2008 Hag Xmas Case Swap - Tasting Notes

[leeboy]

11 Offline - The Wild Mild, bottled 25/11/08

Poured a perfect deep copper with brilliant clarity and great carbonation and head.

Smelt of grainy caramel with a hint of roast in the background. Good clean taste of a easy drinker.

In the mouth tasted bigger than i anticipated. Got a fair bit of caramel and tasted stronger than a mild should be. Had a boozyness to it, which was either the beer or my afternoon working in the hot sun. Not sure... Great beer non the less. Would of definately got another glass if it was there ready.

I found this beer to be very pleasent and as previous comments raise the issue of.. I'd judge it poorly if entered in a comp as a mild. But if i was judging it just on taste. I really liked it.

Thanks heaps for the beer. Could of used a second longneck of this one.
Lee

 

[Brewman_]

#7 Witbier.
Tried BB's Witbier, First one as have no chance to get near my beer fridge.

I'll keep it simple as I don't yet fully understand the different styles and their associated flavours.

I liked it. It poured nicely - pale straw with a cloudiness and a 5 - 10mm white creamy head that remained for the entire glass. Easy to drink and had an "interesting" flavour at the finish, that I can't really explain, which I liked. I have previously tasted a similar finish in other beers I have made and not liked - but that was many years ago. I'll put that down to appreciating better beer.

Thanks for sharing. Might give a Witbier a go myself.
FNL

 

[leeboy]

2. Schooey - Schwarzbier

This poured perfectly. Great dark beer with ruby highlights, great carbonation and great clarity.

Smells of sweet malts, a little bit of background chocolate aroma from the roast malts and a little bit of biscuity character in there just for good measure... Is there some darker crystal in there also? Wouldn't of expected it but I'm getting sweetness and biscuity there? Let me know anyway.

Light and clean in the mouth with a not too astringent dark malt profile. Refreshing and flavourfilled. Great dark chocolate in mouth plavour also. Good balance here because although hops are detectable they aren't that in your face. So great for style. The more you drink of this the more I'm thinking my first q. about dark crystal malts is ridiculous and it is probably just a fair bit of munich in there. What FG did this end at because it tastes like there is a bit of residual there.

Very nice beer on a hot night.

Thanks Tony liked this one... Good quality case swap. I'll call it. Probably 1/3 through my beers. Best swap yet!

 

[schooey]

You're pretty spot on, Lee. This one still had about 8 points left to drop for my target FG when I was forced to bottle it for the swap. Soooooo... I guess this is a note for everyone else, if Lee says the carbing is right, it's time to get this one in the fridge in case the residual sugars keep fermenting in the bottle and make for gushers...

READ: FRIDGE IT NOW

I can't quite recall the recipe, Lee, but I'll dig it up and post it in the dB when I get a chance. Thanks for the quality feedback, mate, much appreciated.

 

[leeboy]

Good call tony, carb is perfect so fridge is a great option. Sounds like maybe it didn't get all the way down. So that mild sweetness could just be some unfermeneted pilsner malt?
Still a nice beer though. It hit the spot lastnight

 

[shmick]

G'day HAGgers

I messed up my previous post for Michael Mosely's Hefeweizen as I mangled the numbering on my list.
Sorry MM - I deleted the post anyway and will report back when I get to yours.

Punter's Choc Porter - At the end of a long brew day I really enjoyed this one. A touch darker than expected, moderate roasted flavours, initially sweet and fruity but finished nice and dry. It had a slightly slick, medium bodied mouthfeel and background choc malt flavour which reminded me a little of an oatmeal stout. Very smooth and well recieved. Thanks Punter.

Head's Dusseldorf Altbier - Pretty close to style I thought. Great colour and carbonation was spot on. Was a little peppery tang from the hops I expect (Tetnang?) but had a good malt backbone. My only concern was a little sweetness in the finish which would disappear with the traditional cold conditioning. Give it a while CCing and think it would be pretty good. Thanks Head.

Cheers & Happy New Year to all

 

[goatherder]

I've just finished Schmick's Sissyweizen. Great drinking summer beer. The raspberry gave a pink hue and a good dose of flavour. I love the tartness it gives the beer. Underneath the raspberry, I thought the beer was very well constructed with good balance between bitter and sweet and between phenol and ester. There was plenty of bready wheat flavour to go round too. I detected a touch of solvent (acetone) as the beer warmed up. Can I ask what yeast you used and at what temp? I'm a novice hefe brewer and keen to understand more about how ferment temp affects the ester profile.

I cracked a bottle of mine tonight. It's ready to drink. I'll break with the convention and not review it. It was an experimental brew and I don't want to influence perceptions.

 

[Weizguy]

I drank the Sissyweizen the other night.
Great name . Great label. Nice beer.
Very well integrated fruit. As good a weizen as most of mine, and better than some.
Classic Weizen flavours of balanced banana and cloves, with a slight fruity sweetness and raspberry taste, without a tartness or twang. You could enter this in a comp as a fruit beer and do quite well, remembering to state that the underlying style is hefeweizen.

I got back from the Newcastle Harbour fireworks at about 10:30 tonight and was keen to drink my Arrogant *******, rescued from the US by Bigfridge. First I side-tracked myself with the Schwarz from Schooey.
Use the Schwartz, Luke, I'm thinking.
Now you must know that I judged Doc's Schwarzbier as BoS at the NSW State comp this year. It's still 2008 innit?

The beer poured with a thick head of dense foam, which lasted throughout the tasting. Nice start, but...
Tony, I got a roasty aroma and some nuttiness too in the aroma. The flavour was nice and clean (as it should be), although the roast was too much for me, and covered the sweetness others tasted, and I didn't get the hop flavour either. I got a nice dry finish with a mild astringency (which is out of place in this style), at the expense of any malt or vanilla aftertaste. I'd suggest that you back off on the roast character and see what else prevails/ dominates.
Overall, I nice beer which I was intrigued by, and enjoyed the lot. I think I took a bit long with this beer tasting, but that was to ensure that I hadn't deliberately missed flavours that others found.
Overall, I see this as a very drinkable beer which is juuuust off the style.

 

[schooey]

Cheers for the feedback, Les. I'm going to taste one from the bottle tonight and see what I find alongside the feedback thats been given. I'm pretty happy with this for a first attempt though...

"When I get home, I'm gonna have to give all my XXXX Gold to my son in law and go buy some good beer" - A quote last night from schooey's older brother who drank schooey's Devil's Tail APA all day on Christmas Day and this Schwarz all night last night from the keg..... I'm wrapped, my first convert

 

[schooey]

25. Loftboy/MauriceOz - Winding Creek APA (SNPA style APA). Bottled 25/11/08, 4.5% ABV, US-05.

First beer of the swap for me, and I was lucky enough to be able to share it with my brother who is staying with us at the moment. I chilled the bottle in the fridge down to about 6C and it opened with a significant Chsssh. I probably should have fridged this one a little earlier than today, but it was still ok, no signs of gushing from the bottle, very well behaved.

First on the nose I got the cascade hit, pine and fruits and citrus aromas followed by light hints of malt in the background. I didnt get any diacetyl, the aroma was very clean. First sip I get a big carbonic bite and I kinda kick myself for not letting it sit in the fridge for a few days, but the flavour on the tongue is well balanced malt and cascade, very clean and not overpowering. I taste that subtle piney flavour along with hints of lemon and maybe melon, hard to tell, but the maltiness is there to keep them in check. As I let it warm in the glass a little the carbonic bite fades and I settle into an excellent session beer, great flavour and excellent balance all packed in a 4.4% beer

Great job, well done fellas, I'll be brewing this one for the next time I need a 50L batch of session beer for the masses. Thanks...

 

[goatherder]

I also had no 25 tonight. Alas, I have no detailed review notes - I just enjoyed it with curry over dinner. It was a magic beer however, wonderfully flavourful and balanced. The carb was a bit over the top, it was a tough beer to pour. First class beer thanks guys.

 

[loftboy]

25. Loftboy/MauriceOz - Winding Creek APA (SNPA style APA). Bottled 25/11/08, 4.5% ABV, US-05.

Great job, well done fellas, I'll be brewing this one for the next time I need a 50L batch of session beer for the masses. Thanks...

Tony,

Greetings from sunny Port Macquarie.

Glad you enjoyed it. I've put the recipe here - http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/inde...&recipe=657

Next time I brew it, I may mash it a touch cooler to get it to finish a little drier & lighten the body a bit. Then again, based on the feedback so far, I may just leave it alone & go with the same recipe. Decisions Decisions.

Cheers & Beers,

Dave.

 

[loftboy]

I also had no 25 tonight. Alas, I have no detailed review notes - I just enjoyed it with curry over dinner. It was a magic beer however, wonderfully flavourful and balanced. The carb was a bit over the top, it was a tough beer to pour. First class beer thanks guys.

Scott,

Point taken on the over carbing. Hopefully those that haven't drunk it yet don't end up with bottle bombs. Looking foward to trying your Dunkel when I get get back from hols.

Dave.

 

[leeboy]

12 Shmick - Raspberry sissyweizen

Shared this one with friends lastnight.

Poured a pale pinky colour. Seems that this beer seperates quite a lot. The first 1/3 of the bottle got a great crystal clear pour with brilliant pink colour. My glass got murkier with a little pink and then the last was very yeasty. This beer would benefit from filtering for asthetics.

I got a lot of bannana and cloves with a hint of bubblegum of mine with a little raspberry in the background. Intrestingly the first poured of this bottle smelt a lot more raspberry and tasted more of it also,

Drank well a mildly tart raspberry hefe is a good description. Get all of those great hefe esters through of bannana and bubblegum and clove but then there is something else. This style of beer isn't one I'd have a session on but it was great to try it. Thanks for the very esoteric beer Schmick. It is always a pleasure drinking your beers. Always well crafted and a cool label to look at also! Thanks mate!!

Just as a comment I reckon this beer could have real chick appeal if it were filtered and finished a little dryier. Maybe some adjuct use wouldn't hurt. Colour could also be added to make it a little more asthetically raspberry.

Thanks!

 

[n00ch]

Sat down to watch the cricket this afternoon and finally got a chance to get into some of the swap beers.

First off I had Trent's AIPA:

Pours a muddy amber colour with a nice off white head that lasted the entire glass, perfect carbonation. Has a really nice fresh citrus/piney/floral aroma, smells great!
The citrus hops really come through again in the flavour providing a nice (still dominant) hop flavour/bitterness this style requires. As others have said I think the body is a little to full for style but is a fantastic beer all the same. Finish is malty but the hop bitterness/flavour lingers on nicely.

I really enjoyed this beer, thanks Trent.

Well 1 down and its a good one, can't wait to try to rest. Why I had a AIPA before some of the less aggressive beers today is beyond me.... Went well with chilli prawns though!

Cheers

 

[Trent]

#19 Fingolfin's Witbier
Pours a beautiful cloudy pale gold, with a dense white head that disspated quickly, most likely due to less than optimal glassware...
Wheaty aroma, with a definite tartness (great for style) and more a lemony citrus aroma rather than the traditional orange peel and coriander - granted, my nose isnt very good at the moment (ever?).
Taste is nice and wheaty, lemony, moderate bitterness, and finishes nice and dry and tart, just how I like em. I could only suggest to add a bit more orange/coriander at flame out, but I just realised it has been in the bottle a month, which is longer than I usually leave any witbier I brewed, so apologies there.
Overall, it is a great tasting beer, no obvious faults and just what I needed after a long day of doing nothing (and getting my starter ready for tomorrows brewday).
Thanks alot for sharing, very nice beer.
All the best
Trent

 

[leeboy]

18 - Trent - AIPA - 7.6%

This one poured perfectly, Great carbonation and a head that stuck throughout. Colour was darker than I expected but upon reviewing the spec 15 is the high end of style guidelines which is is within. Clarity isn't amazing.

Smells of delicious US hops. I got a lot of pine resins coming through. And of course citrus. Smell great malt character in there which is bordering to a bread like richness.

Tastes no where near as hoppy as i was expecting. tastes fresh and clean but doesn't have that hop emphasis that I was expecting and indeed all the commerical examples I've been having lately do.

Don't get me wrong this is a very nice beer. Has a lovely warmth to it from the higher alcohol%. This beer has great balance between malt v hops like you would expect in a APA, tastes very well crafted. I haven't had a AIPA in ages with that much kilned malts in there so it was lovely to get back to these styled AIPA's. Had mainly dog fish head styled super pale AIPA.

Thanks for the beer trent I found this beer well rounded and one that had a certain alure to it with the complex and rich malt presence. Very nice and again well made!
Thanks

 

[loftboy]

Some catch-up reviews;

1. n00ch - Doppelbock
Clear dark amber appearance. Low to medium carbonation. Flavour profile is dominant a roasty/chocolatey. Nice malt body. Low-medium hop bitterness. No fussel (hot solventy) alcohol flavour. Hides the 9% ABV very well, to the point that you don't realise how much punch it has, until you try to stand up after drinking the whole bottle !. Well done Mitch.

4. Leeboy - Imperial Porter
Dark brown appearance. Medium carbonation with very fine champagne-like bubbles. Wonderful creamy tan head that laces the glass & lasts the whole way - almost Guiness like. Great balance between malt sweetness & hop bitterness. Chololate, roasty & sligtly dusty aftertaste. Very well made beer. Thanks Lee.

9. Rurik - Mild
I'm not sure what to make of this one. On opening & pouring it was all looking like a great mild. However, there was a strong acrid burnt flavour to it, that I just couldn't get past. I've only had a couple of Mild's, so I'm not sure if this example is within the style guidelines or not. Like I said everything was shaping up to be a great beer - carbonation, colour & head, but I just couldn't get past the burn taste. Ben, I hope it was just me, but thanks for your efforts anyway.

18. Trent - AIPA
Trent, what can I say, except that you have never turned out a dud in the case swaps & this was no exception. I can't really add much to what the others have already said, other than I wished that I have had tried it earlier to get some of the hop freshness. Well Done.

24. fear_n_loath - Euro Lager
Light clear golden colour. Subtle hop aroma. Good carbonation & head retention. Lovely lager for a hot summers day. Taste-wise, it almost had a touch of a Wit about it. The only thing I could fault with it, was an ever so slightly "meaty" taste, almost like spag bol. This seemed to dissapear as the bottle warmed up. Well done.

 

[shmick]

Thanks for the kind reviews.
I like to enter something a little different for the swaps and I'm glad it has been well recieved so far.

It is interesting to note the layering effect. I hadn't noticed it except for the bright pink trub in the bottom of the bottle after I'd finished and figured something must have dropped out.

I like to keep my hefe's simple - 50/50 pils/wheat malt, mash for light body with a 45 - 50 degC 20 min step on the way to keep the body on the light side. Bitter to 12 - 15 IBU with a subtle higher alpha German hop (Perle).
I don't bother with aeration, just pitch and ferment at 17 degC with WY3068, 2 wks in the primary then straight to keg or prime & bottle.

I know there are a lot of other ideas on the subject but this is what I like, it works for me and everybody else can go spit.
That being said, I have actually tried several other high/low temp, pitch at X ferment at Y banana/clove blah blah blah schemes but keep coming back to pitch and ferment cool (17 - 18 degC). This is only my view so don't let it effect what ever you have planned - unless you try a few different things and come to your own conclusions you will never be satisfied.

Enough of the rant, back to the reviews:

Schooey’s Schwartzbier – My bottle was a little undercarbed but not by much. This was a nice dark lager that was very Moorish. A touch dark and a little too roasty for style maybe but very drinkable. Very enjoyable.

The Ol’ Boozeroony’s Amber Ale - Complex malt packed ale with a good dose of POR (?). Sultanas, pears and sweet fruit esters in the aroma. Well balanced smooth bitterness with a malty finish. Most enjoyable – I’d go another bottle if it was in the fridge. Thanks OB.

Offline’s Wild Mild – Initial taste was a little prickly but improved greatly after putting the glass aside for 20 mins to warm and de-carb. Very clear & smooth. Absolutely loved the dark fruity brown malt and dryish finish. Very easy drinking as it should be. Style guidelines state up to 4.5% ABV and with the smooth flavours and restrained bitterness I thought this wasn’t far out of style. Yet another great beer I’d be happy to have a few more of.

 

[SJW]

HOLY CRAP, I tasted Marks Dark Wheat Double Bock yesterday. It was warm, still conditioning and 10am and it was bloody sensational. Now I wish I got in on the swap. Now all we need to do is extract the recipe out of him. I suddgest we raid the shop, stuff his grapes in a mill and threaten to turn it on.........or I could just ask him for the recipe.
Its a great drop.

Steve