# Sandgroper Xmas 2007 Recipes And Tasting



## deebee (22/12/07)

Post here with your recipes and tasting notes for the Perth Christmas Case:


"Beer by David" = 

56% munich 
19% JW Trad 
19% Cryers Galaxy
6% melanoidin. 

Bittered with amarillo to 12 IBU and then flavour/aroma saaz to 16IBU should come to about 28IBU. 

Brewed with a starter made fom W34/70, the Weihenstephaner yeast. 

ABV ~ 4.8%.


----------



## amita (22/12/07)

deebee said:


> Post here with your recipes and tasting notes for the Perth Christmas Case:
> "Beer by David" =
> 
> 56% munich
> ...



great , just marking the page so I get to read what everybody writes, mine will be till jan sometime as I dont expect my case to arrive by personal courier(roger mellie . top service!!!)

enjoy everybody,

cheers amita


----------



## mika (23/12/07)

A ProMash Brewing Session Report
-------------------------------
Brewing Date: Sunday October 28, 2007
Head Brewer: Mika
Asst Brewer: Megs
Recipe: 2007 Christmas Case

Recipe Specifics
----------------
Batch Size (L): 25.00 Wort Size (L): 25.00
Total Grain (Kg): 10.10
Anticipated OG: 1.081 Plato: 19.62
Anticipated SRM: 15.5
Anticipated IBU: 40.7
Brewhouse Efficiency: 65 %
Wort Boil Time: 90 Minutes

Actual OG: 1.081 Plato: 19.62
Actual FG: 1.013 Plato: 3.32

Alc by Weight: 7.08 by Volume: 9.06 From Measured Gravities.
ADF: 83.1 RDF 69.3 Apparent & Real Degree of Fermentation.

Grain/Extract/Sugar

% Amount Name Origin Potential SRM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
89.1 9.00 kg. TF Golden Promise Pale Ale Ma UK 1.037 3
9.9 1.00 kg. Weyermann Munich I Germany 1.038 8
1.0 0.10 kg. Weyermann Carafa Special II Germany 1.036 558

Hops

Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
30.00 g. Hallertau Northern Brewer Pellet 8.50 21.0 60 min.
20.00 g. Perle  Pellet 7.80 10.9 30 min.
25.00 g. Perle Pellet 7.80 8.8 15 min.
20.00 g. Perle Pellet 7.80 0.0 0 min.

Extras, all added at 5mins to go

Cinnamon 1/2 tspn
Nutmeg 1/8 tspn
All Spice 1/8 tspn
Ginger 1/4 tspn

Yeast
-----
WYeast 1338 European Ale

Mash Schedule
-------------
Mash Type: Single Step 66degs

Didn't come out quite how I wanted but let me know what you think. Is carbonated and drinkable, but being such a big beer, better if it can be aged for a while.

Edit: Why's there all this dead space at the bottom of my post ?


----------



## roger mellie (23/12/07)

This years offering - no chilled in the fermenter as my chiller was out of action.

As others here have pointed out - the combination of Weyerman Pils and No Chill can = DMS. So apologies for that - from the 2 or so glasses that I had - the DMS does dissipate in the glass.

It has had a week in the fridge - might pay to give it a couple more.

Cheers

RM

------------------------------------------------------------------


*Rude Kid Pilsener* (so named after the VIZ character of the 1980's)

Brew Type: All Grain Date: 18/11/2007 
Style: German Pilsner (Pils) Brewer: Roger Mellie 
Batch Size: 23.00 L Assistant Brewer: Tom 
Boil Volume: 33.33 L Boil Time: 60 min 
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.0 % Equipment: Keg Kettle 
Actual Efficiency: 72.0 % 
Taste Rating (50 possible points): 0.0

Ingredients Amount Item Type % or IBU 
4.50 kg Pilsner (2 Row) Ger (3.9 EBC) Grain 84.9 % 
0.40 kg Rice, Flaked (2.0 EBC) Grain 7.5 % 
0.30 kg Wheat Malt (Barrett Burston) (3.0 EBC) Grain 5.7 % 
0.10 kg Cara-Pils/Dextrine (3.9 EBC) Grain 1.9 % 
30.00 gm D Saaz [6.70%] (60 min) Hops 22.7 IBU 
30.00 gm D Saaz [6.70%] (15 min) Hops 11.2 IBU 
30.00 gm D Saaz [6.70%] (60 min) (Mash Hop) Hops 4.5 IBU 
28.30 gm D Saaz [6.70%] (5 min) Hops 4.3 IBU 
28.30 gm D Saaz [6.70%] (60 min) (Aroma Hop-Steep) Hops - 
1.00 tsp Table Salt (Boil 90.0 min) Misc 
12.15 gm Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Mash 60.0 min) Misc 
1 Pkgs SafLager German Lager (DCL Yeast #S-189) Yeast-Lager 

Beer Profile Estimated Original Gravity: 1.053 SG (1.044-1.050 SG) Measured Original Gravity: 1.051 SG 
Estimated Final Gravity: 1.014 SG (1.008-1.013 SG) Measured Final Gravity: 1.008 SG 
Estimated Color: 7.1 EBC (3.9-9.9 EBC) Color [Color] 
Bitterness: 42.7 IBU (25.0-45.0 IBU) Alpha Acid Units: 3.5 AAU 
Estimated Alcohol by Volume: 5.1 % (4.4-5.2 %) Actual Alcohol by Volume: 5.6 % 
Actual Calories: 472 cal/l 


Mash Profile Name: Single Infusion, Medium Body Mash Tun Weight: 2.00 kg 
Mash Grain Weight: 5.30 kg Mash PH: 5.4 PH 
Grain Temperature: 22.2 C Sparge Temperature: 75.6 C 
Sparge Water: 22.74 L Adjust Temp for Equipment: FALSE 

Name Description Step Temp Step Time 
Mash In Add 15.90 L of water at 68.2 C 63.0 C 60 min 

Notes
Mash in with 15 Litres of 70 DegC water
Mash out with 8 Litres of 98 Deg C water
Sparge with 17 Litres of 85 Deg C Water

Fermented for 3 1/2 weeks at 10 degc down to 1.011 - upped temp to 14 degc - down to 1.008 after 2 days.

Chilled down to 2 DegC for 2 days - Filtered and kegged

Carbonated 15 seconds longer than normal

Bottled and recarbed

Smells like cooked cabbage :angry:


----------



## Kai (23/12/07)

My recipe is on the label but I'll repost it here:



> *Kai's CACA*
> Classic American Cream Ale
> 
> 5.3% ABV
> ...



Ready to drink now. It would be good to know which other beers are ready to drink and which need to be laid down for a bit, as I'll probably roll up my sleeves and get stuck in fairly soon.


----------



## deebee (23/12/07)

Beer by David is drinking okay now. It is slightly overcarbonated. There won't be any grenades, but it might be worth opening and letting stand in the fridge for 15 minutes before drinking. Or releasing pressure, resealing and drinking later.


----------



## ausdb (23/12/07)

Check the side of my label "enjoy in the new Year" or when the bottle firms up a a bit I guess


----------



## clay (23/12/07)

Mines only been in the bottle a few days so give it a couple of weeks

clay


----------



## kook (23/12/07)

My case swap beer is saison d'clater houblon. It should be ready for drinking in 2-3 weeks if stored around 20 C.


```
Recipe Specifications

--------------------------

Batch Size: 30.00 L	  

Boil Size: 37.76 L

Estimated OG: 1.057 SG

Estimated Color: 6.7 EBC

Estimated IBU: 70.9 IBU

Brewhouse Efficiency: 74.00 %

Boil Time: 90 Minutes



Ingredients:

------------

Amount	   Item									   Type		% or IBU	 

6.30 kg	  Pilsner (Weyermann) (3.3 EBC)			  Grain	   87.50 %	  

0.70 kg	  Wheat Malt (Barrett Burston) (3.0 EBC)	 Grain	   9.72 %	   

10.00 gm	 Amarillo 06 [8.90 %]  (30 min)			 Hops		5.5 IBU	  

20.00 gm	 Columbus 06 [11.00 %]  (30 min) (First WortHops		14.9 IBU	 

10.00 gm	 Saaz 06 [2.20 %]  (30 min)				 Hops		1.4 IBU	  

10.00 gm	 Columbus 06 [11.00 %]  (30 min)			Hops		6.8 IBU	  

10.00 gm	 Saaz 06 [2.20 %]  (25 min)				 Hops		1.2 IBU	  

10.00 gm	 Amarillo 06 (HD) [8.70 %]  (25 min)		Hops		4.8 IBU	  

10.00 gm	 Columbus 06 [11.00 %]  (25 min)			Hops		6.1 IBU	  

10.00 gm	 Saaz 06 [2.20 %]  (20 min)				 Hops		1.1 IBU	  

10.00 gm	 Amarillo 06 [8.90 %]  (20 min)			 Hops		4.3 IBU	  

10.00 gm	 Columbus 06 [11.00 %]  (20 min)			Hops		5.3 IBU	  

10.00 gm	 Columbus 06 [11.00 %]  (15 min)			Hops		4.4 IBU	  

10.00 gm	 Amarillo 06 [8.90 %]  (15 min)			 Hops		3.5 IBU	  

10.00 gm	 Saaz 06 [2.20 %]  (15 min)				 Hops		0.9 IBU	  

20.00 gm	 Saaz 06 [2.20 %]  (10 min)				 Hops		1.3 IBU	  

10.00 gm	 Amarillo 06 (HD) [8.70 %]  (10 min)		Hops		2.5 IBU	  

10.00 gm	 Columbus 06 [11.00 %]  (10 min)			Hops		3.2 IBU	  

20.00 gm	 Saaz 06 [2.20 %]  (5 min)				  Hops		0.7 IBU	  

10.00 gm	 Columbus 06 [11.00 %]  (5 min)			 Hops		1.8 IBU	  

10.00 gm	 Amarillo 06 (HD) [8.70 %]  (5 min)		 Hops		1.4 IBU	  

20.00 gm	 Saaz 06 [2.20 %]  (0 min)				  Hops		 -		   

10.00 gm	 Columbus 06 [11.00 %]  (0 min)			 Hops		 -		   

10.00 gm	 Amarillo 06 (HD) [8.70 %]  (0 min)		 Hops		 -		   

0.50 items   Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 10.0 min)		   Misc					 

1.00 tbsp	5.2 Stabilizer (Mash 0.0 min)			  Misc					 

0.20 kg	  Sugar, Table (Sucrose) (2.0 EBC)		   Sugar	   2.78 %	   

1 Pkgs	   Farmhouse Ale (Wyeast Labs #3726)		 Yeast-Ale				





Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Light Body, Batch Sparge

Total Grain Weight: 7.00 kg

----------------------------

Single Infusion, Light Body, Batch Sparge

Step Time	 Name			   Description						 Step Temp	 

75 min		Mash In			Add 18.27 L of water at 74.5 C	  64.0 C		





Notes:

------

OG 1.060 - Pitched at 24 C, 5:30pm Sun 18th Nov.

1.5 L of WYeast 3726 Starter

Ambient (in spare room)

Moved to fridge (4 C), Sun 2nd Dec (FG 1.008)

Bottled 22.5L Sat 22nd Dec, primed with 180g of Table Sugar (for 3.0 Volumes CO2)
```


----------



## Guest Lurker (23/12/07)

Edit as you see fit boys, this is my guess from how hard the PET bottles are, in approx drinking order

Ready now 
Asher, Nelson Sauvin Summer Ale (confirmed)
Goat, Hefeweizen (my guess)
Barfridge, Deuchars IPA (pretty safe that is ready)
Vlad the Pale Aler, Transylvannian Pale Ale (confirmed)
Kai, Classic American Cream Ale (coinfirmed)
Doogiechap, Kolsch (Confirmed)
Deebee, Beer by David (confirmed)
Tony M, Ordinary Ale (confirmed)
RandyRob, Lucky 13 APA (confirmed by Kai)
Recharge, Rural Khazi Golden Ale (confirmed)
Sinkas, Belgian Massive Ale (confirmed, aged 1 yr prior to swap!)
Amita, Wit (GL tried it, plenty of gas)
MikeB, Belgian Wit (GL tried it, plenty of gas)

Give a couple of weeks to carb up
Guest Lurker, Bramling Cross Bitter, been in bottle 2 weeks, give it another week or two and drink fresh
Roger Mellie, Rude kid pilsner (confirmed)
AusDB, Lost Mojo Blonde Ale (confirmed)
Chilla, Chilla Haze Altbier (confirmed)
Kook, Saison d' Eclater Houblon, (confirmed)
Simon W, Amber Ale
Clay, APA, (confirmed)

Big beer, give it some time

Mika, 9% Christmas Ale


----------



## Kai (23/12/07)

I can confirm that randy rob's apa is ready to drink. I've edited appropriately.


----------



## Guest Lurker (23/12/07)

Details of my beer

A ProMash Brewing Session Report
--------------------------------

Brewing Date: Saturday November 24, 2007
Head Brewer: Simon Barrett (GL)
Asst Brewer: Dallas
Recipe: BX ESB

Recipe Specifics
----------------

Batch Size (L): 47.00 Wort Size (L): 47.00
Total Grain (Kg): 9.36
Anticipated OG: 1.046 Plato: 11.32
Anticipated EBC: 17.1
Anticipated IBU: 33.8
Brewhouse Efficiency: 74 %
Wort Boil Time: 80 Minutes

Actual OG: 1.046 Plato: 11.39
Actual FG: 1.012 Plato: 3.07

Alc by Weight: 3.48 by Volume: 4.45 From Measured Gravities.
ADF: 73.1 RDF 60.8 Apparent & Real Degree of Fermentation.

Actual Mash System Efficiency: 79 %
Anticipated Points From Mash: 45.53
Actual Points From Mash: 48.75


Grain/Extract/Sugar

% Amount Name Origin Potential EBC
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
89.4 8.37 kg. TF Maris Otter Pale Ale Malt UK 1.037 6
5.5 0.51 kg. TF Flaked Maize UK 1.040 0
4.7 0.44 kg. TF Pale Crystal UK 1.034 100
0.4 0.04 kg. TF Black Malt UK 1.033 1270

Potential represented as SG per pound per gallon.


Hops

Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
15.00 g. Bramling Cross Pellet 8.60 9.0 60 min.
49.12 g. Goldings - E.K. Pellet 4.20 14.4 60 min.
28.37 g. Goldings - E.K. Pellet 4.20 2.2 15 min.
29.37 g. Bramling Cross Pellet 8.60 3.5 10 min.
45.37 g. Bramling Cross Pellet 8.60 4.5 2 min.


Extras

Amount Name Type Time
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
0.00 Unit(s)Campden tablet Other 0 Min.(mash) 
0.00 Unit(s)Whirlfloc Fining 45 Min.(boil)


----------



## Doogiechap (24/12/07)

My Kolsch is ready for consumption, apologies for the lack of brightness... Polyclar and a filter was no match for my poor technique  .
Cheers
Doug

Recipe and details as follows:
Batch 2 of Kolsch 

Date Brewed: 4 Nov 2007 
Selected Style and BJCP Guidelines 
6C-Light Hybrid Beer-Kolsch 
Min OG: 1.044 SG Max OG: 1.050 SG 
Min FG: 1.007 SG Max FG: 1.011 SG 
Min IBU: 20 IBU Max IBU: 30 IBU 
Min Color: 3.5 SRM Max Color: 5.0 SRM 
Recipe Overview 
Target Wort Volume Before Boil: 45.00 l Actual Wort Volume Before Boil: 45.00 l 
Target Wort Volume After Boil: 35.00 l Actual Wort Volume After Boil: 35.00 l 
Target Volume Transferred: 33.00 l Actual Volume Transferred: 33.00 l 
Target Volume At Pitching: 40.00 l Actual Volume At Pitching: 40.00 l 
Target Volume Of Finished Beer: 38.00 l Actual Volume Of Finished Beer: 38.00 l 
Target Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.047 SG Actual Pre-Boil Gravity: - No Record - 
Target OG: 1.050 SG Actual OG: 1.049 SG 
Target FG: 1.012 SG Actual FG: 1.011 SG 
Target Apparent Attenuation:: 74.9 % Actual Apparent Attenuation: 76.6 % 
Target ABV: 5.0 % Actual ABV: 5.0 % 
Target ABW: 3.9 % Actual ABW: 3.9 % 
Target IBU (using Rager): 21.6 IBU Actual IBU: 21.6 IBU 
Target Color: 2.8 SRM Actual Color: 2.8 SRM 
Target Mash Efficiency: 75.0 % Actual Mash Efficiency: 73.6 % 
Target Fermentation Temp: 18 degC Actual Fermentation Temp: 18 degC 
Fermentables 
Ingredient Amount % When 
Cryer Galaxy Malt 8.68 kg 88.8 % In Mash/Steeped 
German Wheat Malt 0.50 kg 5.1 % In Mash/Steeped 
German Munich Malt 0.50 kg 5.1 % In Mash/Steeped 
US Rice Hulls 0.11 kg 1.1 % In Mash/Steeped 
Hops 
Variety Alpha Amount Form When 
Czech Saaz 2.5 26 g Pelletized Hops 60 Min From End 
German Hallertauer Hersbrucker 2.2 100 g Pelletized Hops 45 Min From End 
Other Ingredients 
Ingredient Amount When
Yeast 
Wyeast 2565-Kolsch 

Mash Schedule 
Mash Type: Full Mash 
Protein Rest at 51 degC 20mins
Step Type Temperature Duration 
Rest at 65 degC 60mins


----------



## Vlad the Pale Aler (24/12/07)

BeerSmith Recipe Printout - www.beersmith.com
Recipe: Xmas case 07
Brewer: Walkers Fine Ales and Stouts
Asst Brewer: 
Style: Belgian Pale Ale
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (35.0) 

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 50.00 L 
Boil Size: 66.77 L
Estimated OG: 1.058 SG
Estimated Color: 29.8 EBC
Estimated IBU: 20.5 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70.00 %
Boil Time: 70 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU 
10.00 kg Pale Malt, Maris Otter (5.9 EBC) Grain 80.19 % 
0.80 kg Caramunich Malt (110.3 EBC) Grain 6.42 % 
0.40 kg Amber Malt (43.3 EBC) Grain 3.21 % 
0.07 kg Carafa III (1034.3 EBC) Grain 0.56 % 
40.80 gm Hallertauer, New Zealand [8.50 %] (60 minHops 16.5 IBU 
73.10 gm Hallertauer Hersbrucker [2.50 %] (15 min)Hops 4.0 IBU 
0.02 kg Coriander Seed (Boil 5.0 min) Misc 
0.62 items Sod. Met. (Mash 0.0 min) Misc 
2.64 items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 min) Misc 
20.00 items clove (Boil 5.0 min) Misc 
1.00 kg Cane (Beet) Sugar (0.0 EBC) Sugar 8.02 % 
0.20 kg Candi Sugar, Dark (541.8 EBC) Sugar 1.60 % 
2 Pkgs Trappist Ale (White Labs #WLP500) Yeast-Ale 


Mash Schedule: 60l fly sparge
Total Grain Weight: 11.27 kg
----------------------------
60l fly sparge
Step Time Name Description Step Temp 
60 min dough in Add 33.81 L of water at 73.8 C 67.0 C 


Notes:
------


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ready to drink now.

Already had Beer by David, Ashers NS summer ale, (and Barfs very good Deuchars clone.)
Both up to the usual high standard.


----------



## recharge (24/12/07)

I havent got time to type recipe in today, but was brewed 1/12 bottled 14/12 had one yesterday was tasting fine so could be drunk now though may may benefit from a week or two in fridge.

Regards

Recharge


----------



## Simon W (24/12/07)

EDIT: Yeah give mine another week.
Just had one and is only just carbed.
Burps like a fruit salad :huh:
.... Chill haze

Simon's Amber Ale:

84% JW Trad. Ale
11.5% Wey. Melanoidin
4.5% Wey. CaraAroma

160g total mixed hops(for 22.5L)
= 48g each Amarillo, Cascade and Willamette + 16g Chinook
20g Hopbursted every 5mins from 30.
Approx. Averaged IBU = 38.

Remaining 20g was dry-hopped for 2 weeks.*

US05 yeast.

QuickNotes:
I rushed my labels and left out the W in SimonW's, but you all know what GL's labels look like anyway.
Last year I bulk primed with 6g/L Dex but got a fair bit of undercarbed feedback so upped it to 7.5g/L this year.
Someone has a PET bottle that won't stand without rocking, I thought it was overcarbed so let a hiss of gas out, it still doesn't stand! That one may be undercarbed 
*Dry hopping may have been a failure, made a hopbag from loose weave cotton, ofcourse the cotton swelled and closed up the weave, D'OH!


----------



## sinkas (24/12/07)

"The Divine Hammer" - CP filled bottles, ready to drink (aged already 1 year)

A ProMash Recipe Report



Recipe Specifics
----------------

Batch Size (L): 26.00 Wort Size (L): 26.00
Total Grain (kg): 11.94
Anticipated OG: 1.103 Plato: 24.39
Anticipated SRM: 20.0
Anticipated IBU: 31.4
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70 %
Wort Boil Time: 90 Minutes

Formulas Used
-------------

Brewhouse Efficiency and Predicted Gravity based on Method #1, Potential Used.
Final Gravity Calculation Based on Points.
Hard Value of Sucrose applied. Value for recipe: 46.2100 ppppg
Yield Type used in Gravity Prediction: Fine Grind Dry Basis.

Color Formula Used: Morey
Hop IBU Formula Used: Rager

Additional Utilization Used For Plug Hops: 2 %
Additional Utilization Used For Pellet Hops: 10 %


Grain/Extract/Sugar

% Amount Name Origin Potential SRM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
65.2 7.79 kg. Pilsener Germany 1.038 2
13.0 1.56 kg. Munich Malt Germany 1.037 8
4.3 0.52 kg. Aromatic Malt Belgium 1.036 20
4.3 0.52 kg. Cane Sugar 1.047 0
4.3 0.52 kg. CaraMunich Malt Belgium 1.033 60
4.3 0.52 kg. Special B Malt Belgian 1.030 120
2.2 0.26 kg. Melanoidin Malt 1.033 30
2.2 0.26 kg. Wheat Malt Germany 1.039 2

Potential represented as SG per pound per gallon.


Hops

Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
78.54 g. Hallertauer Pellet 4.00 31.4 60 min.


Yeast
-----

White Labs WLP530 Abbey Ale


Mash Schedule
-------------

Mash Type: Single Step

Grain kg: 11.42
Water Qts: 28.60 - Before Additional Infusions
Water L: 27.06 - Before Additional Infusions

L Water Per kg Grain: 2.37 - Before Additional Infusions

Saccharification Rest Temp : 67 Time: 60
Mash-out Rest Temp : 76 Time: 10
Sparge Temp : 77 Time: 60


----------



## roger mellie (24/12/07)

Stress levels are high - just braved the Mandurah Forum for some last minute Xmas shopping - bad move - some people need to resit their licences I reckon - I never got the "its OK to cut up everyone" rule in my road code.

So - I needed beer on my return

What better place to start than with 

*Ashers Nelson Sauvin Summer Ale*

Its odd that I have a NSSA in the keg at the moment (NOT) - and can happliy do a comparison between them,

Huge head - I would say slightly overcarbonated - the bubbles are big and carbonic and the head has a nice winey almost candy smell - sweet - very appealing. Slightly hazy - not that I ever find that a fault.

Classical Sauvin stonefuit aromas - I would hasten to add that this has a faint caramel mid palate - sweet and toffee note. Finishes long - nectarine seems to win out in the end.

In all a great beer - as the first cab off the rank the rest have a tough act to follow.

In fact - all this did reinforce that my diacetic effort was a distant second - same winey flavors - but I guess thats what you get with a 6 day G to B.

Am looking forward to the rest now.

Cheers, Beers

RM


----------



## barfridge (24/12/07)

Cheers for the bottling info gents. I seem to have dumped them all into the fridge in my drunken stupor the other night.

So it looks like I best go and fish some out.


----------



## deebee (24/12/07)

Alright. It's not like I trust my palate or anything. But I like to get feedback on my beers, so I thought I would make the effort on yours. Only drunk a couple so far...

Kais CACA 
A slightly cloudy beer sitting somewhere between light amber and dark straw in colour with a fine white head and light lacing. Delicate noble hops aroma with a touch of something citrusy on the nose. Dry from start to finish, utterly clean, crisp, refreshing, with a little bite of tartness sitting neatly amongst the gorgeous hops flavour. Mouthfeel is curiously full for such a dry beer - I love this. An excellent hot weather drink and a very classy beer Kai. Welcome to WA, nice to have your beer in the case!

Transylvanian Pale Ale
Its a fine bronze amber colour bearing a thin white head, a touch cloudy, but brighter than most. Lightly carbonated, enough to sustain the head throughout the drink. Fruity malt aroma, esters, phenols, a whiff of bubblegum. Feels smooth and alcoholic in the mouth. I cant pick up the cloves or the coriander or maybe I almost can if I squint. Its big on malt and ester flavours, Belgian, vinous and warm, alcoholic, zesty almost bready flavours. I really like the tartness that just takes the edge off the alcoholic warmth of this beer. A very nice drop.

All Xmas Case entrants please have a crack at posting something about as many beers as you can. It makes a difference to hear what someone else thought about your beer.

cheers


DB


----------



## sinkas (24/12/07)

Vlads Transvestite Pale ale:
Well Ill be buggered, I thought this was a brambing corss hopped english beer, but I now recall certain similarities to the Bel pale I made a few years back, 
Very nice with no faults.

Recharges Rural Khazie Golden Ale: Pretty nice light brew, with a english hop hit and a touch of diacetyl.


----------



## deebee (24/12/07)

It's Christmas Eve and I am just warming up... may wax lyrical about a few before the night is over... 

A Summer Ale 
At last: an ale from the king of lagers. It pours with a big head and you can smell the hops straight away. Well carbonated, though the head somehow drops away quickly. Unreal hops aroma, big fat hops flavour, deftly balanced against the solid malt background with a gutsy bitterness swelling up at the finish. Its a full beer but with nothing big or bloating about it. Nothing sticking out. Trying to think what to write about it and keep thinking, Balance. I am blown away by this beer. More please.


----------



## Kai (25/12/07)

deebee... what happened to warming up? thanks for the review, it's pretty much spot on to my impression of the beer except a little more generous.

I'm dipping into my case now, unfortunately a lack of fridge space means I have to feed them in and out of the freezer. I'm just pulling them out of the bag at random at the moment.

First up is Randyrob's halfluck apa, unfortunately I didn't cool it for long enough so it's a little warm (and I put a couple ice cubes in it too, sorry rob). Very good balance of malt and grapefruity bitterness, carbonation slightly on the higher end. Strong enough that a couple cubes of ice do not diminish the beer (sorry rob).


----------



## Guest Lurker (25/12/07)

Christmas Day, and I am thirsty.

4 down, 17 to go.

Kai, CACA
Spritzy carbonation, bit murky, couple of beers the night before light yellow pee colour, nice fine head and lacing. Clean dry crisp malt but still with some soft malt presence. Creamy texture, citrusy and floral hop character. Dry lingering bitterness, in winter maybe a little too bitter in the finish, but on Christmas Day, just perfect for waking the tastebuds up. Clean crisp dry balanced refreshing beer. Very nice, I know the rules say anything above 500 ml is fine, but I would have liked a much bigger bottle of this on Christmas Day. Mind you, I did have Fetchs bottle (Fletch, you missed out big time), unfortunately not cold though.

Asher Junctyard Nelson
Spritzy, a bit murky, may have been my pour, quite a few beers the night before dark yellow pee colour. Aroma is grapes and stonefruit. Hop driven flavour, there is enough malt there to back it up, but it takes a back seat. Overall, a delicious, hop driven, grapey fruity beer, with an absence of cats pee and kerosene. The bitterness lingers on the side of the tongue, and is strongly present, but is not harsh, and for summer drinking is well balanced.

Amita Wit
Strong carbonation, pillowy head on pouring, which hung around for a while. A few beers the night before medium yellow pee colour. Reasonably bright. Aroma is mostly sweetish malt. A very drinkable beer, went down well with Christmas dinner. We all know that I dont do wheat beers, but from my general impression of wits, I imagine this beer could be improved with 1) less malt flavour, 2) lighter colour, and some wheat protein for cloudiness, 3) more of an unmalted wheat tang, 4) a bit more citrusy spicy character. But since I dont know anything about wheat beers, I enjoyed it as it was. 

Doogiechap Kolsch
My PET bottle was a bit squishy, lowish carb. Fruity aroma. Colour is man I had a lot of beer last night dark yellow pee. A bit murky but not that bad. Pours with a reasonable head that didnt hang around in my glasses, mostly related to the low carb I think. Nicely malty, no real caramel, no biscuit, more soft malty. Grapey character, with the right amount of bitterness for the malt. Overall, very well balanced, subdued malty, grapey, not too bitter, quaffable beer. The only other Kolsch I have ever tried is Colonial, which is more hop driven and grapey winey, and the creator says he wouldnt actually enter that as a Kolsch, so dont know how close it is for style, but I like it.


----------



## Kai (25/12/07)

Guest Lurker said:


> \
> Spritzy carbonation, bit murky, couple of beers the night before light yellow pee colour, nice fine head and lacing.



I like the description but between the murkiness and the head, perhaps you need to consult a urologist?

I'm already getting my beers mixed up, thought I was tasting doogie's koeslch and was about to criticise it for being too hoppy like Colonial's koeslch, then realised I was drinking Asher's NS summer ale. Very nice, and a lot better balanced than the Knappstein archetype. Fairly close to that beer though, just more bitter and has a bit more sherbety freshness on the hops.


----------



## recharge (25/12/07)

OK bit of time at work to add the recipe (Yes on Xmas day)

Rural Khazi's "Golden Ale" (Partial)
In the mash
1kg wheat
800g Kirin Pils
500g Marris Otter
250g Med crystal
100g Melanoidon
50g Choc
Coopers Bavarian lager kit (end of boil)(21IBUs)

20min Protien rest then mashed at 67 for an hour
Total boil volume constant 12L
Hops
Amarillo 8.9% 15g 20mins
Amarillo 8.9% 15g 10 mins
Amarillo 8.9% 10g 1min
Amarillo 8.9% 10g into NC Cube
Total IBUs (buggered if i know 21 + whatever the above gives in 12l boil and eventual total volume of 21L)

Yeast US56 from yeast cake

OG 1050
FG 1008

Hope this helps.

Regards
Richard


----------



## Kai (25/12/07)

doogie's koelsch

More koelschlike than asher's summer ale, funnily enough. Clearer than doogie was suggesting, the haze is only mild on the first pint. Still a bit yeasty though, reminds me of a mild hefeweizen on the bready yeasty flavours.


----------



## Kai (25/12/07)

GL's Bramling X Bitter

Hop flavour dominates a hazy amber-gold beer with good malt backing. Low carb(onation), herbal and grassy in a good fashion. Again good balance though I'd dangle another 5 IBU in there to suit myself.


----------



## Kai (25/12/07)

Vlad's tranny ale

Nice amber colour. Lots of banana and bubblegum on the nose that stays on the first sip. Candied sweetness remains as that fades. Low bitterness and nice soft rounded malt. Seems to have a good tart-sweet balance rather than malty-bitter.


----------



## roger mellie (25/12/07)

Strewth - hottest Xmas day in WA since 1915 (or something)

Much food was eaten = bloat ensued - took dogs for a walk - feel alive - what better than a beer to kick off the evening precedings.

So in my best Boris Pickett accent

*Vlad the Impalers Transylvanian Pale Ale*

By my own admission and despite having been to Belgium on several occasions - Im not au fait with Belgian Pale Ales - but if this is what they are all about I will be.

Colour is amber/red - low ish carbonation - sweet candy nose with a spicy note. Toffee's and spice again on the palate - there is something else I cant pick - Kai says banana - I dont get that - maybe bubblegum - but more obvious candy/lolly flavours linger.

In all a really appealing beer - will definitely have a crack at something similar.

Great effort.

Oh and a mery Xmas to all on AHB land

RM


----------



## Kai (25/12/07)

amita's wit

I get a sulphury tinge upfront that fades a little but not too much. Beyond that the peel and coriander are in nice balance between each other but neither are shining through. I think it is a little more malt orientated but unfortunately I do get a lot of sulphur on my bottle.


----------



## Guest Lurker (25/12/07)

Kai said:


> amita's wit
> 
> I get a sulphury tinge upfront that fades a little but not too much. Beyond that the peel and coriander are in nice balance between each other but neither are shining through. I think it is a little more malt orientated but unfortunately I do get a lot of sulphur on my bottle.


I got sulphur as well when first opened, but it disappeared during drinking.


----------



## Kai (25/12/07)

Goat's hefe

Tangy clove finish on top of a nice mild fruitiness. Nice low tart breadiness and low carbonation. Did you use WB-06? It tastes similar to the last hefe I brewed with that yeast.


----------



## Kai (25/12/07)

recharge's golden ale

Leaning more towards an amber than a golden. very solid malt backbone with a light and delicate hop flavour that leans towards passionfruit and melon. I'd tag it as a nice sweet american amber ale unless I got the wrong beer again.


----------



## Kai (26/12/07)

Beer by David:

Very nice, dry and malty. I like it.


----------



## kook (26/12/07)

*Kai's CAPA*

Pours yellow with a light haze and long lasting medium white head. Nice visible fine carbonation. Slightly bready aroma, with honey notes too. Faint butter & apple stew notes in nose upon warming. Flavour is quite clean, with a honey-like malt sweetness and slightly citric hop flavour. Finish is dry, with a light spicy bitterness. Soft, almost silky feel in the mouth, though not heavy. Alcohol is also well hidden considering the 5.3% ABV.

Really enjoyable beer on a hot day like today. Very refreshing and like GL I would have liked more. I detected very slight diacetyl and acetaldehyde flavours once it warmed up, but not enough to detract from the beer in any way.


----------



## kook (26/12/07)

*Amita's Wit*

Pours a golden colour, highly effervescent and clear. Short lasting white head on top. I also picked up sulphur in the aroma, but this did fade as the beer warmed. Flavour is light straw/hay, with pineapple like tropical fruit esters. Dry finish, almost a little watery. Faint citric like zing in aftertaste.

Overall quite a refreshing, easy drinking beer, but could do with more flavour as I found it almost like a South American lager! I could be way off, but I suspect this was brewed with a decent proportion of simple sugars?


----------



## amita (27/12/07)

kook said:


> View attachment 16876
> 
> 
> *Amita's Wit*
> ...



Amitas Wit recipe:

for 50 liters,
1,5 l Wheat Malt
1,5 l Light Malt
1 l Glucose
800 gr Dextrose

sort of mini mash with:
250 g Caramalt
250 g Munich Malt
400 g Wheat Malt

hops:
70 g Kent Goldings
40 g Saaz

10 g Corriander seeds
5 g Cummin seeds
30 g orange peel zest(seville)
3 cloves
1/2 tsp cinnamon

yeats : Wyeast Wit beer.

I am happy with how easy it drinks,miss more body and yes I also have the sulphur taste but it wasnt there earlier on.
I was also hoping for a cloudy beer and am surprised how clear it is.
will have another go at it when I have re-arrenged my brewery.

happy brewing in the new year to all,
cheers amita


----------



## recharge (27/12/07)

OK first 2 off the ranks for me. Whilst i don't feel nearly qualified to judge i will however post my comments as objectively as i can.

Ashers - Mine was quite cloudy with a big fluffy white head that lasted the whole glass. Flavour and aroma for me were definately a dominant grapefruit with a pleasant bitterness that lasted for ages. Very nice beer. Thanks.

Amitas Wit -Mine was actually a bit cloudy but this was because the bottle fell over in the car.Minimal head. I found this beer to be quite lite in flavour but had a definate kinda soft fruity aroma and flavour. I did get mild sulphur but only because i was looking for it. Pleasant easy to drink beer. Thanks.

Regards

Richard


----------



## sinkas (27/12/07)

Amita's Wit:
Pretty nice number this one, very spritzy and fresh tasting.

Ashers Summer ale: Found this one quite surprising, very strong flavours, witha sort of citrusty zing, very pleasant.

Goats Hefe: Really good tasting hefe, didnt pick up any of the Mt Hood, Ill definitly give this dried wheat yeast a go after trying this on

Kai's cream ale: Not a style I have tasted before, but after this Ill certainly be giving it a go, very nice summer quaffer,


----------



## roger mellie (27/12/07)

*Kai's Classic American Cream Ale*

Another first for me - I need to get out more.

Little bit murky, straw coloured, well carbonated, lingering head. Bready yeasty aroma when first opened that subsided over time. 

The Saaz Nobleness is evident and lingering - but I also get citrus and straw?. I'm not quite sure why the beer is called a cream ale? I found it to be quite a delicate beer, crisp and tart with a silky mouthfeel. I could quite happliy quaff this - 'refreshing' I think would be my closing comment.

And whats this 500 ml's - it was over before it began. 

Good effort Kai - was good to meet you and your sister at the swap - always like chatting to wine people.

Cheers

RM


----------



## roger mellie (27/12/07)

*Doogiechaps Faux Kolsch *

Little bit hazy, light carbonation with little head.

Malt driven flavours with sweet caramel notes. I got only a little hop influence but what is there is pleasant and subtle - Floral maybe.
I know Kolsch is ofter described as winey - I think that this effort is too 'medium' to go that way - with the malt and sweet caramel starring the show.

A good effort - well made - enjoyable.

Thanks Doug

RM


----------



## recharge (27/12/07)

OK Goats Hefe
I was really struggling to describe this beer but i really enjoyed it. 
In fact this whole paying attention to the aroma flavor thing definately has its merits.(but i suck at it  )
I get the clove flavor but would have been battling to describe this had it not been mentioned earlier.
Nice beer despite you woes. Thanks

Recharge

Hell thats not very objective, but still a nice beer.


----------



## Guest Lurker (27/12/07)

MikeB Belgian Wit
Good carb. No beer the night before pale lemon pee colour. Fine head with good lacing. Slightly cloudy. Seems to have the right sort of spicy tang aroma. Low body, low malt, clean tangy spritzy light flavoured refreshing beer. A lot of flavour for a starting gravity of 1.027. For me a little over bittered but on a hot day that works. Seems like a good attempt at style to me, not that I would know, and a very tasty light beer. 

Deebee Beer by David
Good head and retention, too dark a colour to describe as pee, unless you have blackwater fever. Bready malty in a dry sort of way, clean. It seemed a little over bittered initially, but as it warmed up the balance was pretty good. Actually I think this beer would be great through a hand pump, and I enjoyed it a lot. Let me know when it goes on sale in Mosman Park.

Clay APA
Good creamy head. Aroma is grapefruit and diacetyl. Quite a few beers the night before golden pee colour. Bit cloudy. Good malt background, citrusy grapefruit hop flavour, which doesnt really continue to the finish, and is a bit masked by diacetyl, has just enough bitterness for me, maybe a little low for an APA. A nice balanced beer, probably drank it too early as the yeast would probably have cleaned up the diacetyl if left a bit longer.


----------



## Vlad the Pale Aler (27/12/07)

*Beer by David*
Nice and lively not over the top, amber to copper colour, hazy.Subtle citrus hop aroma that lingers. Nice balance with hop flavour throughout suggesting frequent additions to the boil. Happy with this one

*Ashers NS Ale*
Big bold head, huge soapy bubbles and plenty of carbonation. light malty aroma with a whiff of the NS grapeiness. Surprisingly malt driven, I was expecting a Sauvin hop monster for some reason but a definate toffee note is evident. Joe White pilsner?
An excellent brew.
*
Amitas Wit*
Well carbed, nice head that thins out but hangs around, light straw pilsner colour. Sulpher pong that goes away.Thin body but plenty of lingering flavour and complexity, orange is there. As it warmed up it went clear as a bell which would suggest a chill haze. Where did the colour come from, looks like a pilsner rather than a classic hazy Wit. But all in all a nice beer.


----------



## Vlad the Pale Aler (27/12/07)

GL -
On your new beer colour scale, how would you describe a stout?


----------



## Guest Lurker (27/12/07)

Vlad the Pale Aler said:


> GL -
> On your new beer colour scale, how would you describe a stout?



Before I invented my new colour scale, I checked, there arent any stouts in the case. But...ever met anybody with Dengue fever?


----------



## randyrob (28/12/07)

Hey Guys,

here's my recipe for the Xmas Case as soon as i seem to have packed all my drinking notes for the beers i've tried in
the move so once i find them along with all the other stuff i can't seem to find i'll post em up.

i can't believe i ate a deep fried cornetto.....and enjoyed it! good times, good times 

AMERICAN PALE ALE (SANDGROPER XMAS CASE '07)

A ProMash Recipe Report

Recipe Specifics
----------------

Batch Size (L): 40.00 Wort Size (L): 40.00
Total Grain (kg): 9.55
Anticipated OG: 1.052 Plato: 12.77
Anticipated EBC: 16.0
Anticipated IBU: 36.3
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70 %
Wort Boil Time: 75 Minutes


Grain/Extract/Sugar

% Amount Name Origin Potential EBC
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
81.7 7.80 kg. JWM Export Pilsner Australia 1.037 3
5.2  0.50 kg. JWM Wheat Malt Australia 1.040 4
5.2 0.50 kg. JWM Crystal 140 Australia 1.035 145
5.2 0.50 kg. Munich Malt Germany 1.037 16
2.6 0.25 kg. CaraPilsner France 1.035 20

Potential represented as SG per pound per gallon.


Hops

Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
29.00 g. Columbus Pellet 13.70 29.0 45 min.
50.00 g. Cascade Pellet 6.70 7.3 15 min.
100.00 g. Willamette Whole 5.00 0.0 0 min.


Yeast
-----
US-05


----------



## randyrob (28/12/07)

ahh managed to find some of the piccys on my thumb drive





this beer presented in the glass amazingly, big on carbonation and an brilliant head that would just not disipate.
please tell me there was a chunk of wheat in this beer ash. loved the colour yellow with a bit of cloudiness thrown
in perfect beer in this kind of weather, didnt acutally pick nelson sauvin to begin with even tho it was written on the bottle d'uh! 




mmm....pear was my initial reaction to this beer, kind of like drinking a really mellow hefe i thought another great beer out of the USB factory. soo morish...




this beer taste very polished and almost tinny if that makes any sense.




v low on carbonation with a massive flavour burst of some pretty insane hops would have taste lovely straight out of the tap.


----------



## Kai (28/12/07)

roger mellie said:


> *Kai's Classic American Cream Ale*
> 
> Another first for me - I need to get out more.
> 
> ...



Cheers, Roger. I think the sibling had a good time at the swap, she certainly socialised a lot more than I did, I just drank everyone's beer.

Blowed if I know why the yanks chose the name cream ale but I reckon it's a great style. The Saaz was actually Tasmanian, I was initially dissatisfied with it but have changed my mind and think it goes really well.

And apologies to everyone for the smaller bottle, I didn't have enough longies and wanted to keep a few bottles for myself. Next year I promise it'll be 750's, I'll just brew a double batch so I get some too.


----------



## Guest Lurker (28/12/07)

Recharge Khazi Golden Ale
Amber colour, I have peed this colour before after a big night but was so dehydrated I couldnt stand up at the time. Mostly caramel malt aroma. My PET bottle was squishy, very low carbonation, consequently not much head. Sweet caramel malty beer with enough bitterness to balance and give it a nice clean finish. Very drinkable.

Randy Rob APA
Amber colour, good carb, fine lacy head. Not bright but not murky either. Aroma is citrus, grapefruit and just a whiff of malt. Hop driven, citrusy, crisp flavour, with just enough soft malt to match, well balanced, with a long lingering zingy bitterness at the end that turns up all over the tongue, not just down the sides, and isnt harsh. A very good beer.

Sinkas Divine Hammer Christmas beer
A moderate hiss on opening, lowish carbonation. Dark amber colour. A bloke couldnt pee that colour and live to tell the tale. Aroma is candy and pear esters, with some Christmas cake thrown in. Head didnt last well which could be the alcohol or more likely the pork sausages I was eating at that time. Flavour is very Christmasy raisins, plums, golden syrup, pears and a little alcohol warmth but the alcohol is well hidden. The golden syrup disappears by the finish, and it finishes fruity but clean. For me a complex, interesting tasty beer, that so far is the most Christmasy, I wouldnt mind a drier finish (What was the FG?), but very good, and not a bad use of the dreaded dark crystal.


----------



## deebee (29/12/07)

Guest Lurker said:


> I have peed this colour before after a big night but was so dehydrated I couldnt stand up at the time.



You sat down to pee, then checked the colour?


----------



## Doogiechap (29/12/07)

Ashers NS Summer Ale.
After digging trenches around my garden beds all day I was looking forward to this one and was not disapointed !
Grapefruit is what sums this up, both in aroma and flavor but certainly not overbearing. The carbonation was on the upper but for me was just what I was after  . Lovely head that lasted all the way to the bottom. Mrs Doogiechap also liked this one. I loved the refreshing slightly hop orientated balance.
Thanks Asher for a top drop !
Cheers
Doug


----------



## roger mellie (29/12/07)

Guest Lurker said:


> Randy Rob APA
> Amber colour, good carb, fine lacy head. Not bright but not murky either. Aroma is citrus, grapefruit and just a whiff of malt. Hop driven, citrusy, crisp flavour, with just enough soft malt to match, well balanced, with a long lingering zingy bitterness at the end that turns up all over the tongue, not just down the sides, and isnt harsh. A very good beer.



GL

Surely a mistake - there is no reference to pee? 

RM


----------



## sinkas (29/12/07)

Guest Lurker said:


> Sinkas Divine Hammer Christmas beer
> A moderate hiss on opening, lowish carbonation. Dark amber colour. A bloke couldnt pee that colour and live to tell the tale. Aroma is candy and pear esters, with some Christmas cake thrown in. Head didnt last well which could be the alcohol or more likely the pork sausages I was eating at that time. Flavour is very Christmasy raisins, plums, golden syrup, pears and a little alcohol warmth but the alcohol is well hidden. The golden syrup disappears by the finish, and it finishes fruity but clean. For me a complex, interesting tasty beer, that so far is the most Christmasy, I wouldnt mind a drier finish (What was the FG?), but very good, and not a bad use of the dreaded dark crystal.




Gald you managed to drink it,
yes carbonation is far too low, which accentuates the 1016 finish, 
In my opinion now a very average beer, but one that had a great deal of hope and artistic passion wasted on it.


----------



## mika (29/12/07)

Kinda like last years SaisonWeizen then


----------



## kook (29/12/07)

*Mike B's Wit*

Pours a cloudy pale yellow colour with a medium sized, long lasting head. Nice fine carbonation visible. Great aroma of citrus, coriander and other spice. Loads of spice flavour all the way through, with a dry bitter finish. Thin bodied, but very refreshing. Amazing flavours considering the low ABV.

I really enjoyed this, but would prefer slightly more body and sweetness from the wheat & malt. Maybe a really high mash temp would help? It might detract from the light summery feel of the beer though. Nice work.


----------



## roger mellie (29/12/07)

Too windy to venture oot in the boat so a cooling beer instead.

*Simon W's Amber Ale*

I felt the bottle - seemed hard - which distracts me - I was thinking GL - you have a simple colour scale based on wee. Will you at any stage be formulating a PET hardness scale or a how long the head lasts scale - just wondering.

Back to Simons Beer - Honey/Orange colour - quite dark - lowish carbonation but the head did loiter for the entire glass which was good. First taste confirmed what my nose had smelt - there is Chinook in them thar bubbles. Honey flavours dictate the initial taste but the obvious grapefuit bitterness is quick to erase the malty/honeyed flavours. Appealing silky mouthfeel and the chinook prolongs the experience - excessively good length.

In all - my kind of beer - a shame I only have one bottle - would like to come back to this one in a month.

Good effort Simon

RM


----------



## roger mellie (29/12/07)

*Beer by David*

Honeyed hue - but quite Murky - perfect carbonation - spritzy and clean.

Really enjoyable pint this - I would agree with GL and say that with less carbonation this would be a top bitter type pint. Lovely Munich maltyness well balanced with the amarillo. The bitterness carries to the end.

Top Draw :icon_cheers: 

RM


----------



## Guest Lurker (29/12/07)

Asher Junctyard Sauvin Ale (Fletchs bottle) vs Knappstein lager (stole it off AusDB)
Ashers is more hazy (goes as it warms) and has better head retention. Colour and carbonation are similar, equivalent to 2 pints the night before pee colour. A bit of malt aroma in Ashers, not in Knappstein. Hop aroma and flavour in Ashers is grapey but also very citrus and grapefruit. In Knapstein it is more winey and grapey with much less citrus. Overall they are similar, but Ashers is more bitter, more fruity, more fresh and a more complex beer. The more crisp Knappstein lager is a bit one dimensional. I let them both warm up, couldnt find kerosene in either, did get some cat pee from Kanppstein. Both good beers, but I would rather drink Ashers.


----------



## Simon W (29/12/07)

Cheers RM, not sure if I like it yet. Will be having another tonight, tho the low carb isn't inspiring. Did you get glass or PET?
Just got back from 5 days with the rellie's down your way(Yunderup), spent most of boxing day afternoon 'till sunset swimming, doing bombies off a boat and floating around in the estuary to keep cool. Great stuff.


*Tasting notes*: I'm sure you've all heard me say this before, but I'm crap at describing what I smell and taste so read this post with both eyes shut. To add to the problem, I think my glass of choice is phukt! I must've rinsed it 5 times with hot water but with the exception of Asher's NS Ale, it never held a decent head for longer than 3 seconds. Zero lacing with any beer. I'm back home now so will clean it properly for remaining brews.
Cloudiness was an issue with many of the brews but they all got a bit of a shake and a stir in the esky in the car for an hours drive.

*Asher's NS Summer Ale*
Very very nice, my pick of the pack to date.
Poured with a large-ish big-bubbled head that dropped to two-finger width and held there to the bottom where it was about half-finger width. Highly carbonated which wasn't a problem.
Here's where the problems start(with me, not the beer!) Hop aroma + flavour was awesome, but buggered if I know what it's like, Definite Grapefruit base but overlayed with maybe passionfruit? or could it be lychee? lime? no idea, but I loved it, will be giving NS a go myself eventually. Maltiness was nice and finished dry I thought(good for 46 deg day!). The bitterness wasn't over the top - tart but pretty smooth and rounded if that makes any sense - and lingered for some time without getting annoying. Very noice!

*Goat's Hefe*
Poured with little head, carbonation was low, a faint but v.nice aroma of who-knows-what(Sorry!), slightly spicy, definite wheat taste that I enjoy. A good drop and refreshing on the killer day.

*Barf's IPA*
A malt flavour that was pretty strong, but excellent!. Not my idea of an IPA at all, but what do I know(not much!) Was still a good drink tho, Cheers.

*Fletch's Lite*
No body, no head, no carbonation, nothing. I've had heavier water. Infact I've had heavier air.

*Tony's Ale*
This was quite nice but seemed low on carbonation, went down well nevertheless. I forgot to jot down some notes but remember a nice malty taste and being well balanced.

*Kai's Cream*
Definitely a cream aroma.... let me clarify:
It was pretty much total darkness for this one, sitting on the verandah in the cool night air with the lights off.
Being a small bottle I tried to pour all into my glass, so with a little head it pretty much filled to the very top. In the darkness I decided to have a sniff, forgetting it's fill, and snorted a decent amount of beer up my left nostril ! It was not entirely unpleasant!
The aroma(after I blew out the liquid bush-hanky style) was extremely strong and full of what can only be described as.... cream! You know the creaminess you smell/taste in Red Creaming Soda? That.
It could be described as vanilla or something? dunno.
Was kinda nice but kinda wierd. 
Anyway, afterwards there was no aroma(my nose was shot!) and the flavour had no cream but it was a nice refreshing beer.

*Rob's APA*
By this stage of one night I was getting pretty sloshed(might have had something to do with Kai's Cream Blow!) so the notes were thinning, but this beer poured with good carbonation and a little head that disappeared slowly. The aroma was there but wasn't the grapefruit I've been conditioned to expect from an APA. A nice malty balance, very good.

*Recharge's Rural Golden*
Great American hop aroma, good smooth bitterness that lingered, I'd guess hopburst-like addition schedule? Will have to check the recipe. 
Good maltiness but a lingering caramel-like sweetness that I didn't know what to do with. Good Carbonation but minimal head(poss. glass prob.) 

*Vlad's TPA, Doogie's Klsch and DeeBee's Beer*
Dave is gonna kill me(you get one free hit at the next meet), but I've lost my notes for these three on the trip home today.
Let it be known though that all beers were great, with the exception of cloudiness(stirred) and head(my fk'd glass) never had a negative thought about any while drinking.

Simo


----------



## Guest Lurker (29/12/07)

Simon W said:


> *Fletch's Lite*
> No body, no head, no carbonation, nothing. I've had heavier water. Infact I've had heavier air.



Teehee, nice review


----------



## roger mellie (29/12/07)

Simon W said:


> Cheers RM, not sure if I like it yet. Will be having another tonight, tho the low carb isn't inspiring. Did you get glass or PET?
> Just got back from 5 days with the rellie's down your way(Yunderup), spent most of boxing day afternoon 'till sunset swimming, doing bombies off a boat and floating around in the estuary to keep cool. Great stuff.



Yep - sure is a crap part of the world we live in down here.  We went out into the Estuary on Xmas eve and got 20 crabs - I still maintain that fresh crab is the sweetest seafood when eaten fresh. Went well in a crab salad for Xmas - washed down with a few very cold pints.

I got a PET - it did stand on its own.

I drank mine early - no issue there - but given time I reckon it will be superb.

RM


----------



## Guest Lurker (29/12/07)

GLs BX bitter vs Ruddles county
First up, let me say that I wasnt trying to make Ruddles, burt saw it in the International Beer Shop yesterday and thought I would try it since it is supposed to have the same hops.
Second up, for someone who claims to brew with MO without chill haze, I seem to have produced a MO beer with a shitload of chill haze. Not sure what the source is, the only change that I can see is going back to flaked maize which I had been leaving out.

So anyway, the two beers do have a similar hop flavour, fruity, black curranty. But when cold, the Ruddles is definitely a better beer. The colour is darker, more red, and the malt flavour is more biscuity, slightly toasty, and as Kai suggests there is about 5 more IBUs dangled in there. When warmed up, (and for those who tried it on the first cyclinder from the hand pump, you know I have been drinking it pretty warm) I like mine better. The hop flavour is more prominent, and the softer malt profile works. 

Two photos, cos I like the way the Ruddles shows my glassware.


----------



## recharge (29/12/07)

Kai's CACA

This beer didnt last long in my glass this arvo i had just finished digging a 30+m trench in Bakers Hill dirt (AKA hard clay and gravel). 
I was hot and the beer was very clean and refreshing with a nice peppery finish. Like others have said i would have liked more. 1.25's for you next year i think  
Sorry i didn't pay more attention.

Regards

Richard


----------



## deebee (30/12/07)

Well I got three cartons of beer for Christmas presents so have been laying off the sandgroper case a bit, but did drink recharge's bottle, Rural Khazi...

Fairly bright, almost clear, bronze-amber colour, cream-coloured bubbly head. US hops aromas and also something sweet, very honey-like, making me think caraaroma, although the recipe says melanoidin. Tastes good, might do with more time in the bottle, finishing too sweet, perhaps too much specialty malt or just underattenuated.


----------



## deebee (30/12/07)

Le Marteau Divin
Mine is carbonated well enough, in fact it fizzes like coke and the head is gone straight away. It looks cherry black, clear but dark. It smells all Belgian and sherry. Up front the flavours are big with all those brandied fruit and Christmas pudding flavours, molasses, alcohol, has me thinking this is real night-night juice. After the swallow something thin and puckering creeps in, I can't name the flavour, but it does detract from the beer. Something comforting for the close of the evening, though perhaps past its best.


----------



## Simon W (30/12/07)

Ignore the label on mine; RM is spot-on, give it more time. Another week maybe, even more if you can hold out.
Can set a stubby aside for you RM, will be passing that way again around Aussie day.


----------



## sinkas (30/12/07)

Beer By David:
seemed to be a very pleasant mild mannered APA, but it certinaly felt like more than 4.8%, crisp hop finish, really nice summer drinker.

Tony's Ordinnary:
Well rounded yet heavy on the malt, not too much in the hop profile was evident, some of the finishing flavours reminded me of my CC contribution.


----------



## Kai (30/12/07)

Mike B's halfwit

Firstly, boggled by the OG on the bottle. That's a halfwit all right. Very clean and refreshing though, I was worried it was undercarbed when I cracked the cap but carries just enough gas to lift it up. Nice cloudy lemon colour with no head. Spiciness lifts right out of the glass on the aroma and seems to balance well on the palate. At first taste I thought it was to peely but that seems to be balancing out as I drink.

I'm sitting with this beer and a few dried dates for a midday snack and the beer suits the situation very well.


----------



## Kai (30/12/07)

roger_mielle's rude kid pilsner

I don't get any DMS fortunately, but the D Saaz does throw up some interesting stuff. Seems like a little light honeyed diacetyl merging with a blackcurranty flavour from the hops. Lower carbonation is emphasising that slickness. Bitterness is also very smooth, I barely noticed it on the first few sips. It's nice though I think I'd like it more with a little more carbonation. And perhaps I should have left the bottle out at room temp for a few more days before drinking.


----------



## Kai (30/12/07)

Simon W said:


> Ignore the label on mine; RM is spot-on, give it more time. Another week maybe, even more if you can hold out.
> Can set a stubby aside for you RM, will be passing that way again around Aussie day.



Sorry!

Simon W's Amber ale

Nice colour, ok clarity, good head though pours coarse lingers well. Drinking at around 10C.

VERY malty. Heavy dark bread-crust and dry coffee-toffee. Hopping is present but to me definitely takes a back seat -- more noticeable when I burp. Bitterness is prominent at the end. Have thrown the second half of the PET into the freezer to see what it's like at cooler temps.

[edit] Down around 4 now, it's showing a bit of chill haze and still quite malty. Is emphasising the bitterness more now too.


----------



## roger mellie (30/12/07)

Kai said:


> roger_mielle's rude kid pilsner
> 
> I don't get any DMS fortunately, but the D Saaz does throw up some interesting stuff. Seems like a little light honeyed diacetyl merging with a blackcurranty flavour from the hops. Lower carbonation is emphasising that slickness. Bitterness is also very smooth, I barely noticed it on the first few sips. It's nice though I think I'd like it more with a little more carbonation. And perhaps I should have left the bottle out at room temp for a few more days before drinking.



I should have put on the label - this was kegged and force carbed - then decanted into PET's and given some more squirts of CO2. Obviously not enough - sorry. The 2 weeks I recommended was for CC.

I think it must be changing Kai - all I got was Peaches and Nectarines - I did a diacetyl rest but obviosly not for long enough.

RM


----------



## roger mellie (30/12/07)

Time 4 a beer

*Tony M's Justan Ordinary Ale (or something)*

Light coloured almost apricotty, clarity OK (little bit hazy), mine had lowish carbonation but with an elevated pour got a nice fluffy head.

I got a gingery/spice flavour early doors that subsided - not a lot of hop flavour detectable - this is summed up in one word 'delicate' - I was searching for that compost smoke pipe flavor - but not to be. Malt is subdued - I gather this is at the lower end of the ABV scale (I could be wrong).

During me tasting this one of my spotty wonders dropped their guts under the desk - throwing me completly off my focus - I had to vacate. So in summing up - I liked it - I like delicate beers where you need to search for flavours - I think this is well made and far from Justan Ordinary.

Cheers

RM


----------



## deebee (30/12/07)

Mike B's Halfwit
Looks just like the real thing, light lemony straw coloured, lovely white head, a little coarse bubbled. I'm not a big wit drinker, but this seems to have all the right smells and tastes right there in the right places, only a very light-bodied version and finishing extra tight, tart and crisp. So crisp it almost crunches. A little something in there might be too sharp right at the end after the swallow. This would have been much better opened at the start of the first over of the last session of the first day of the next Test; a perfect hot day beer, all dry and refreshing.

Edit: only just checked the gravity for this beer and have to add that this is a pretty remarkable effort for flavour:alcohol ratio. You really could drink this beer all day as long as you were near a loo. Pretty flash label too.


----------



## Kai (31/12/07)

roger mellie said:


> I should have put on the label - this was kegged and force carbed - then decanted into PET's and given some more squirts of CO2. Obviously not enough - sorry. The 2 weeks I recommended was for CC.
> 
> I think it must be changing Kai - all I got was Peaches and Nectarines - I did a diacetyl rest but obviosly not for long enough.
> 
> RM



Yeah I read the force carbed bit after I finished the post. I'd wait to see if anyone else thinks it's [diac] there first... if it is then it's faint. It'll be interesting to see how everyone else interprets the hop flavour too.


----------



## Tony M (31/12/07)

roger mellie said:


> Time 4 a beer
> 
> *Tony M's Justan Ordinary Ale (or something)*
> 
> ...


Thanks RM for blaming the dogfart and not the beer.


----------



## ant (31/12/07)

Been working my way through a few of these beers, and really enjoyed them. Such a top idea, and a great way to try some inventive interpretations on styles... please excuse my overuse of words like "palate" and "carbonic"... the beer wanker in me clearly likes to come out after a beer or two. Hope you all get something out of the comments anyway  

*Goat Hefe*
Classic hefe colour and firm rocky head. Bready nose with sight banana ester, prickly carbonation on front of palate, with clove and a subtle ~22-25 IBU'ish bitterness from the mid palate back. Fantastoc balance with clean phenolic finish. Crisp, clean, esters and phenolics - what more do you want from a hefe?

*Mike B Halfwitz*
Most impressive pale straw colour for a wit I've seen outside something from Belgium. Maybe tad undercarbed for mine, head pours small and dissipates quickly. Sweet candi aroma with some coriander evident, prickly carbonation on front palate, helps lift the coriander and bring light bitterness across the palate. Tartness from the wheat and a residual sweetness throughout. Blanced, light, summer quaffer. Incredible amount of taste for the low OG.

*Asher Summer Ale*
All hail the JYD. Love the label. Pours cloudy straw colour with firm fine head. I get a tangerine/rockmelon aroma, a mild carbonation, and once in the mouth, a light body with a sweet candi sugar kind of an approach at the front palate, a mandarin peel and grapefruit type bitterness, finishing dry and crisp through the rear palate like you'd expect from a Lord of Lagers. Bloody good.

*Rob Lucky 13 APA*
Pours with thick pillowy head, hazed amber colour. When I see this colour in an APA I expect a hop bomb, but this delicate approach was better suited. Citrus (tangerine?) and some sweetness to the nose, mild carbonic bite front of palate and Cascade citrus with smooth caramel malt giving way to clean finsih with an almost sweet (Sauvin?) and 25-30 IBUish finish on rear/side of my tongue. Fruity with malt backbone, clean bitter finish. Nice balance, and the label is sensational.

*Vlad Trans Pale Ale*
Pours a copper/amber colour with nice size head. Aroma smella vaguely familiar - almost wit like? - and a bit bready.Nice sharp carbonic bite at front of palate, with citrus/grapefruit bitterness asserting itself. body has enough malt to carry the bitterness, but is still quaffably light. Finishes with a grepfruit bitterness sharp enough to remind me of quinine in tonic water and each mouthful has me reaching for the glass again to quench the bitterness. Balanced. Surprised me - it's a failing I know, but I automatically think APA every time I see the words "Pale Ale", and this was one out of the box. Thanks for taking me there.

*Doogiechap Faux Kolsch*
Poured cloudy amber colour with quickly dissipating head. Slight estery (not quite banana?) aroma, great assertive carbonic bite. Thought I got a touch of diacetyl, with a rounded sort of mouthfeel at the roof of my mouth, but a nice dry kolsch finish. I sort of thought it tasted like a hefe/kolsch combo; the fruitiness of the hefe and the crispness of the kolsch - anyway, it worked for me! Would have liked another glass or two as I sat in the sun...

*Clay APA*
Beaut straw/light amber colour, nice size head. Floral and citrus aroma, carbed nicely with solid carbonic bite, enough malt to carry the body through (tasted maybe heavier than it is cos of tiny bit of diacetyl?) and a floral type finish which reminded me of the LCPA hop combo. Great dry finish, I love that in an APA and I really wished I hadn't shared the bottle with my bro. Had a LCPA afterwards, but it just didn't hit the spot, which is an indicator to me that this is a very tidy beer.

*Chilla Haze Altbier*
Pours with a fair haze - almost murky (could be in part to conditioning on it's side in the fridge - just never enough room for all the beer), with a low carbonation. Some faint citrus hop aroma, with a tad more carb these probably would have become more prominent. I'm not sure what to expect in a malt profile form an alt, but it seems to be the dominant flavour, and I'm pretty sure I get some butterscotch sweetness from diacetyl in there. I think I failed to do it justice by not leaving it another week or two, but time is of the essence, and I only have a small window to get through them!

*GL Bramling Cross Bitter*
Pours copper colour with firm head that eased off quickly. An unusual stonefruit (peach/nectarine) aroma sort of sits with a dark berry smell I can't place, but it's good, and keeps me sniffing the whole glass through. Strong english malt (GP or MO - I struggle to pick them) profile, with a roundedness to the body which fills it out, but doesn't strike me as being a fault. Nice malt driven bitter with a fresh, clean finish.

*RM Rude Kid Pilsener*
Beautiful crisp/clear light golden colour, pours with a nice head that sinks quickly. I get a noble Saaz aroma, but with something sweet there that reminds me a bit of candi? Great sharp carbonic bite, some roundedness to top of palate (diacetyl?), but a hop bitterness across the top palate that lingers and gives a dry crisp finish - went great with some chilli!

*Kai's CACA*
Got to love a poo joke in the name of your beer. Pours a cloudy straw colour with a mid size head. Citrus aroma, and some noble Saaz in there too. Sweet mouthfeel with a good prickly carbonation, then a tartness that reminds me of a 40-50% wheat beer, but is less, well, wheaty, and more, well Belgiany. Good dry finish with a lingering tartness sitting along with the hop bitterness. I like the tartness a great deal. I want more.

*Ausdb Lost Mojo Blonde Ale*
Pours a hazed amber/copper colour with just a little head. Smells sweet and maybe a bit estery, no real carbonic bite, which made me think of an underattenuated effort I've made previously. Malt backbone is prominent, giving a clean light body that belies the gravity readings, and a harsh bitterness that sits all along the sides of my tongue. I should have left it later to firm up and marry the malt and hop, but alas time waits for no man.

*Kook Saison D'Eclater Houblon*
Pours a golden colour with a coarse white head. Citrus aroma like an APA, sharp quinine/grapefruit bitterness from the first mouthful carries across the top, side and back of the palate (think it's an Amarillo taste?). Definitely hop driven, not much malt profile evident, although I can get a bit of wheat there. Less of the spices and phenolics than I was expecting from a saison, but in declaring my hand, I have very limited experience with the style.

*Sinkas Divine Hammer*
Dark amber/ruby colour on pouring, and crystal clear. Good size head on pouring which "Guinnesses" up quickly and settles. Let this warm a bit and got cherry, raisin, plum, prune type aromas, and a hint of something that reminded me of lactic. Carbonation gives a slight zing on the front palate, super rounded, full mouthfeel with the same dark fruits across the palate, with a sharp lambic sourness that is a great foil. Not sure if this was a late yeast addition, and infection or what, but I loved it. Love the contrast between the sweet, fruit driven start and the sour finish. I might add that leaving the beer to age for 12 months sets a new standard.


----------



## ausdb (31/12/07)

ant said:


> Been working my way through a few of these beers, and really enjoyed them. Such a top idea, and a great way to try some inventive interpretations on styles... please excuse my overuse of words like "palate" and "carbonic"... the beer wanker in me clearly likes to come out after a beer or two. Hope you all get something out of the comments anyway
> 
> *Ausdb Lost Mojo Blonde Ale*
> Pours a hazed amber/copper colour with just a little head. Smells sweet and maybe a bit estery, no real carbonic bite, which made me think of an underattenuated effort I've made previously. Malt backbone is prominent, giving a clean light body that belies the gravity readings, and a harsh bitterness that sits all along the sides of my tongue. I should have left it later to firm up and marry the malt and hop, but alas time waits for no man.



Thanks Ant, sounds like it needs more time in the bottle if its sweet and maybe I didn't get enough yeast carry through for it to carb up properly as the fermenter samples were bone dry, the Nottingham had flocced right out before I bottled it. I also got pretty liberal with some saaz plugs at end of boil and in the hopback so the IBU's are just a guess really. Cheers for the feedback at least it wasn't infected like the one that killed my mojo


----------



## deebee (31/12/07)

Amitas Wit
Doesnt seem overcarbonated but gee it has a big head on it for a while. A very bright beer for a wit, a lovely golden amber colour that might remind Guest Lurker of taking a berocca the night before. Its the kind of wit I could drink more of, has the light mouth, low bitterness and tart finish of a wit, but little of those girly bubblegum and medicine flavours that always Make Me Go Hmmm when I drink a wit. I can just pick up coriander when I gaze wistfully into the distance. Can taste the orange zest, but not at all prominent. This would make a fantastic session beer; very easy drinking. Kind of a cross between a wit, a redback and a soda water. You have done a bloody fantastic job getting the extracts in this beer to ferment out so well, especially as there doesnt look like a whole lot of diastatic power in that minimash. Hats off.


----------



## Goat (1/1/08)

Finally got around to cracking open the case.Tasted so far:

*RM's Rude Kid Pilsner*
Pours bright with a very slight haze and thinish head. Hop taste and aroma are quite prominent and at first were a little distracting with some interesting flavours - almost sweet, but by the second mouthful became very moreish and that continued to the last. Good bitterness with a very clean and dry finish. A great beer - I'll be following up the recipe on this one. Well done Roger Mellie

*Vlad's Transylvanian Pale Ale*
Due to circumstances beyond my control, the pour was not ideal. However it poured a nice coppery colour with a good head that faded slightly. The taste at first was slightly sweet with a hint of spiceness. and the malt was a little subdued though noticeable. The beer had a very refreshing feel to it which was not really expected from a Pale, I think that might be the hops used. An easy drinking, quaffable beer, its a shame the pour was stuffed up though.


----------



## amita (1/1/08)

deebee said:


> Amitas Wit
> Doesnt seem overcarbonated but gee it has a big head on it for a while. A very bright beer for a wit, a lovely golden amber colour that might remind Guest Lurker of taking a berocca the night before. Its the kind of wit I could drink more of, has the light mouth, low bitterness and tart finish of a wit, but little of those girly bubblegum and medicine flavours that always Make Me Go Hmmm when I drink a wit. I can just pick up coriander when I gaze wistfully into the distance. Can taste the orange zest, but not at all prominent. This would make a fantastic session beer; very easy drinking. Kind of a cross between a wit, a redback and a soda water. You have done a bloody fantastic job getting the extracts in this beer to ferment out so well, especially as there doesnt look like a whole lot of diastatic power in that minimash. Hats off.




thanks deebee,yes its my fav at the moment and I wonder why it has comeup so clear,,did use wyeast wit and was expecting some cloudiness but he, its very nice indeed.
cheers amita


----------



## recharge (1/1/08)

OK was looking forward too this one:
Barfridges Deuchars IPA 
I drank this beer from very cold to letting it warm up (and with flame suit on) i can honestly say i did not enjoy this beer in fact i struggled to finish the 500ml but i gave it to the end to pass judgment. 
I'm sure there are some who like this beer but it's not for me and not like any IPA i've ever tried.
I don't know how to describe the flavour other than somewhat medicinal.

Rich


----------



## Guest Lurker (1/1/08)

Tony M Ordinary Ale
Orange/amber colour (to achieve this in your pee I recommend 6 pints and 3 baroccas the night before). Reasonable head. Aroma subdued malt and mild hops. Moderately bready malty with restrained (English? Marmalade?) hop flavour and nice bitterness level. A restrained, balanced and eminently drinkable beer.

Chilla Haze Altbier
Quite low carb. Thin head in this particular glass. Colour in terms of pee is in the territory of end stage malaria, as is the clarity. Aroma is caramel malt. A bit of toffee/caramel malt up front, then the subdued bitterness comes in, with a little citrus hop flavour I think and the caramel malt continues in the finish. Balanced to the malt, which I imagine is how it is supposed to be, first alt I have tried, very drinkable.


----------



## Guest Lurker (1/1/08)

Vlads Tranny Ale
Brightest beer so far. Estery aroma. Small head. Lowish carb. Malarial pee colour. Yeast driven, malty, fruity, Belgiany beer with a dryish, crisp, tangy finish. I like the quinine analogy for that finishing flavour. Very tasty.


----------



## roger mellie (1/1/08)

*Goats Hefeweizen*

Bottle number 1/22

What artistic writing you have Goat.

This was the 2nd case beer fo the day - unfortunately for failure to read instructions the first attempt was 'still' - so it will hopefully carb up.

Light Yellow, little bit hazy, carbonation little bit low - consequently the head was not a feature - but this is no problem. I know as soon as I smell a Hefe whether I am going to like it - if it has the 'sweet composting orange' aroma it is my kind of beer - it was there in spades. I get cloves and pears on the palate with a lovely crisp acid tartness to carry the flavours through. Excellent beer, well balanced - thoroughly enjoyable - I could drink a lot of this.

If I could find one fault is that it was a little non hefe - mine was nearly Kristal - I didnt roll the bottle - and this is not a fault IMHO.

Good work Goat - very well made - was this WB-06. Would you post the recipe.

Cheers

RM


----------



## Goat (2/1/08)

Thanks for the kind words RM.

The recipe is posted (erroneously) here and as you will see from the post, I can take very little credit for it. Yes the yeast was the WB-06 dry from Ross and Kook.

Oh and as for the writing - it took 2 degrees and 5 years at Uni (with no parole), to be able to do that. I obviously failed miserably though, cos you can read it.


----------



## ausdb (2/1/08)

Goat said:


> Oh and as for the writing - it took 2 degrees and 5 years at Uni (with no parole), to be able to do that. I obviously failed miserably though, cos you can read it.


But as you are an architect not a doctor being able to read it is acceptable


----------



## Asher (2/1/08)

Here's my Summer Ale Recipe.

Nelson Sauvin Summer Ale

Recipe Specifics
----------------

Batch Size (L): 55.00 Wort Size (L): 55.00
Total Grain (kg): 11.00
Anticipated OG: 1.050 Plato: 12.28
Anticipated SRM: 4.7
Anticipated IBU: 27.8
Brewhouse Efficiency: 80 %
Wort Boil Time: 70 Minutes


Grain/Extract/Sugar

% Amount Name Origin Potential SRM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
92.7 10.20 kg. TF Maris Otter Pale Ale Malt UK 1.037 3
4.5 0.50 kg. JWM Wheat Malt Australia 1.040 2
2.7 0.30 kg. Hoepfner Caramel Malt Pils Germany 1.036 2

Potential represented as SG per pound per gallon.


Hops

Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
110.00 g. Czech Saaz Whole 3.80 22.7 60 min.
35.00 g. Nelson Sauvin Pellet 12.20 5.1 10 min.
55.00 g. Nelson Sauvin Pellet 12.20 0.0 0 min.


Yeast
-----

WYeast 1007 German Ale


Mash Schedule
-------------

66 with HERMS Mash out
3:1 liquor to Grist Ratio


----------



## Tony M (2/1/08)

Guest Lurker said:


> Tony M Ordinary Ale
> Moderately bready malty with restrained (English? Marmalade?) hop flavour and nice bitterness level.


Give yourself a gong Simon. It was flavoured and finished with Fuggles and Goldings but I didnt use any marmalade.


----------



## roger mellie (2/1/08)

Goat said:


> Thanks for the kind words RM.
> 
> The recipe is posted (erroneously) here and as you will see from the post, I can take very little credit for it. Yes the yeast was the WB-06 dry from Ross and Kook.
> 
> Oh and as for the writing - it took 2 degrees and 5 years at Uni (with no parole), to be able to do that. I obviously failed miserably though, cos you can read it.



I see - reading the notes in that post:-

Notes:
------
Screwed up dough in temp and ended up doughing in at 50.
Skipped acid rest. Added water to raise to 62. Decocted to 68.
Unable to recirc initially, false bottom dislodged. Transferred mash to kettle, reassembled mash tun.
Transferred back, mash stuck. Added ~ 400g rice hulls.
Boil without issue. No whirlpool. OG 1.052. 

Sounds like an uneventful brew day  

Still a top drop.

RM


----------



## Goat (2/1/08)

Yep - it was a bit RM. Unfortunately my (?) best brews usually work out that way. That is; unrepeatable.


----------



## Simon W (2/1/08)

Kai said:


> ...
> Hopping is present but to me definitely takes a back seat -- more noticeable when I burp.
> ...


Hehe, the warning went out....


Simon W said:


> ...
> Just had one and is only just carbed.
> Burps like a fruit salad :huh:
> ...



NYE beers:

*MikeB's Halfwit*
Very pale almost rice-lager like colour, poured pretty clear with a big-bubbled head that slowly thinned out to nothing. 
Carbonation was low but still had a surprising sodawater like tang on the tongue. I remember thinking on the night that it was like a Redback with Sodawater, then I see today that DeeBee wrote that for Amita's wit!
A light, full-taste but crisp and very refreshing, great beer with a great name. I like it. Well done.

*Amita's Wit*
Poured with a thick head that thinned and lasted and was pretty clear(didn't roll it).
No sulphur smell for me but then the only sulphur smell I know is rotten-eggs -- definitely was none of that up my nose!
Finished a bit thin? Still very nice and refreshing tho.

*Captains Brambling Cross Bitter*
Poured with a head that thinned right out but lasted. Hazy copper-red colour. An appealing aroma that I can't name, nice and malty, with a clean finish. I think thats my first Brambling-Cross experience, wish I had more to try and work it out. Sorry thats a piss-poor effort of a review.


EDIT:
For those that are yeast farming:

Asher - WY-1007 German Ale
Doogs - WY-2565 Klsch
Kook - WY-3726 Farmhouse Ale
Mika - WY-1338 European Ale
Amita - Wyeast Wit (WY-3944 - Belgian Wit?)
MikeB - WY-3944 Belgian Wit
Vlad - WLP500 Trappist Ale
Sinkas - WLP530 Abbey Ale + ? -- "...the undisclosed late yeast addition..."
Goat - WB-06 SafWheat
Kai - US-05 Saf American Ale
Rob - US-05
Recharge - US-56
SimonW - US-05
Clay - US-56
DeeBee - W34/70 Saf Weihenstephaner Lager
Roger - S-189 Saf German Lager
GL - CraftBrewer Windsor (Danstar)
Barf - n/a
Tony - ?
ausdb - ?
Chilla - ?


----------



## deebee (2/1/08)

Saison dEclater Houblon

Can I start by observing how intimidating it is to critique a beer when you are not familiar with the style, (this was my first sip of a saison) especially when it was brewed by Anthony "The Palate" Kook. Anyway, you should all be used to me by now, so here goes... 

This is a bright and attractive-looking beer, mid amber with a hint of orange or bronze, clean white head like egg whites whipped to soft peaks and enduring throughout the drink. It seemed adequately carbonated to me, thin beads like champagne and plenty of head. There is some hops in the aroma but it's really dominated by sweet malt, alcohol and spice aromas. After starting to drink this beer, I realised that Kook had recommended it sit for a couple of weeks to carb up. I can definitely taste a trace of priming sugars and wish I had waited longer. My impressions of this beer changed as I drank it and, perhaps, as it warmed up. At first I thought it was underattenuated yet overbittered. Then I realised I had opened it too early (hence sweetness) and the bitterness was there to match a well-bodied beer. And it is a complex bitterness, not at all harsh but full of a range of hops flavours, and it finishes all tight and marmaladey - very nice indeed - a real gourmand's beer. And the sweetness is highlighted by the big alcohol and those spicy warm-fermented flavours. By the end of the bottle I am fairly pissed and rather bathing in its glory: big, spicy and bitter, but also clean and bright (like Edelweiss!). I really wish I had waited for this beer to condition up more; with a slightly tarter and drier finish, it will be a fantastic beer.


----------



## deebee (2/1/08)

Is it just me or has the standard lifted for this year's case? I have only tasted eight 2007 beers but every one of them would place in the top 5 of my memories of last year's and previous years' cases.


----------



## roger mellie (2/1/08)

Im with you DB - nothing approaching Corellions efort of last year.

RM


----------



## Kai (2/1/08)

I can't comment on other years but I have definitely enjoyed the standard of the beers in this case that I've tried to date.

WRT yeast farming, I fully intended to save cultured of everything that interested me but was about halfway through the case before I remembered. D'oh. Nonetheless there are still a few strains left here and there that I will definitely be saving and reculturing.


----------



## Doogiechap (2/1/08)

Beer by David,
Again, being digging trenches and laying limestone blocks has made this a much appreciated drop. Beer poured slightly cloudy but I ain't going to throw any stones in my glass house  . Nice aroma, too, mmmmm Amarillo, lovely refreshing carbolic bite up front with the Saaz keeping a nice tang. Balance wise it was slightly hop driven but for my situation it was sheer perfection :icon_cheers: .
PS My second glass of this was about 1.5 hrs later so the carbonation had dropped a fair bit and brought things into balance much better.


Kai's Caca

Light carbonation which didn't really support a head post pour but a lovely light bready flavor in what is quite a delicate beer. I couldn't pick u the cream that RM was raving about but it's certainly a style that I'm looking forward to having a play with. A fantastic beer to finish my day off with Kai, thanks bloke !

Cheers
Doug


----------



## Doogiechap (2/1/08)

Sorry, the above post doubled up for some irritating reason... You don't need to read my reviews twice  
Cheers
Doug


----------



## recharge (3/1/08)

Vlads Transylvanian Pale Ale

Not what i was expecting, whilst it poured a nice clear amber colour, i was expecting something a little more to the RED end of the scale. Was also lacking the warm salty taste i was anticipating. 
That said it had a lovely body with a decent head and had quite a BITE to it. I thought it was reasonably malty but not sweet with a distinct bitterness in the finish.

I think i'll go COUNT some stars now. HA HA HA

Recharge


----------



## Tony M (3/1/08)

deebee said:


> Is it just me or has the standard lifted for this year's case? I have only tasted eight 2007 beers but every one of them would place in the top 5 of my memories of last year's and previous years' cases.


I cant believe how NICE you guys are being to each other. Its like a 1970's love in. I haven't cracked a bottle yet so I hope it's all true


----------



## roger mellie (3/1/08)

*Recharges Khazi Ale*

Caramel Brown almost Orange hues, not much carbonation or head. Perfumed nose, I cheated and looked at the recipe as I thought this was going to be some obscure american hop - I would have to say I would never have picked Amarillo. Despite low carbonation the backbone was solid on this - sweet caramel, nice bitterness, a good pint - SWMBO (who is a tough judge) had no complaints.

Very Drinkable.

So thats 10/22 I think - nothing approaching a bad beer yet. Enjoyed every one so far.

Cheers

RM


----------



## roger mellie (3/1/08)

randyrob said:


> View attachment 16906
> 
> 
> v low on carbonation with a massive flavour burst of some *pretty insane hops *would have taste lovely straight out of the tap.



D Saaz - you gotta try it - i think insane is actually quite a good descriptive - B Saaz on Steroids I think Ross quipped - I love this hop.

Sorry about the carbonation - I tried to squirt some more CO2 in after decanting from the keg - not enough unfortunately.

RM


----------



## Guest Lurker (3/1/08)

Goat Hefe wheaty thing
I cant decide between Goat and Kai for the wooden spoon in the label comp. Andrea and Rueben too busy to cut round the goat ears this year? Probably Kai, actually, cos he left the originals on. I liked the orange character in this one much better than last years version Mr Goat, very tasty beer, and if you left out the wheat, an even better one. I dont detect any oxidation, so maybe HSA doesnt exist after all.

SimonW Amber Ale
Middle stage malaria pee colour. Grapefruit aroma. Lowish reasonable carbonation. Quite malty, with some darkish toasty, almost tarry flavours, good fruit salad and grapefruit hop flavour, long clean lingering bitterness at the end. Nicely balanced, smooth, very good beer. For my palate, a slightly lighter malt flavour would improve it, but thats just me and my nemesis, cara aroma.


----------



## recharge (4/1/08)

Tonys "Not so Ordinary Ale
Nothing was really dominant in this beer it all just blended well together.
I didnt get much in the aroma dept.
The flavour was mildly hopped with a kinda lingering fruitiness (that hung around on the back sides of my tounge) if that makes any sense. I'm sure i was getting a mildl up front yeast flavour as well but could have been something else i'm yet to describe properly.
All in all a lovely beer.

Recharge


----------



## Vlad the Pale Aler (4/1/08)

*GL's Bx*
Pours nice and lively, thin tight head, plenty of fine bubbles. Colour of dehydrated Great Dane pee. As it warmed the chill haze left. Faint fruity aroma, I think Bx is supposed to have a currant aroma, but I could'nt pick it. Balanced with the malt just getting the better of the hops, a dry finish in spite of an fg of 1.012. Excellent beer that would be even better from the handpump.
One complaint, I only received a bottle of beer, the Big Dog Brewing glass must have been left behind on swap day, I'll pick it up sometime.

*Mike B Wit, Ordinary Ale, Kai Cream Ale*
I took these 3 beers to a party so the tasting notes may be a bit scant. Mrs Vlad liked the Wit, so did I but a bit more mouthfeel from raw wheat would have been better, nice tang to it as well.
Tony's ale, can't remember anything about it, except it being quaffed down without any problem, so in 1970's love in tradition, it was all beautiful man.
Kais cream was a bit of a surprise, the only cream ales that I have had, (Hahn, Brew 42) have been creamy. This was a tangy, zesty sort of a summer ale, I think. hard to evaluate under the circumstances but it was a refreshing beer and I look forward to the other 250mls to taste it properly.


----------



## roger mellie (4/1/08)

*Big Dog Brambling X Bitter*

Good Carb, Good Head when poured, little retention however. Honeyed/Amber hue - sweet nose with definite bready/sweet estery characters.

Bramling Cross? I got no blackcurrant flavours indeed no real 'bitterness' as such - Honey/Caramel flavours were strong - also quite fruity/raisiny - which no doubt was the Windsor. I also got a dusty/herbacious aftertaste. 

A pleasant beer - not my favorite yeast - not being critical but I have made beers with Windsor before where the yeast takes over and imparts raisiny characters.

Would liked to have tasted this as a Bitter - from a pump.

Name and address withheld


----------



## Kai (4/1/08)

Guest Lurker said:


> Goat Hefe wheaty thing
> I cant decide between Goat and Kai for the wooden spoon in the label comp. Andrea and Rueben too busy to cut round the goat ears this year? Probably Kai, actually, cos he left the originals on.



Hey, so did barf.


----------



## Guest Lurker (4/1/08)

Roger Mellie Pilsener
Colour is working in the garden all day golden honey pee. Low carbonation and hence not much head. No DMS in the aroma, pretty sure I got a whiff of diacetyl, but its hard to pick against the melon honey aroma, mostly melon and stone fruit hop aromas. Hop driven flavour, no diacetyl in the taste, fruity peach and melon, a bit of honey, with a strong bitterness. Very nice beer, reminds me a lot of microbrewery beers in NZ. For me slightly over bittered, but my palate seems to be calibrated to a lower bittering level.

Kook Saison de chocolate goblin
Aroma is spicy and estery and grapefruity. A bit hazy and golden a few beers the night before pee colour. Vigorous carb, big fluffy white head, which decays to pretty good lace. Interesting flavour, mostly hop driven, citrus, and an assertive bitterness that gives it a clean finish without being harsh, also some pear esters that balance the bitterness. Very tasty beer, slightly over bittered for me which I guess means just right for most people. 

Mika Christmas Beer
Oh my God, did that pee come out of me, Mahogany colour. Good gas and head. Kind of a malty subdued aroma. Slightly fruity, malty, warming ale. The warming flavours come in mostly at the end, and the 9% is very well disguised. Enough bitterness to give it a smooth finish, giving it good balance, a very nice Christmas ale, malty without being syrupy or Christmas cakey, smooth, drinking well now, but Ill try Fletchs bottle in a couple of months.


----------



## mikeb (5/1/08)

recipe for mikeb's halbwitz (halfwit)

batch size 25L

wyermann bohemean pilsner malt 2.5kg
uncle tobys oats .25kg
rolled wheat 2.75kg
wheat malt .1kg

28g czech saaz plugs 3.5% 60mins
6g hallertauer pellets 4.6% 60mins
14g czech saaz plugs 3.5% 10 mins

10 grams coriander seed, lightly crushed and 10 grams of orange peel in at 10 mins.

wyeast belgian white beer 3944

fermentation temp was 15 c 


have since noticed that my mill gap is huge and that would explain the half part of the wit sorry about the late post with the recipe


----------



## Guest Lurker (5/1/08)

I know, we were supposed to wait for this one, but I wanted to complete the set, beer 21 out of 21.

AusDB Blonde Ale
Early stage malarial pee orange brown colour rather than blonde. I think with another couple of weeks at room temp, this beer will be pretty good, and will demonstrate a nice bready maltiness, a citrusy almost orange hop flavour, and a clean lingering dry bitterness. Right now it is a little murky, lacking in carbonic bite, and the bitterness comes across as harsh, but hey I had to complete the set.


----------



## mika (5/1/08)

GL, you didn't get any hot alcohol flavours from my beer ? That's what I was tasting prior to the swap, was hoping it would dissappear with time.

When the brew stalled at 1020 it had a nice spice note to it, but once it restarted and finished off all the spice notes shot thru as well and the hot alcohol picked up.
Did you get any spice from it ? I used the Perle hops in the hop of a mint taste, but didn't get much of that either.

Edit: Wondered how you were going to handle the colour on your new scale


----------



## roger mellie (5/1/08)

*Randy Robs Lucky 13 Pale Ale*

Lovely Amber colour, excellent carbonation, head was persistent. Not quite clear - but nearly.

This is an excellent beer. Powerful Willamette/Goldings spice flavours dominate a very well balanced malt profile. Rich Malt flavours, a silky texture and a very hop driven afterpalate combine to present a strong flavoured Ale - my favorite style.

Pick of the bunch so far for me. VVV Good. 

RM


----------



## Guest Lurker (5/1/08)

mika said:


> GL, you didn't get any hot alcohol flavours from my beer ? That's what I was tasting prior to the swap, was hoping it would dissappear with time.



Warming but not hot nasty alcohol. Surprisingly smooth for 9%. Mind you the preceding suite included Kooks 7% saison, so I was probably surprisingly drunk at the time.

Overall an excellent case, and I am quite happy to Have Fletch's tucked away in the shed. Its not a competition, and its already evident from the reviews that the same beer can be tasted quite differently by different people, but for me, Vlads Tranny Ale, Robs APA, MikeBs halfwit and Mikas Christmas Ale stood out for different reasons. I'm almost tempted to organise a mid year one, except I ditched the 16 l of frying oil into the tomato garden. Good thing too, sme pretty nasty sludge at the bottom


----------



## Doogiechap (5/1/08)

roger mellie said:


> *Randy Robs Lucky 13 Pale Ale*
> 
> Lovely Amber colour, excellent carbonation, head was persistent. Not quite clear - but nearly.
> 
> ...



+1 ^
I loved this drop, it was my first real taste of Willamette and it will definately be coming out to play in my recipes soon  .
For me carbonation was spot on, again a good head that diminished to a thin persistant layer.A lovely aroma with a good malt backbone to carry the fairly decent hop hit. Color was lighter than some of your other APA's bloke and I have to say that this recipe does it for me  . 
Cheers
Doug
PS The label and bottle sets the bar pretty high from the outset !


----------



## mika (5/1/08)

I have been drinkin' just not postin'...yet

*Ashers NS Summer Ale*

Good carbonation, not OTT. Hazier than your usual offerings and the Nelson Sauvin was fairly light to the version I had from keg at your brewday. It's a weird hop, comes thru real strong when young and mellows out so much as it gets some age to it, at least that's what I've found. The summer ale part seemed to fit the bill, nothing standing out, just a real nice beer.

*Beer by David*

I like the level of carbonation and drunk it straight away. Really nice creamy fine bubbled head that persisted. Nice initial malty sweetness, then the bitterness takes over and finishes it off, not a lingering bitterness though, great balance.
I was expecting a slightly heavier tasting beer than the colour suggested, hop aroma I picked as some kind of noble (checked the recipe and there's the saaz). Really nice beer, love the balance, might give the recipe a spin

*"Doctor's scribble" Hefeweizen* Is this Goats ?

Basically...not a fan. I got very light carbonation, aroma seemed in place but the rest of the beer was thin,watery, seemed to have some of the right flavours but all too subtle, I personally like my Hefe's a lot bolder. It has been lagering in my shed over Christmas and that probably didn't do it any favours, but I'd suggest that my version was past it's best.

* Transylvanian Pale Ale*

Still drinking as I type. Light hiss on opening, carbonation on the lowish side. Nice deep Reddish brown hue (though I am colourblind :huh: ), first beer that had real aroma from the bottle, but I can't describe it. I trawled back thru the posts to find what it was and when I saw Belgian, things started to drop in place. I initially got this weird (but pleasant) aftertaste, it reminded me so much of something I've tasted, but can't for the life of me remember what. Kinda toffee, spice as another member suggested, either way, I like it. A really nice beer.

*Deuchars IPA*

I think the scottish need a lesson in hop flavour. I had a "Twisted Thistle IPA" a while ago and the label ranted of the big C hops and I got none of that. Maybe it's the journey that's killing it ? I got a distinct flavour from the two, not sure how to describe it, but wonder if it's the peat malt flavour, not smoked, but kinda almost, not really like it.
As you've probably guessed, I'm not good at this beer descriptor thingo.
Overall, not a bad effort Barf, but I'm sure you can do better


----------



## Vlad the Pale Aler (5/1/08)

*Half Luck APA*
Just finishing the young whippersnappers APA now, and have to echo the previous comments, an excellent beer with the "more factor". Warming up a bit now and the flavours are still the same as cool, clarity has improved. 
Best so far, but I am only half way through.


----------



## kook (5/1/08)

*Robs APA*

Tried this last saturday. Poured hazy copper with a medium-large, long lasting cream head. Perfect amount of carbonation, just enough to maintain a medium head throughout the beer. Big spicy hop aroma, with some citrus fruit and fresh cut flowers. Starts with a toffee-biscuit sweetness, slowly moving through to a citric, hoppy finish. Pine notes follow, with a slightly spicy bitter aftertaste. Perfect body, medium and refreshing. Really top APA Rob.




*Ashers Summer Ale*

Tried this yesterday. Pours hazy gold with a fluffy white head. Initially quite highly carbonated, but subsides to just enough to maintain a good head. Amazing aroma of stonefruit, passionfruit and honey. Silky smooth mouthfeel. Very fruity flavour, passionfruit, citrus, grapes and apple all there. Also some fizzy lollies too. Zingy bitterness in the finish, I couldn't tell if this was carbonic or due to the hops. Suprisingly a little alcohol in the finish as it warmed. Really interesting beer Asher. Very complex, at first I wasn't sure whether I liked some of the flavours, but the fact that I kept drinking more and more of it removed that thought!




*Beer by Dave*

Tasted this evening. Pours slightly hazy copper with visible high carbonation. Great medium white head that held throughout the beer. Nice lager-like aroma, slight sulphur, but not in a bad way! Great balanced malt flavour, slightly toasty. Medium bodied, with a nice clean bitter finish. I really enjoyed this Dave, infact I could have easily drank another 750ml!


----------



## big d (5/1/08)

Guest Lurker said:


> I'm almost tempted to organise a mid year one, except I ditched the 16 l of frying oil into the tomato garden. Good thing too, sme pretty nasty sludge at the bottom



Now your talking GL considering my total lack of organising skills to brew up a batch for this most anticipated xmas case swap.
This year i will have no excuses.Other than death. h34r: 

Cheers
Big D


----------



## clay (5/1/08)

APA 
by clay

25L batch

2.5kg Pils malt (Joe white) 47.62%
2.0kg Marris Otter (Bairds) 38.1%
0.25kg Carafoam (Wyaermann) 4.76%
0.25kg Caramalt (Joe white) 49.3EBC 4.76%
0.25kg Wheat malt (Wyaermann) 4.76%

25g Amarillo 8.9% 45min 20 IBUs
25g Amarillo 8.9% 20min 13.2 IBUs
25g Amarillo 8.9% 10min 7.9 IBUs
25g Amarillo 8.9% Dry Hop 7 days

Safale US56

OG 1051
FG 1009


----------



## roger mellie (6/1/08)

Guest Lurker said:


> I'm almost tempted to organise a mid year one, except I ditched the 16 l of frying oil into the tomato garden. Good thing too, sme pretty nasty sludge at the bottom



Think it through Simon - Turkey in July - 2 extra cases of beer for you (Correllion and Fletch) and adjust your benign dictatorship making entry a 2L bottle of Canola Oil.

Simple

RM


----------



## mika (6/1/08)

> 2 extra cases of beer for you (Correllion and Fletch)



He's going to start running out of members soon  

If we notice a sharp increase in the number of people signing in from WA, we'll know what's going on <_<


----------



## Tony M (6/1/08)

Well, we've made a start. Its interesting how many tried the little bottle first.

Kais Kacka. 
A bit hard to share amongst three drinkers and me being a nice bloke, got the mud. So, twas a tad silted up but nevertheless an appealing straw yellow in colour with a creamy well lasting head. It had good mouthfeel and certainly fits the category of Cleansing Ale. As I go sip (of beer) to suck (of pipe), the subtleties of the recipe escape me but the balance between the slight sweetness of malt and the hops was spot on.

Randyrob IPA. 
This made us sit up. It was the best of the evening. Was good colour and head with acceptable clarity. Was well balanced with the right amount of lingering hop bitterness without any of the harshness I got when I attempted the style.. Congratulations to the label designer. (and a full measure of 770ml as well!)
As an aside, I reckon you had a bit more than 36 IBU there. Would have come from that end of boil 100 gm. Williamette sitting in the hot wort. Do you counterflow chill? If so, that addition could be steeping happily for 30-40 minutes. Try chewing on a hop pellet. When you swallow, you will pick up plenty of bitterness and even if your Girl thinks youve a hot mouth, its still a lot cooler than your wort.

Doogiechap. Kolsch 
Good hard PET bottle, so well carbonated and a good head that lasted about halfway thru the glass (but we were well into the Friday night nibblies by then thus greasy mouth)
At first I thought I was really enjoying this beer then I realised I was just flushing my hop receptors that were fully loaded from the previous tasting. After that all we got was sweet and more sweet, to the extent that we wondered why we were persisting. It was unfair of us to drink this beer when we did. Next session we are going to stack the samples in order of bitterness and start at the low end.


----------



## roger mellie (6/1/08)

*Clay APA*

Light Amber, bit cloudy - carbonation was perfect, thick white fluffy head.

Interesting, the strong grapefuit hop aroma would have suggested a big bittered APA - but this was quite dry and delicate. Although I enjoyed my glass of this I just felt that the malt profile didnt carry whatever bitterness was there through the beer - a hollow middle palate? Although all the flavours were present I found this one a little unbalanced.

RM


----------



## deebee (6/1/08)

I had some friends over the other night and got really drunk. Then I decided to open the two case entries I had in the fridge: Rob's APA and Goat's Heifer. Sorry guys I took no notes and am writing a few lines only, based solely on my hazy memory. 

Rob's APA
This has gotta be a nominee for best label. From memory, big, malty and full-bodied. I expected more hops on the nose but then that might just be the legacy of all those beers Ant took to the case swap. Anyway, I drained my glass and finished off what my pathetic lager-loving mate couldn't finish. God, I hate beer-sooks.

Goat's Heifer
I don't love this style and never buy it, but after a few years of Xmas Cases I can recognise those wheat beers I like and this was one of them. From memory it was a refreshing beer and seemed not too phenolic or fruity or tart: all the things that concern me when I drink a wit. Sorry I can't remember enough to do better a review.


----------



## deebee (6/1/08)

Doogies Faux Kolsch
Good looking beer: amber to bronze, quite bright, well-carbonated with bubbly white head. Mine persisted unlike other reviewers'. Big estery aromas with a touch of spice. I would love something floral and hoppy in there too. The flavour starts quite full and malty (after reading another review I can taste diacetyl, through probably would have missed it otherwise) then squeezes out dry and tart. I really like the sensation of this beer: the way it feels full-bodied at first and then finishes dry and slightly tart. Makes it very drinkable.


----------



## Kai (7/1/08)

Knocking off one or two nightcaps this evening,

chilla haze altbier:

Name is apt, looks like swimming in the Murray with a skinful at pre-dawn. Pours with a nice tight head that resides to a kiss on the side of the glass. Lovely malty aroma carries right through the palate to a nice hoppy flavour and moderately bitter finish. I get a little creamy butterscotch suggesting some diac. Beer served fairly cold and following a bottle of pinot.


----------



## Kai (7/1/08)

Recharge's golden ale revisited:

Found half a PET of this in the bottom of my fridge. Still quite melony but some great orange flavour present on the first few sips. I would never have picked amarillo either.


----------



## Kai (7/1/08)

Le Fridge Deuchar:

Aroma of citrus rind and burning tobacco, palate is moderately dry and quite sharp. Some cardboard on there but not to the extent where it detracts too much... it's almost nice in a sorta masochistic fashion. Also really reminds me of drinking la chouffe and smoking rollies at the dockside yesterday afternoon. Interesting contribution, barf. Keep it up.


----------



## Kai (7/1/08)

Clay's APA

Pours with a good pillowy head. Mild haze and a colour roughly on the lighter side of Guest Lurker's urine (averaged out). Good balance between hop flavour and malt, I get the hops upfront yet there is some lovely sweet malt backing to meet it. Bitterness feels low. Flavour of banana, mango and gentle pine needles, chiefly mango. This is the second un-amarillo amarillo beer tonight, the first being the recharge repeat. I'm starting to struggle to remember what I think amarillo is supposed to taste like, then again I'm just plain starting to struggle. 

PS very nice fresh pine on the reburp.


----------



## Kai (7/1/08)

La kook de saison:

very pale beer that pours with an effervescent head. Had to drop the champers bottle into a pint, a half and a wine glass in one his so I could get to the dregs for reculture purposes.

This is the fourth saison I've had, the first three were all markedly different and this one matches the first one, which was incidentally a home brew jobbie of my own making. Quite hoppy, teetering between suiting the yeast and overbalancing it as the bitterness is quite upfront yet the beer is light, well attenuated and moderately tart & peppery. Also some nice esters on repeating.

I rated my saison as my favourite beer of the ones I've brewed. This saison comes fairly close to it but it's too heavily hopped to suit me.


----------



## deebee (7/1/08)

Sheeesh, sounds like a big night Kai.


----------



## randyrob (7/1/08)

Tony M said:


> Randyrob IPA.
> This made us sit up. It was the best of the evening. Was good colour and head with acceptable clarity. Was well balanced with the right amount of lingering hop bitterness without any of the harshness I got when I attempted the style.. Congratulations to the label designer. (and a full measure of 770ml as well!)
> As an aside, I reckon you had a bit more than 36 IBU there. Would have come from that end of boil 100 gm. Williamette sitting in the hot wort. Do you counterflow chill? If so, that addition could be steeping happily for 30-40 minutes. Try chewing on a hop pellet. When you swallow, you will pick up plenty of bitterness and even if your Girl thinks youve a hot mouth, its still a lot cooler than your wort.




Heya Tony,

thanks for the interesting remarks/input. the willamette flowers were via a hopback then cfc. 

Promash doesn't calculate any IBU's to flameout/hopback additions but you're right i've found that they definately add some IBU's.

Enjoy Rob.


----------



## randyrob (7/1/08)

Kai's CACA

mmm... a really good contribution to the case kai and that's being modest. a bit of spicy flavour/aroma and well hidden alcohol enjoyed everything about this beer.




Mike B Halfwit

poured gently with a small head but after a few sips it was nice and fluffy and would not disipate no matter how hard i tried, colour of ginger beer very mellow flavours but they were there




Goat Hefe

low on carbonation so i pour a bit more vigorously cause i like head on a hefe, looks the goods for me. all i have scrawled on my notes is cloves, cloves, cloves
they were a bit over the top for me but i'm sure most people wouldn't have a problem drinking it.

really enjoying the fact i can go to the fridge and i'm spoilt for choice with different styles of beers, it's crazy how everyone managed to brew different styles. i was expecting
a porter or a stout though since everyone is brewing them but hey it is summer and those styles of beers are the ones we want to be drinking. i'm guessing if we were to have a mid year case then there would be alot of winter style beers as compared to the ones being offered in this case.

Rob.


----------



## Kai (7/1/08)

deebee said:


> Sheeesh, sounds like a big night Kai.



The saison might have been a mistake, but I don't regret it.


----------



## ant (8/1/08)

Finished the box. Folks, I'm impressed. I just love this idea, and hats off for whoever originally came up with the concept. We really should do 2 a year I reckon - summer styles and winter styles. The recurring theme of champagne bottles, flash labels and great summer beers is a dangerous precedent, but it is a surefire winner. Thanks for including me in 2007.

*Recharge Golden Ale*
Pours cloudy amber, fine white head that dissipates. Caramel /toffee nose with orange/citrus notes. Small carbonic bite with a medium mouthfeel and some roundedness on the top palate. I'm thinking ~25-28 IBU'ish with some orange/grapefruit back palate and a dry finish. Like it better than the Squire version.

*Beer by David*
Pours hazed copper with thick 1" head. I get what I'm pretty sure is a sweet pineapple aroma (apologies here - tasting notes may be somewhat hazed), with a sharp carbonic bite that continues. Bitterness along side of palate from the front to back. Medium mouthfeel/roundedness with pineapple/grapefruit. Finish is firmly bitter, with carbonation that carries right through.

*SimonW Amber Ale*
Pours amber clouded colour with good head that persists. Smell of toffee with rockmelon(?), good bite, malt driven with a dark roasted finish. Mouthfeel medium, rounded on side of palate, finishing with a citrus bitterness at the 25-28 IBU'ish level married with a slight roastiness. Good finishing balance that adds to the complexity.

*Amita's Wit*
Golden straw colour, with firm pillowy head that sticks around tenaciously. Aroma of coriander and maybe a bit of unmalted wheat? Great carb levels in mouth that delivers citrus/coriander like a good wit should, but not overcarbed like it looks like it would be. Finishes crisp with some residual sweetness. Hop levels nice and low and balanced for the style. Happy with this, and when you have a mm of beer in the glass, and 2mm of head in the glass, that is an impressive feat. Nice job.

*TonyM Justanor Dinnary Ale*
Hazed amber/copper colour pouring with thin white head that suggests an English style. Sweet malt that is present but not overpowering, in line with hopping that makes me think of a can of Golden Circle Fruit Salad. Sharp bite on front palate delivers a medium bodied malt driven beer with an English bitterness (EKG). I still smell the fruit salad, but I'm not tasting it - think my palate is done! Restrained from all sides which gives a balanced beer I'm sure I would smash several of come a slightly cooler eve.

*Mika's Xmas Beer*
Pours nut brown with a hint of ruby, 1" head that setttels to a persistent 5mm. Aroma of malt and some alcohol (more notable second glass when warmed), I think I'm getting a bit of cinnamon on the nose, and maybe ginger on the palate, but it could be that I'm expecting it. Could up these levels a bit maybe (used to non-subtle flavours now...). Fullish mouthfeel that I'm learning to expect from MO or GP, tastes like it finshed 1.025-1.030. The IBU levels are very balanced; doesn't taste 40 IBU. I'm getting warm alcohol on the nose when it's cold, and on the back palate when it's warm. Drinking OK now, but would be really interesting to put one away for 12 months and see how it ends. Did I mention that I keep thinking of one thing and getting another? I'm happy to be surprised, especially at the end of a night to finish a case.


----------



## Kai (8/1/08)

If the grand convener is tempted to do a mid-year case to give the opportunity for winter beers to shine through, then I would happily support it. I'd even bring 2 litres of oil.


----------



## Kai (8/1/08)

And while I'm here, the sinkster's divine hammer:

Very dark with some nice ruby highlight. No head retention but I'm going to blame my glass. Aroma of caramel, licorice, mild plum and slight autolysis... I only get the last after drinking a somewhat autolytic wheat of my own making, and I don't detect it as I get into the beer. Flavour is a splendid representation of tart chewy licorice. The tartness is reminiscent of sour raspberry. The saliva glands are flowing freely.

Overall it's definitely licorice to me, it actually makes me hungry. I'm having trouble placing it as anything stylewise apart from big, ballsy and awesome. I think if I had the option then I'd have give my bottle a few months in the cellar to think about life, though.


----------



## Kai (8/1/08)

Tony M's Ju Stanor Dinarydinn Erale:

Opened and poured overcarbed, took a few deft twists of the wrist to get the glass properly topped up. The aroma off mine is very clean and neutral with nothing bar a mild carbonic hint. I can see where ant is coming from on the golden circle but the flavour is quite mild. Some great belgian lace on the side of the glass. Good balance leaning towards bitterness. I'm probably having trouble after the hammer and the peanut butter sandwich I just ate, but this seems fairly mild and clean. I'll quite confidently say that it's eminently quaffable though.


----------



## Kai (8/1/08)

Perhaps I am a diacetyl tragic, and I'm beginning to suspect as such, but I get a little off the second pour of tony's ordinary dinner ale after leaving the bottle out on the bench between glasses. It's not out of place though and still a splendid beer. The extra warmth brings out a little more crystal-esque caramel too, as I get into it.


----------



## Kai (8/1/08)

ausdb's lost mojo:

good fizz on opening the PET, hazy pour. Strong amber colour. Crisp assertive bitterness follows after a deceptively mild aroma. Good hop aroma too, I'm not even going to take a stab at identifying it. Whatever it is though, it's got a good honeyed crisp malt backing.

I think it's my last beer of the case too, since I cannot find any more. I had to polish off the remainder tonight to alleviate the fact that too many of the elder gentry beat me to the finishing line.


----------



## Guest Lurker (8/1/08)

How's the head Kai?


----------



## mika (8/1/08)

> tastes like it finshed 1.025-1.030.



Actually finished at 1014, so interesting that you get sweetness out of it.



> doesn't taste 40 IBU.



I'd believe it as I get the impression that I don't get good hop utilisation on my system.

I was worried about using a bunch of crystal malts in this beer and then trying to get it dry enough without being a big sweet syrup. However I think that with that much alcohol in there it's hiding the subtle spices. Maybe just need to take the Texan approach, Bigger is Better ! and add more spices next time.

I've got 4 bottles left over that I will 'cellar' for up to a year. If we have a mid-year swap I'll bring a long one for tasting and 2L of cooking oil so if we don't like it we can deep fry it !


----------



## randyrob (8/1/08)

Recharge Golden Ale

this was a nice malty beer with just a whiff of hops, didn't get a big bitterness more balanced towards the malt profile quite refreshing beer thanks!





Amita Wit

colour good, nice clarity, head good, smells ok perhaps a little thin for me but my mates would have probably loved it.

Rob.


----------



## Kai (8/1/08)

Guest Lurker said:


> How's the head Kai?



Surprisingly good. Someone vandalised my kitchen while I slept last night, though.

I think I really enjoyed the case.


----------



## Simon W (8/1/08)

Guest Lurker said:


> ...
> I'm almost tempted to organise a mid year one.....
> ...


I'd been thinking a WinterWarmer Case Swap could work... looks like the ball is rolling and there's enough interest already. I'll be there with a bottle of oil and maybe a donut maker. Donut's and beer? :huh: 


Just a reminder that I'm crap at this, but here goes...
*RM's Pilsner*
Poured a nice straw colour with a very, very faint almost non existent haze and a small head that faded quickly.
A sweet aroma that was kinda like grapes. First taste went thru quick transitions: Grape/wine to a bitter bite that was followed by a smooth malty taste finishing with a second bitterness that lingered, even strengthening. Strong hop flavour but beyond my ability to name it. Very nice.

*Clay APA*
Poured a slightly cloudy, dark straw colour. Spot-on carbonation that propped up a nice pillowy head that lingered and laced -- Looks like I got my glass problem sorted... with 4 beers to go 
A nice Cascade or Amarillo aroma. Flavour is citrusy but soon makes way for a kinda toasted/roasted almost smokey malt taste... or maybe its the hops, I really can't describe it.
Sharp bitternes with a bite that lingers for some time. Good stuff.


----------



## sinkas (8/1/08)

Rude kid Pils
Astonishingly sweet hop flavour, for a minute I was worried that it was too sweet, but once I realised its was just the hop flavour complimenting the malt backbone, I was happy. Damn Good Brew.

The Divine Hammer (for you indi music buffs this was a Breeders reference)
Yes this is my own, but I thought id share my thoughts.
Im sorry I didnt bottle condition this one.
My last pint (yes pint) was poured this evening, and I was impressesed, none of the diacetyle really prominant like the chrismas case CP filled bottles, To me this tastes exactly like the melanoidins of the slightly burnt glaze on the outside of a Adealide Hills bakery christmas cake, rasins, prune, dark cherry, with that slight sourness of the undisclosed late yeast addition, that begs for Paris Creek butter, or St Agnes Brandy sauce.
Not perfect, and not a great summer beer, but bearable enough to knock your socks off. 2 pints a bit much.


----------



## ausdb (9/1/08)

Kai said:


> If the grand convener is tempted to do a mid-year case to give the opportunity for winter beers to shine through, then I would happily support it. I'd even bring 2 litres of oil.


Plus a stubby of this years case beer for everyone to makeup for the shortfall


----------



## ausdb (9/1/08)

Kai said:


> ausdb's lost mojo:
> 
> good fizz on opening the PET, hazy pour. Strong amber colour. Crisp assertive bitterness follows after a deceptively mild aroma. Good hop aroma too, I'm not even going to take a stab at identifying it. Whatever it is though, it's got a good honeyed crisp malt backing.



Hopping was hallertauer hersbrucker and czech saaz for flavour, aroma and at end of boil and then for good measure about 5 plugs of czech saaz in the hopback as well. I was bit disappointed with the colour a lot darker than my last attempt at this beer, it think the crystal I used was different, I will put the recipe up tonight. Sounds like it is settling down in the bottle now compared to earlier reviews.


----------



## Tony M (10/1/08)

The reviews so far. I hope I haven't mixed too many up. 

View attachment 2007_Xmas_Case..doc


----------



## amita (10/1/08)

Tony, thanks very much for all that work !!!TOP JOB!!!
I really appreciated it, makes it very easy and clear to read and acknowledge what and how other people reviewed the beers,

thanks again, 

cheers amita


----------



## roger mellie (10/1/08)

*Barfridges Deuchars IPA*

I have had plenty of this in Edinburgh on tap and enjoyed it - all I can say is it doesn't travel well.

Has a disturbing burnt character - and a stale tea flavour. 

RM


----------



## deebee (10/1/08)

Chilla's Alt
Colour a little like cloudy coca cola. Head dissipates quickly. Dont know what to compare this with as the only commercial example of this I have drunk was Bug Alt many years ago and I reckon I got an off pint. So not sure where to start with another unfamiliar style. This beer was mainly malt-driven: a burnt toffee kind of malt. Hops flavour and aroma very subtle. Perhaps underbittered? Still an enjoyable beer.

Simon W's Amber Ale
I went out netting mullet with my Dad in the Peel Estuary at Mandurah last night. Later on, while the old boy was cleaning the fish I poured us a couple of glasses of this and cleaned up the gear. I was too busy to take notes so this is from memory the next day. Only a little fart on opening, but not obviously undercarbed. It is the colour of an amber ale. Amber, that is. Has a big malty profile and a toffee or caramel flavour about it. Big cascade/centennial/chinook flavour and aroma and seems more bitter than 25-28 IBU to me. At his first sip, Dad said, "God, this is lovely." He was up to his shoulders in mullet guts, a tiny artery squirt across his face and he had scales stuck to his glasses, but I reckon he got it right in one.

Lost Mojo Ale
I drank this straight after Simon Ws amber ale while I was picking weed out of the mullet net. Again, no notes and I can't remember much about this beer, except I enjoyed it and my Mum said: "Ooh, that's really nice." For me I really liked the hops aroma though the bitterness seemed unbalanced, slightly too harsh or something. Was it too dry? Not from what the other reviews said. Sorry my memory isn't better.

Rude Kid Pilsener
Drinking this now and it looks very classy: clear and bright, perhaps undercarbed, but still with a good head. It smells beautiful: freshly baked bread maltiness and noble hops: a killer combo for me. Is there also something US and citrusy in the hops aroma? I must give these D Saaz a try. A sweet honey side to the aroma is a little distracting but I reckon this would be blended in given another month. I personally love that gorgeous biscuity malt flavour -- I use a lot of Munich malt in my beers -- but this one isn't quite dry enough for a perfect score. I sometimes miss diacetyl that others pick up in a beer, and I definitely didn't get any here. I just think it's a minor attenuation problem that will clear up in a month. Prolly no bottles left by then. No matter. This is a really good beer. Always love a Viz reference Rog.


----------



## ant (11/1/08)

mika said:


> Actually finished at 1014, so interesting that you get sweetness out of it.
> I'd believe it as I get the impression that I don't get good hop utilisation on my system.
> 
> I was worried about using a bunch of crystal malts in this beer and then trying to get it dry enough without being a big sweet syrup. However I think that with that much alcohol in there it's hiding the subtle spices. Maybe just need to take the Texan approach, Bigger is Better ! and add more spices next time.
> ...


Yeah, I suspect this is a big part of my palate education - I tend to rate a beer 10 to 15 points higher in FG when MO or GP used in significant quantities. I thought it had enough dry to it to be balanced, it justed "sweet" to my undecuated palate, but that's just my perception of the malts. Will be really interesting to see how the spices come out over the next 6-12 months.



sinkas said:


> The Divine Hammer (for you indi music buffs this was a Breeders reference)
> Yes this is my own, but I thought id share my thoughts.
> Im sorry I didnt bottle condition this one.
> My last pint (yes pint) was poured this evening, and I was impressesed, none of the diacetyle really prominant like the chrismas case CP filled bottles, To me this tastes exactly like the melanoidins of the slightly burnt glaze on the outside of a Adealide Hills bakery christmas cake, rasins, prune, dark cherry, with that slight sourness of the undisclosed late yeast addition, that begs for Paris Creek butter, or St Agnes Brandy sauce.
> Not perfect, and not a great summer beer, but bearable enough to knock your socks off. 2 pints a bit much.


Late yeast addition huh? Whatever it was took off in my bottle, soured it up beautifully, and it was great. This was my pick of the case.


Did I mention how much I enjoyed the case?


----------



## roger mellie (11/1/08)

deebee said:


> Rude Kid Pilsener
> Drinking this now and it looks very classy: clear and bright, perhaps undercarbed, but still with a good head. It smells beautiful: freshly baked bread maltiness and noble hops: a killer combo for me. Is there also something US and citrusy in the hops aroma? I must give these D Saaz a try. A sweet honey side to the aroma is a little distracting but I reckon this would be blended in given another month. I personally love that gorgeous biscuity malt flavour -- I use a lot of Munich malt in my beers -- but this one isn't quite dry enough for a perfect score. I sometimes miss diacetyl that others pick up in a beer, and I definitely didn't get any here. I just think it's a minor attenuation problem that will clear up in a month. Prolly no bottles left by then. No matter. This is a really good beer. Always love a Viz reference Rog.



Thanks for the comments DB.

How would you amend the grain bill ? What % Of Munich - I was pretty happy with the thinness so would look at keeping the Rice. Am going to do this one again this weekend I think.

4.50 kg Pilsner (2 Row) Ger (3.9 EBC) Grain 84.9 % 
0.40 kg Rice, Flaked (2.0 EBC) Grain 7.5 % 
0.30 kg Wheat Malt (Barrett Burston) (3.0 EBC) Grain 5.7 % 
0.10 kg Cara-Pils/Dextrine (3.9 EBC) Grain 1.9 % 

I got the FG down to 1.007 which I though would transfer into a dry lager - obvoiusly not with the sweetness of the D Saaz - I reckon this would go well with NS as the sole hop also - but then again I love NS.

10/10 BTW - there was the remnants of a packet of Amarillo - probably only 10g at flameout.

And no - there is none left.

RM

Edit : And As I think I have said before - this is Ross's base recipe (grain bill) - so I take no kudos there.


----------



## deebee (11/1/08)

roger mellie said:


> How would you amend the grain bill ? What % Of Munich



I'm a bit scared to suggest how to amend the bill; I really enjoyed this beer. It might be interesting with some Munich though. Maybe replace half the pils malt with munich and mash no higher than 66? Hesitate to mess with a successful recipe though.


DB


----------



## Goat (11/1/08)

*Kai's Caca*

this in an interesting one... a bit hazing straw colour with healthy white cream-textured head which really lasted the whole drink. Full mouthfeel considering the cleanness of the flavours (I assume thats the 'cream' part) that you wouldn't really associate with that colour. Didn't pick up any malt in aroma but definitely a english type citrusy hoppiness which was more evident in the flavour. A really great beer and the bottom of the glass came far too quickly. In fact, there may need to be adjudication from the Capt'n, but I'm not sure this was a regulation size vessel and as such demand the rest of my allotment !


----------



## Kai (11/1/08)

I plead the fifth.



"Capt said:


> 5) A longneck can be plastic or glass' date=' it contains between 500 and 800 ml of beer, 750 ml is best but anywhere in the range is OK.[/b']
> 
> Can I also plead being difficulty coming to terms with the notion of giving away almost an entire batch? These are my babies, I had to drink at least a few of the litter.


----------



## recharge (11/1/08)

RR's Lucky 13
Sorry i didn't do this beer any favours as it fell out of my keg fridge and bust its seal right after i poured a pint.
What to do (was already a little done up) Glad wrapped my pint put back in fridge and carefully removed the seal. 
As you can gather it poured a slightly murky amber colour.
Carbonation was still good and had a mild bite.
Nice aroma and flavour with a sorta citrusy up front hop character with a decent amount of hop flavour to back it up.
I'm not really good at describing beers but this was still another excellent drop from the Sandgroper offerings.

Then i finished my pint and went to work next day with a headache and brewed a batch.

Regards

Rich

PS I'm in for Xmas in july (is everyone refilling 500ml bottles for Kai :lol: :lol: :lol: )
Can bring oil too and something to fry in it.


----------



## roger mellie (11/1/08)

*Lost Mojo*

On the lower end of the carb scale - and probably drunk too early. Murky amber colour with an interesting citrus nose. I get a hessian aroma as well.

Strong hops on the first taste - malt is there but the hops are dominant - orangey/marmalade flavours dominate - hop flavours are strong at this stage. It misses on appeal because of this unbalance - but a month in the bottle may cure the imbalance - sure isnt lacking in flavour.

I liked this - just drank too early. Surely this must qualify as 'found mojo' - back off on the bittering hop a tad perhaps.

RM


----------



## deebee (11/1/08)

GLs Bramling Cross Bitter
Bronze coloured, medium to low carbonation and a coarse-bubbled head that fades quickly. Really interesting hoppy smells, kind of marmaladey, sweet nectarine, orange peel and something else I cant name. Im gonna get me some of these hops, I reckon would go nicely with some EKG plugs in an English IPA. Big malt presence reigned in by a spritzy mouthfeel, very pleasant on the tongue. An unusual style this and well executed.


----------



## roger mellie (11/1/08)

deebee said:


> GLs Bramling Cross Bitter
> Bronze coloured, medium to low carbonation and a coarse-bubbled head that fades quickly. Really interesting hoppy smells, kind of marmaladey, sweet nectarine, orange peel and something else I cant name. Im gonna get me some of these hops, I reckon would go nicely with some EKG plugs in an English IPA. Big malt presence reigned in by a spritzy mouthfeel, very pleasant on the tongue. An unusual style this and well executed.



DB - did you get raisins? I find every Windsor beer has this fruitcake raisin character - I cant master it - it just takes over.

RM


----------



## recharge (12/1/08)

deebee Beer by David

Poured a hazy amber to copper colour, aroma was reminiscent of sticking my head into my fermenting chest freezer(yes i do this sometimes) kinda CO2 whiff but i couldnt pick much else. Flavour was well balanced with an almost tobacco like bitterness in the finish. Nice beer enjoyed it thanks.


Rich


----------



## deebee (12/1/08)

roger mellie said:


> DB - did you get raisins? I find every Windsor beer has this fruitcake raisin character - I cant master it - it just takes over.
> 
> RM



Without a glass in front of me, I can't remember. GL might have to give me a few more bottles. :icon_cheers: I really liked the hops aroma, though, and there was definitely something in there I couldn't place. Might have been raisins.


----------



## Guest Lurker (12/1/08)

roger mellie said:


> DB - did you get raisins? I find every Windsor beer has this fruitcake raisin character - I cant master it - it just takes over.
> 
> RM



I see where you are going wrong. You should have drunk it from the hand pump.


----------



## Vlad the Pale Aler (12/1/08)

Guest Lurker said:


> I see where you are going wrong. You should have drunk it from the hand pump.





....and as I recall the handpump mysteriously ran dry as we all lined up, glasses at the ready.


----------



## Goat (13/1/08)

*Ausdb's Lost Mojo*

<<touches little finger to corner of mouth>>

Not a lot of carbonation as it pours to form a thinish head which died soon after. A little cloudy with a deep honey colour. Aroma was all about hops which is dusty citrus flavour - nice. There is something else in there that doesn't quite smell right - could even be a bit horse blankety (don't know what that is). Taste is dominated with a powerful bitterness which lasted in my mouth long after I finished the drink, really nice though I got the feeling that it was overpowering the malt that wanted to be noticed. A good beer which (as everyone else says) probably could have used a little more time aging, but very drinkable now.


----------



## randyrob (13/1/08)

GLs Bramling Cross Bitter











Opened with a slight hiss, the cap flew across the room then gushed more than a 30 year old virgin on his wedding night, the gushing continued for about 15-20 minutes (not really sure if this is to style but what would i know) i was getting pretty thirsty by this stage so after it settled down a bit i continued to pour what was left in the bottle (about 1/2 a pint)
smelling delicious at this stage but had to wait some time for the yeast to settle into about a 1cm cake on the bottom, every time a co2 bubble rose to the top it took a bit of yeast chunk with it. colour if a 90 year old man's on his death bed last piss. medium carbonation with small bubbles. nice hop bitterness and malt presence very morish i got alot of bready notes but that could have easily been cause of the yeast that got stuck in between my teeth. an enjoyable beer would have been slightly better if i didnt have to fight with it till the end.

Rob.


----------



## sinkas (13/1/08)

Lost Mojo:
Pretty tasty pint, even if it seemed cloudy as buggery, despite bieng in a fridege for a week. At a guess, it could have done with another week in Primary to soak up some of the fruitier aspects of the flavour profile. Pretty damn good for a quick and dirty though.

Big Dog:
Very pleasant, and I could definitely get those balckberry tones, to me it tastes the same was as fresh berries smell.

Apa by clay:
Dry as buggery, did this finish below 1010?, which is inconstrast to the irnoically sweet diacetyl edged aroma, Bitterness was coarse, which I happen to like.


Chilla ALt:
Malt.com, this was heavy and sticky, yet totally enjoyable, not a style I know anything about, but heaven knows it was tasty.


----------



## Guest Lurker (13/1/08)

randyrob said:


> GLs Bramling Cross Bitter
> 
> 
> 
> ...




Oooh, that looks a bit exciting.

Most of that batch have been a bit undergassed, but I had a similar one last week. I have to say after all these years I found that whole sugaring bottles and bottling thing a little confusing, and it is possible one or two bottles got two lots of sugar, but I was underpriming, so even with a double helping they should be safe.


----------



## randyrob (13/1/08)

i must admit i don't feel short changed in the slightest as i was one of they lucky ones to have a pint from the hand pump before it blew dry :icon_drunk:


----------



## Goat (13/1/08)

LOL !!!


----------



## deebee (14/1/08)

randyrob said:


> gushed more than a 30 year old virgin on his wedding night




It is always hard to find new ways to say the same things about beer. This is why I LOVE a good simile. Hats off, Rob.


DB


----------



## Simon W (16/1/08)

Didn't know a damn thing about two of these beers, so had to go to the library and borrow a book to help me.
Found Michael Jacksons 'Beer' which had 13 Altbiers and 4 Saisons. From what I read, both are to style.

*Chilla's Altbier*


On opening, this one was very happy to see me but not as excited as GL's BX was to see Rob.
Big fluffy cream coloured head that after a couple of mins dropped suddenly. Very carbonated, prob. getting close to overcarbed. (no description of Carb level in MJ's book, BJCP says med-high)
Hazy Red-Brown colour, faint hop but very malty aroma, a thin mouthfeel but not finishing dry.
A sweet nutty and caramel or raisins malt flavour but not overpowering.
Nice smooth bitterness that compliments the dark malts, very complex; every mouthful was different as it warmed up.
Extremely nice, but then I go all gooey over malty brews.

*Kook's Silly Season... Saison*


Very, very nice. Love trying a new style and finding one I love instantly.
Poured with great carbonation(tons of tiny pin-prick bubbles) and a perfect fluffy Belgian head.
Just slightly darker than golden, a spicy fruity aroma and spicy/peppery/earthy flavour. 
Everything about this was in capital letters except for the ABV.
Strong hop aroma and taste, strong malt flavour, tart and dry.
Again, very very nice, the aroma's and flavours brought back memories of my trip to Belgium, which nothing imported that I've bought here has done.
Very well done Kook.
_Sorry about the pic, the camera flat-out refused to focus, even in macro mode and with plenty of light. I hate cheap digitals and their autofocus. It also doesn't do the colour justice, I should've used a light background but was busy arguing with the friggin camera._

*ausdb's Blonde*
I really stuffed-up here and had it after the Saison, I was still dreaming about Belgium, so it's not a fair review.
Poured with no head and minimal carbonation. Hazy amber colour, a spicy and sweet candy nose when swirled in the glass to form a head. Strong bitterness that lingered.


----------



## Vlad the Pale Aler (19/1/08)

*Simons Amber*
Burnt toffee, aggresive hops up front, tight head, good carb, a bit more of those hops near the end would have been nice, clear and bright. 

*Dougs Kolsch*
Faint hiss on opening, thin head disappeared although carb bubbles still present, hazy yellow with a whiff of melon, mild pleasant maltiness, went flat quick but still tasty.

*RM Pilsner*
Hint of gas on opening, thin head that disappeared, very little carbonation, crystal clear, nice yellow gold colour, no aroma good malty body nicely balanced by hops. Very pleasant, would be good straight off the tap.

*Clay APA
*
I think the amarillo aroma hit the brain as fast as the hiss of the crown seal.Hazy orange copper colour, tight white head that stayed the distance and left its mark down the glass, restrained malt comes through with the late hops, absence of early hopping is obvious but not in a bad way. Thin body with a dry finish, that made it very drinkable, did I mention the aroma?
This was a goody.

*Kooks Saison*
A big promising hiss at opening that delivered a highly carbed yellow straw beer with the Mother Of All Heads. Streaming bubbles held it there and pushed it up out of the glass where it stood by itself, Saison De Viagra.
Slight chill haze, sweet malt toffee aroma. Surprisingly bitter, probably from the Columbus hops, lingers on the palate with an earthy peppery tone, dry finish. I think that without the Columbus this would have been sensational. I am keeping this yeast for my first Saison.


----------



## randyrob (21/1/08)

Beer By David

Nice malty beer, very clean & well balanced.




Chilla Haze Altbier

another malt monster, a good beer from the haze factory.




Simon Amber Ale

assertive bitterness, mild hop aroma / flavour, the malt profile reminded me of some belgium's i've sampled from others!




Tony's Extradanory Bitter

yummy, not really a style i've nailed myself so i really appreciate others offerings. i got a well balanced beer leaning towards estery which i adore, tony is this from the yeast? it works for me. nothing stands out and bites you in the face just a delicious tasting session ale i'm sure i'd be happy sitting on. 




Vlad's Trans Ale.

Madness. presentation in the glass was exceptional, a subtle spicy aroma with a hint of malt on the nose. flavourwise this beer tickled each and every one of my tastebuds i felt like King Stephen victory was at hand!


yes i'll be the first to admit i suck at this, i'm enjoying these beers and start writing a few notes to myself, medium body, bitterness lingers etc then i trick myself by going nah i don't need to write it down i'll take a pic and remember from the pic, it doesnt work!!! so my lack of creative notes u get a pic of your beer which you already know what it looks
like fantastic  

Rob.


----------



## Tony M (22/1/08)

randyrob said:


> Tony's Extradanory Bitter
> yummy, not really a style i've nailed myself so i really appreciate others offerings. i got a well balanced beer leaning towards estery which i adore, tony is this from the yeast? it works for me. nothing stands out and bites you in the face just a delicious tasting session ale i'm sure i'd be happy sitting on.
> Rob.


Looked up my notes and gess wot I didn't write the yeast down. It may have been US56 or one of its precursors. The "hard to define" balance that everyone mentions I think comes from mash hopping, a practice I employ whenever I make this particular brew. It seems to soften the hops profile.


----------



## kook (22/1/08)

*Doogies Kolsch*

Pours slightly hazy dark gold with a long lasting medium white head. High carbonation. Honey & diacetyl aroma, with some slight malty/bready notes. Flavour starts buttery, with a bready flavour mid palate. Finishes dry and slightly acidic. Body a little thin and watery. Suspect a pediococcus infection due to diacetyl and acidity. I can tell there is a nice malty kolsch under there, but unfortunately it's hidden by other flavours.




*GL's Bramling X Bitter*

Great hoppy nose, gooseberries and earthy, mouldy wood. Not as overcarbed as some others, but still too much for my liking. Clear copper in colour with a susdy cream head. Big hop flavour of berries and currants with a biscuity malt background. Medium body, but too fizzy in feel. Nice subtle fruity esters. Really good bitter, shows off an awesome hop well. Only downside was the carbonation. I prefer my british beers quite low in CO2.




*Vlad's Pale Ale*

Pours deep bronze, edging on amber. Topped with a fine, creamy tan head. Great earthy, herbal hop aroma. Some marmalade and spice (coriander? clove?) there too. Very nice smooth mouthfeel, almost reminded me of a pint of real ale! Subtle spice notes in the flavour, along with some pineapple esters. Very moreish, I finished the bottle off and felt like another!


----------



## Kai (22/1/08)

kook said:


> *GL's Bramling X Bitter*
> 
> Great hoppy nose, gooseberries and earthy, mouldy wood. Not as overcarbed as some others, but still too much for my liking. Clear copper in colour with a susdy cream head. Big hop flavour of berries and currants with a biscuity malt background. Medium body, but too fizzy in feel. Nice subtle fruity esters. Really good bitter, shows off an awesome hop well. Only downside was the carbonation. I prefer my british beers quite low in CO2.



You forgot the pee.


----------



## kook (22/1/08)

Kai said:


> You forgot the pee.



Oh. It made me pee.


----------



## Doogiechap (23/1/08)

kook said:


> *Doogies Kolsch*
> 
> Pours slightly hazy dark gold with a long lasting medium white head. High carbonation. Honey & diacetyl aroma, with some slight malty/bready notes. Flavour starts buttery, with a bready flavour mid palate. Finishes dry and slightly acidic. Body a little thin and watery. Suspect a pediococcus infection due to diacetyl and acidity. I can tell there is a nice malty kolsch under there, but unfortunately it's hidden by other flavours.



Sorry about that bloke !
That would be my first infected brew  (glad it wasn't the batch but disapointed that I inflicted it on you bloke !). Sorry to those who have had less than satisfactory carbonation. It was my first attempt at filling from the keg, back to bulk priming bottles next time...

Ok time for a couple of tastes :

*Goats Hefe
*This is one of the first times I have got to taste a fresh example of the style. The Erdingers that make their way here are generally cactus by the time I get my mitts on them.
Lovely ! A nice up front tartness from the wheat gently holding hands with the carbolic bite :wub: , a slight breadiness on the palate but not out of place. A very refreshing drop. Thanks Goat !

*Tony's Justanordinaryale.
*Yeah what Rob said. I think the thing that struck me about this was the balance. It's what I think of when the term 'neck oil' is used. Everything was nicely in it's place, the carbonation was spot on and as Tony said the smoothness of the hops was fantastic. Nothing ordinary about this bloke or if it is I'm looking forward to tasting some of your extraordinary brews ! Thanks bloke !

Guys this is just fantastic. It's great coming home and grabbing a new bottle and paying a bit more attention to whats going on with taste etc.
Happy days !
Cheers
Doug


----------



## randyrob (23/1/08)

Clay APA

medium carb, laced the glass, very easy to chug, tasted the goods and a single hopped beer! good work tiger 





Ausdb's Dirty Blonde

low carb, little or no head, huge bitterness more than suggested on the bottle, very muddy think i must have got the last bottle, had a nice aroma and flavour with some sweet caramel notes.




ok on the second glass now and i was going to force carb the bottle but realised it was bottle conditioned so i blended it 
50/50 with a aussie ale i currently have on tap.

WOW what a differance that made, it's like i've struck GOLD this is almost how i imagened it to be, can really taste whats 
going on now the bitterness is almost halved! cheers darren.

Rob.


----------



## ausdb (23/1/08)

randyrob said:


> Ausdb's Dirty Blonde
> low carb, little or no head, huge bitterness more than suggested on the bottle, very muddy think i must have got the last bottle, had a nice aroma and flavour with some sweet caramel notes.
> 
> ok on the second glass now and i was going to force carb the bottle but realised it was bottle conditioned so i blended it
> ...



Good name Rob I'll remember that for next time as it seems like that Mojo still has a way to go, I drank a couple of bottles last week and was actually ashamed that I had foisted that little effort on you all. I can't work out what went on with the bottle conditioning, when I bottled the beer from primary it was crystal clear when you pour it out of the bottle it is flat and muddy. I'll blame that on the coopers carb lollies.

On the bitterness thing that has been a pretty standard comment too, I got pretty liberal with the hop pellets at end of boil and then put some more in the hopback for good measure. Obviously too much good measure plus I didn't take into account the old promash "ghost in the machine understating end of boil IBU calcs" Oh well the feedback is appreciated and the new years resolution is to brew something massive before July so I don't have to worry about it in December just dust off the bottles.
You have been warned h34r:


----------



## Kai (23/1/08)

Hey, I liked it. I think.


----------



## kook (23/1/08)

Doogiechap said:


> Sorry about that bloke !
> That would be my first infected brew  (glad it wasn't the batch but disapointed that I inflicted it on you bloke !). Sorry to those who have had less than satisfactory carbonation. It was my first attempt at filling from the keg, back to bulk priming bottles next time...



No problem Doug. As I said, it could have come from the bottle cap if it was reused? It had no seal so it is probably a suspect. At least from reading everyone elses notes it looks like it was simply a one-off bottling issue rather than a batch issue. It can happen to anyone


----------



## mika (24/1/08)

Actually...I was meaning to post this a while ago...

*Doogies Kolsch*

I got the thin, watery taste that you describe Kook. Didn't get any infection flavours though. I thought it was darker than a Kolsch should be and no where near as bright...so I dug up a bottle of Reissdorf Kolsch. Admittedly it had been sitting in the fridge for a while (~6months maybe ?) was brilliantly clear, maybe it was the lagering. I didn't get any of the winey tastes that people talk about coming from the Kolsch yeast, all I got was the taste I associate with German pils malt as used by Heineken, Paulaner, Weinstaphner and the such. So in that case, while I didn't like your Kolsch doug, I think it's probably not far of style, needs to be a lot more golden, a fair bit clearer and have some more carb and you're there.

*Half Lucky APA*

I was dissapointed by this one, to be honest. When I first opened I got all those usual citrus aromas, first taste was of this lovely dark extremely malty explosion..amazing...and then it dissappeared  I don't know, maybe the beer would have been too much with that strong a malt all the way thru, but it would have been interesting to try. After that the rest of the beer had a great malt backbone, probably the strongest I've experienced in any APA. Usual lovely citrus flavours, and carbonation was one of the best in the case thus far. Personally I would have liked it a bit bolder, it was very well balanced, but I'd like more background bitterness and more malt and more aroma and just MORE !!

*Kai's CACA*

Interesting...very interesting. I was suprised by the residual sweetness, it seemed very in balance where generally I'd like my own beers to finish a couple of points higher, it's made me think about my mash temps a bit. Maybe it was just that fluffy corn crud that you brewed it with, but I liked it. I can also appreciate why you like that Glacier hop, it added a nice dimension. I couldn't describe the taste though, I kinda agreed with the cream soda analogy that SimonW made while Meaghan picked Orange Poppyseed Muffin and I could see that as well. Think this might have to go into rotation on the brewlist as well.

BTW; Kai had a big influence on the recipe for my entry to this years case to which I owe him a public thank you...even if I ballsed it up and the spice didn't come thru...that was my part of it of course  

*Tony's Ordinary Ale*

Ok...I did drink this...um..
I remember it being far from Ordinary, I liked it, I seem to recall a lot of dark carmael kinda tastes, though I could be confusing it :huh: Something happened and I never got to finish the other half. Bit upset about that, sorry Tony 

*GL's Brambling Cross*

Didn't get a lot of malt back ground to this....from what I remember <_< It was late in the session and I usually don't do that with 'special' beers. Really intense blackcurrant, raisiny type of flavour going on, seemed to drive the beer and I wasn't that excited about it. Still a nice beer.

I'm sure I drunk someone else's in there as well, but I can't figure out who's. I'll check the stocks later and if I find the notes I was scribbling down I'll update the descriptions to reflect.


----------



## Guest Lurker (24/1/08)

kook said:


> No problem Doug. As I said, it could have come from the bottle cap if it was reused? It had no seal so it is probably a suspect. At least from reading everyone elses notes it looks like it was simply a one-off bottling issue rather than a batch issue. It can happen to anyone



I drank Fletch's bottle last night and although I am not sure I would recognise ped, there was no diacetyl, no off tastes, and it was the same as the one in my case.


----------



## roger mellie (25/1/08)

*Sinkas Divine Hammer*

Out of my comfort zone here - there is a first time for everything - no experience with festive beers at all.

Deep Red/Amber hues, surpisingly good carbonation just no head. Smells of candy apples. Has an oily mouthfeel - i guess the 10% contributes to this.

Candy, treacle, toffee characters - appealing sweetness which hid the alcohol well. Excessive length on the palate which shows all sorts of fruitcake flavours. There is also a tart puckering mid palate which complements the huge malt hit.

Appealing - festive - reminded me of sticky date pudding - actually would probably go well with a sticky date or something. 

Edit - when this warmed up it took on Muscat flavours - like a sweet wine.

Noice.

RM


----------



## Kai (26/1/08)

mika said:


> *Kai's CACA*
> 
> Interesting...very interesting. I was suprised by the residual sweetness, it seemed very in balance where generally I'd like my own beers to finish a couple of points higher, it's made me think about my mash temps a bit. Maybe it was just that fluffy corn crud that you brewed it with, but I liked it. I can also appreciate why you like that Glacier hop, it added a nice dimension. I couldn't describe the taste though, I kinda agreed with the cream soda analogy that SimonW made while Meaghan picked Orange Poppyseed Muffin and I could see that as well. Think this might have to go into rotation on the brewlist as well.
> 
> BTW; Kai had a big influence on the recipe for my entry to this years case to which I owe him a public thank you...even if I ballsed it up and the spice didn't come thru...that was my part of it of course



Thanks mika, I definitely owe you thanks for the brewery loan too. I think it made a good beer  BTW it was Tassie Saaz not Glacier in the CACA, first time I'd used them and I was pleased with the result. I've got a Glacier beer here right now, not a very good one but I'll see if I can save a bottle against the next time our paths cross.


----------



## mika (26/1/08)

Yeah...there's a mash paddle that need some holes in it isn't there ?

Tas saaz eh ? Show's you how good I am at this  

*Divine Mallet*

Carbonation, yay, persistent head (the way I like it B) ) Big molasses flavours, the missus seemed to reckon Golden Syrup...but I still tend more towards molasses. BIG beer, I struggled...one glass was an effort, two glasses a mission, the remaining 1/4 of a glass or whatever got left in the bottle. It'd be a nice beer in the middle of winter, but in the summer afternoon when it's still over 30degs, it just didn't suit (says the brewer who made a 9% Christmas beer for the case...onya Mika...shoulda thought about that a bit more :huh: )
BTW...this stuffed me...I don't know what the alcohol percentage was, but it's a fair bit more than I'm used to, felt a little tender today at work and I only had a couple from the keg before trying this one.


----------



## roger mellie (28/1/08)

*Chilla's Altbier*

The first time I opened this there was no pssssst - took it out of the fridge - left if for 2 weeks - a squeeze confirmed it was all good.

Just been for a swim - so my taste buds are a little salty.

Little bit murky - can smell the sweet nutty malt aromas. Excellent carbonation - I love this style. Malt driven, good length, slightly nutty/biscuity notes. Maybe could be a bit drier but on the whole very appealing.

2 to go I think.

RM


----------



## Kai (28/1/08)

mika said:


> Yeah...there's a mash paddle that need some holes in it isn't there ?



Don't worry, we've got all year. I should have it perfected by then


----------



## Doogiechap (31/1/08)

Clay's APA
Perfect Carbonation for my taste with a tightly packed head which lasted to the end. First pour was fairly clear. Aroma and flavour was Amarillo driven as you would expect and reminded me how much I love that Hop  . A thoroughly enjoyable drop Clay, was disappointed when I ran out.

Mike B's Halfwit
Light and spritzy. Again, a great long lasting head. Very refreshing and has given me some more motivation to play with some lighter strength Ales. Thanks Mike !

Cheers



mika said:


> *Doogies Kolsch*
> 
> I got the thin, watery taste that you describe Kook. Didn't get any infection flavours though. I thought it was darker than a Kolsch should be and no where near as bright...so I dug up a bottle of Reissdorf Kolsch. Admittedly it had been sitting in the fridge for a while (~6months maybe ?) was brilliantly clear, maybe it was the lagering. I didn't get any of the winey tastes that people talk about coming from the Kolsch yeast, all I got was the taste I associate with German pils malt as used by Heineken, Paulaner, Weinstaphner and the such. So in that case, while I didn't like your Kolsch doug, I think it's probably not far of style, needs to be a lot more golden, a fair bit clearer and have some more carb and you're there.








PS Mika, Sorry to hear you didn't enjoy my Kolsch. Honestly, I have never tasted a commercial version in my life (excepting the Colonial Spruikers Gold which Randall even admits is not strictly to style). Bloke, I just brewed a batch earlier last year, enjoyed it and thought is was worth sharing.


----------



## Doogiechap (2/2/08)

*SimonW's Amber Ale
*I had this with the remnant's of Little Creature's 'The Knowledge' still drifing around my palate and I was suprised at the similarity of the malt profiles :icon_cheers: . A lovely beer Simon, carbonation was perfect for me with a persistant head lasting through both glasfulls. Nice round medium large malt profile slightly dominant over a nice combo of hop bitterness/ aroma. This one went down very quickly indeed unfortunately. Good stuff Simon !
Cheers
Doug


----------



## Simon W (2/2/08)

Cheers Doogs, I had one of my few remaining stubbies last night and it has really improved over the last one I had a month ago. The dark malts have mellowed and allowed the hop aroma and flavour to poke through a bit more, I was kinda thinking a Rogers' on steroids while I was drinking it. It's a keeper, tho I might back off a bit on the 4.5% of CaraAroma next time...


----------



## mika (2/2/08)

> PS Mika, Sorry to hear you didn't enjoy my Kolsch. Honestly, I have never tasted a commercial version in my life (excepting the Colonial Spruikers Gold which Randall even admits is not strictly to style). Bloke, I just brewed a batch earlier last year, enjoyed it and thought is was worth sharing.



No need to be sorry dude, just don't do it again !!

:lol: 


That was just my take on it, other people seem to have enjoyed it and after all I'm just a fussy bastard. I even took a negative slant on Rob's APA which was a pretty damn good beer.


----------



## roger mellie (3/2/08)

*Mike B's Belgian Wit*

Delicate - In a word

Certainly was white - good carb - very pleasant bready yeasty nose. I got ginger and spice on the palate - slight bitterness/tartness on the aftertaste but I liked this beer.

IMHO this is a well crafted effort - the definite lightness (OG 27 FG 08) makes for a light, pleasant, very clean beer.

RM


----------



## deebee (15/3/08)

Mika's Xmas Beer 2007

This one has been under my floorboards since the case swap. Brought it out tonight to accompany that old chestnut Terminator II.

Fantastic head for a beer of 9%. I poured my glass then let it sit for 5 minutes and instead of dissipating like such a whopper should, the head just packed down dense and thick. It was still thick half way down the glass. Not over-carbed, though. It looks bronze and burnished, a little coca cola about it and just a little cloudy. The aroma is fruity esters (over ripe melon, maybe lychees) and alcohol. It really tastes like a monster, huge belly of malt, fat and sweet, brandied fruit cake, creamy mouthfeel, hypnotic and lovely. I really get into a great grand ale and this one is probably still getting better in the bottle. Might be improved with even more bitterness to hold back the malt (40 IBU you reckon?) Nevertheless, a most enjoyable beer. There is no way I will stay awake till the end of T2.


----------



## randyrob (15/3/08)

here;s a pciiccy to acoompy it mate


----------



## randyrob (15/3/08)

whoops not a very god shot of the labe;l but u get tat eh


----------



## Kai (16/3/08)

Had a good night last night eh rob?


----------



## chillamacgilla73 (16/3/08)

Well after 2+month hiatus from brewing and forum trawling due to work commitments, fertility treatment, triathlon training and preparations for major home rennos. Check out the pic of our yard.. Bless the earthmoving contractor that even after having an initial site survey a month ago, he still managed to bust the lids on the first day and we now have open septics with spandeck sheets covering them for another 2-3days..stinky poos up our way.




Anyway, Im back..

I can only give hazy recollections of the chrissy case as my memory is as reliable as a gold fishs.

Vlads Another top ale with many layers of flavours fruitiness, spiciness, sweetness and otherness-nesses..I dont recall hoppyness?
Tonys Top example of an English ale that I managed to serve at the correct temperature(EG: Not freezing cold). Plenty of crystally goodness balanced nicely with some variety of English hops. Again, the memory is cactus so apologies for vague descriptions..
Roger Mellies Top beer with wonderful aroma n flavour of the latest Saaz incarnation(C or D?). 
Goats Hefe One of the finest homebrewed weizens Ive tried(Sitting alongside Ashers weizen he brewed using a recipe inspired by the recipe on the Weyermann site). Top effort in achieving a good balance of wheat tartness, fruity goodness and phenolics.
Ashers NS Ale Tidy ale from the king of lagerland. NS ales seem to taste grapefruity and have a kind of acidity that makes a cracking thirst quencher when youve been hard at work watching the boxing day test on the couch.
Deebees Another deebee ripper from the man that thinks outside the square/circle or rectangle(EG: Not style guidelines restricted, just thinks what will taste good together). I remember Amarillo n malt and quite dark. Father in law enjoyed it too.
GL's - Tidy english brew, never played with BC hops or had much to do with them. Very tastey.


All of the high octane and Belgian numbers are tucked away and I will give a more definitive review when I find the perfect moment to imbibe. 

A side not regarding the chilla haze Altbier. I am pretty sure I mixed up my base malts when I brewed my chrissy case. I accidentally used Kirin in the chrissy case Alt and JW Trad ale in the house weizen. Well I can only assume the superdry weizen and full bodied Alt is down to this very reason.refer label regarding brewers inventory management skills..

Cheers all for your reviews and tasty beers and apologies for going AWOL for a few months, life gets in the way of brewing sometimes..
Chilla


----------



## Vlad the Pale Aler (16/3/08)

You will only be forgiven if you turn up at Randyrobs brewday.


----------



## randyrob (16/3/08)

Kai said:


> Had a good night last night eh rob?



it was good up until the point where we decided to duck out for a late night curry and i ordered the prawn jalfrazi, while trying to squeeze one of the prawns out of the shell into my mouth i got a dash of curry in my eye, had to walk home with my eyes closed still stings like buggery today!


----------



## ausdb (17/3/08)

chillamacgilla73 said:


> Well after 2+month hiatus from brewing and forum trawling due to work commitments, fertility treatment, triathlon training and preparations for major home rennos. Check out the pic of our yard.. Bless the earthmoving contractor that even after having an initial site survey a month ago, he still managed to bust the lids on the first day and we now have open septics with spandeck sheets covering them for another 2-3days…..stinky poos up our way.
> 
> Anyway, I’m back..


Good to see you are still alive, I heard a rumour you were off to ol Blighty!


----------



## chillamacgilla73 (17/3/08)

ausdb said:


> Good to see you are still alive, I heard a rumour you were off to ol Blighty!


Cheers mate -I look forward to catching up for a beer sooner rather than later. Ole blighty fell through, manager wouldn't agree to interoffice transfer so I have been trawelling recruitment sites....he heWe decided the rennos will need to be finished before we bugger off..so that won't be for a while...


----------



## kook (17/3/08)

Triathlon?

Is that like brewing, bbqing and bottling at the same time or something?


----------



## Guest Lurker (18/3/08)

Cool idea Kook. Lets do a brewing triathlon at Robs brewday!


----------



## roger mellie (31/3/08)

*Mika's Xmas Beer*

Last cab off the rank - been sitting in the fridge for a month now - thought it was time as the temperature has plummeted to 23 degrees here today - with 25mm of rain - I declare it to be winter.

Wow - what an excellent beer. Perfect Carbonation, glorious head, awesome viscosity. An absolute myriad of Xmas cake flavors here - Five Spice, Nutmeg - underlying treacle and marmalade tones all carried through by a delicate amount of alcohol heat. Really well balanced.

I dont know whether the weather added to the experience but I would rate this as the best beer of the case - indeed one of the best of that style of beer I have tasted

A real treat in a Word - Delicious.

Cheers Mika

RM


----------



## Vlad the Pale Aler (31/3/08)

I have to agree RM, although too slack to write a gushing essay on this beer I also rate it as the best in the case.


----------



## mika (1/4/08)

Wow...I'll have to taste it again as I thought the spice had gone out the window. Cheers for the glowing response fellas.


----------



## ausdb (12/4/08)

roger mellie said:


> This years offering - no chilled in the fermenter as my chiller was out of action.
> 
> As others here have pointed out - the combination of Weyerman Pils and No Chill can = DMS. So apologies for that - from the 2 or so glasses that I had - the DMS does dissipate in the glass.
> 
> ...


Hey RM I am known for not being one to rush things so I have been trying to make this years chrissy case last till next Christmas. The RK Pils was up on the list this evening and I can say that all traces of DMS have left the building and it has a very nice Saazy D aroma to it still. It poured a bit hazy and there was some yeast sediment which I was surprised at consideirng that I see you filtered it but it has been lagering for a while now. Theres was also a nice assertive bitterness to back it up, Well done!!!


----------



## barfridge (17/6/08)

*Mika's Xmas Beer*

It's had enough time to age. Looking at the recipie, I'm at a loss for which style it should be. It tastes like a Belgian dark strong, but without the strong ester character from a Belgian yeast.

Pours very clear by now, a gorgeous dark brown with a healthy tinge of red. Thick tan head which stays until the end, despite the alcohol percentage, leaving a nice lace. Healthy levels of carbonation keep it lively until the bottom of the glass.

Taste is heavily towards the malt, a nice solid backbone and additional dark plummy sweetness from the carafa. Not much left in the way of hops by now. I can't detect any spices, except the ginger, which blends in beautifully with the slight warming from the alcohol.

Aftertaste is a slight hop bitterness and tannic bitterness from the grain.

Overall a very well integrated effort. Dark and strong beers aren't my cup of tea *cough*, so I may be a little biased in favour of this one.


----------



## Guest Lurker (18/6/08)

sinkas said:


> Gald you managed to drink it,
> yes carbonation is far too low, which accentuates the 1016 finish,
> In my opinion now a very average beer, but one that had a great deal of hope and artistic passion wasted on it.



Hey Case

2 kegs blew dry tonight. So I went rummaging in the back of the fridge and found a divine hammer.

Review: What I said last time, except it has carbed up more, dried out more and is a very tasty estery malty drop, the alcohol is still very well disguised, the colour is a nice reddish amber, and it holds a thin head. Drinking well, no signs of oxidation, which I find odd in a beer that was counter pressure filled a very long time ago, drinking especially especially well in front of the fire as I conserve the precious power and gas resources of WA. Got any more?


----------



## Tony M (19/6/08)

The Hammer and the Xmas are the only two I have left. Looks like I should get stuck into them when I return home from Prague just to remind myself you don't have to fly round the world for a good beer.


----------



## Tony M (8/1/09)

*Mika's Christmas Beer.*
I saved this for the 2008 Christmas dinner finale. Enid did not bother to make a Christmas pudding this year and she had no need to for there it was, bottled up like a genie waiting to be released for our pleasure. It was clean on the palate, clear to the eye with rich fruit driven flavours that had us all smacking our lips. This was a beer you'd pay quids for and go back for more. Well worth the wait. 
Edit: I think you should put down your next offering now so that it will be perfect for Christmas 2009.


----------

