonation, long lasting head, nice fruity taste, clean and refreshing on the palate. Happy that I scored two from the swap so I get to drink it again. 
Cheers Ned


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## Velu (3/1/15)

Review for Major Arcana - Hop Hog American IPA clone
Tasted pretty good, good aroma, nice mouthfeel, a little bitterness kick at the end, followed by a fruity aftertaste. 
Cheers Ned


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## Milk-lizard84 (6/1/15)

Mitch_76- Belgian Witbier
Really enjoyed this beer. Cracked it open just before hopping in the pool to cool off. Nicely balanced and super refreshing. Poured with great carbonation and nice and cloudy. Lightly spicy but very drinkable. Cheers


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## dent (9/1/15)

Neanderthal - Byford Bomber

This bottle has been stored cold. Pours with a nice red hue, with some haze, plenty of carb. Good clean ferment. A decent amount of hops on the nose, certainly enough to get it over the mark. The dry, simple finish of this beer really makes it work. It is fairly bitter, but in a clean way that you're happy to have another bite of. Well done, a great beer.


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## jyo (11/1/15)

Well, this concludes my tasting notes-

Neanderthal Byford Bomber
Highly carbed. This is a winning hop combo. Hop forward, is supported really well my the malt. I really enjoyed this beer. Cheers.


Milk lizard- Lemon saison
The 7% slowed me down a bit on New Year’s Eve, so my notes were garbled  Nice, grainy pils malt, lemon flavour was just there. Very drinkable, cheers!


White lid with smudged writing-Mikeybycrikey?

I didn’t get to drink this beer properly. I had just cracked it and poured half of it when the cops came around to collect a statement from me (about some dickhead trying to run over kids in my street) so I put the glass back in the fridge. It sat there for an hour. Then took it out and had another mouthful and my little boy fell over and broke his finger, so 4 hours later I am back at home and drinking the rest of the bottle! Great colour, hazy but clears as it warms. Nice dark fruit aromas and flavours. Some slight spicy alcohol or sherry-like flavour (maybe slightly oxidised??)coming through which detracts a bit. Finishes pretty dry. Cheers.

OBIWAN IPA
Very low carb, but it holds a head. Some good caramel and biscuit flavours in this. Middle is full, and it finishes with some crispness, which is great. A bit hazy, but I’m used to that J It could be a bit a little cleaner, but overall a well-balanced, enjoyable IPA with good English esters. Cheers.


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## dent (11/1/15)

You could have asked the cops to review the beer while they were waiting.

I'm having one of the old yellow bottle Milk Lizard Golden Ale from the last swap. It has kept pretty well - it pours nice and bright, with only a touch of age noticeable in the glass. Still a good pint!


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## dent (11/1/15)

Velu - Dark Vienna Lager

I've been having a peek at this bottle every now and then to see if it has gotten any brighter, as it was hell hazy when it first arrived. It seemed a bit better today but, alas, it is still pretty hazy in the glass.

Overall this beer suffers from two things that really let it down - it is undercarbed and underbittered (or underattenuated). If it was only one of those it might not be so bad, but those factors work together to drag the beer down. 

The ferment seems mostly OK, there doesn't seem to be any of the classic lager failures standing out.

With more more attenuation (best) or more bittering hops, this would be pretty good. The hard part (lager ferment) is sorted at least.


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## Velu (11/1/15)

Cheers for the feedback Dent, does it come across as a little sweet? I wasn't sure if the sweetness I could taste before Christmas was was from the Vienna malt, from the bittering being too low or from the bottles not being carbed yet (i.e. A little bit of priming sugar left in there). 
Cheers Ned


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## jyo (11/1/15)

dent said:


> You could have asked the cops to review the beer while they were waiting.


I sat outside with him and after a few sideways glances I assured him it was my all grain brewery and not a meth lab. He just smiled and said "yeah I did see that"!


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## Mitchlj73 (12/1/15)

jyo said:


> I sat outside with him and after a few sideways glances I assured him it was my all grain brewery and not a meth lab. He just smiled and said "yeah I did see that"!


But did you ask him if he was an "average" cop, like Lachie(my 10 year old son) did to a couple of cops down at Windy Harbour when we camping there?

It's funny due to him telling the cop that his grand father is one of the 2 police chaplains, so the sergeant emailed my father in law to explain what had happened, the same sergeant is also a key member of the police union, which the chaplains have a lot to do with, now most of the head Union guys know this cop as an "average" cop!

I think Lachlan meant "regular", but in hindsight "average" has a much better ring to it!


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## dent (12/1/15)

Velu said:


> Cheers for the feedback Dent, does it come across as a little sweet?


Yeah, that's the effect, too much balanced towards the malty-sweet end.


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## Velu (7/2/15)

review for mikeybycrikey,
Unfortunately this one had a bulge in the cap so I put it in the fridge for a few weeks, but when I went to drink it it had no carbonation. Must have been a slight leak from the bulging cap. 
I only drank a few mouthfuls but the hop flavour was nice!


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## dent (14/2/15)

Mikey's Bitter






I got a couple bottles of this. One dead, dead flat that has been on the shelf the whole time. I think that one's had it. This one seemed to condition properly however.

Pours hazy as all hell as you can see.

This beer is an OK brew, but there isn't a lot going for it. There is nothing particularly appealing in the aroma or taste, it has a bit of a sour note, along with a bit of a yeasty esteryness that doesn't help it. The malt side is pretty flabby too.

A bit of a shame as I think this recipe could be a good beer with a cleaner ferment.


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## dent (14/2/15)

Neanderthal - Byford Bomber (#2)






I reviewed this a while ago, but I cracked another bottle that has been stored cold for a couple months. I had some Sierra Nevada in a can yesterday - I reckon this is actually a better beer, with better hop aromatics and flavour clarity. About the same amount of haze. 

Glad to be drinking it.


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