2010 Adelaide, Mildura & Whyalla Case Swap Tasting Thread

[Hatchy]

If she starts cooking the BBQ, then there's a good chance you've become the woman in the house. If she takes the TV remote it's all over.

Then again, if your wife is brewing you beer, STFU ya winging *******. <_<

She has cooked BBQs when I've been brewing & unless there's cricket or soccer on then I don't watch TV (I love aussie rules but if Westies are playing then I'm at the game & if they're not then I don't care enough to watch it).

If she was brewing me beer then I'd be happy but she's tied up my brewery for a Saturday which means she'll tie up my ferment fridge for a fortnight & then either tie up a keg or 2 for a while or I'll have to help her bottle the beer. Yr right though, there could be worse predicaments.

Given how OT this thread is getting, is it safe to assume that everyone has drunk their swap beers & we should look at having an "early 2011 everyone who can get to Adelaide & has drunk all of their swap beers" swap?

 

[technoicon]

Given how OT this thread is getting, is it safe to assume that everyone has drunk their swap beers & we should look at having an "early 2011 everyone who can get to Adelaide & has drunk all of their swap beers" swap?

yes, even though i'm not finished. i probably will be after this weekend

 

[Goofinder]

hey, what would make it oxidised? (what gives you this)

i have a feeling it might have been older hops that didnt have quiet enough kick to them, def need to double the hop count. when i drank it i though about the same. i would like a little more warm buzz in the back of your mouth. the way you described the chilli is exactly what i was aiming for though, but I found it not quiet enough, maybe one more chilli in it. (btw thanks to mom for the chilli's)

Oxidation is most likely to be caused by splashing after the ferment (during racking or possibly bottling) or maybe a poorly sealed secondary if there wasn't enough CO2 to create a blanket. Of course, I could be completely wrong and it's not oxidised.

I reckon you could go a bit more chilli in there, but not too much more if you want to keep it hidden reasonably well.

Goofinder's ESB

Nice colour, pale amber with good clarity, low carb rate, poured with a good head which faded a little. Aroma is yeasty esters, not as overpowering as Groucho's. Flavour, I get a good balance between esters, malt with earthy hops in the background.

This is not a style I have brewed a lot and am only really familiar with a few commercial examples I have bought a couple of times - Fullers, Young's etc. These seem to have a bigger malt profile with some caramel and nutty notes and a stronger hop presence. It maybe a a freshness issue, I don't know. The two case swap beers above seem to be more yeast driven, however maybe I am more sensitive to this estery flavour. I reckon I have had a batch and tasted a mates that may have been infected that really drove the esters forward or maybe it was improper yeast management? Or maybe all the IIPA's I have been brewing have mutated my taste buds?

I think the yeastiness is a bit over the top in mine and probably could have done with being fermented a degree or two lower. I picked up an almost sulphury yeastiness when we did the 'judging' of my beer but I think I only had the end of the bottle for that one so I probably had a glass full of yeast.

Edit: Can you tell me what yeasts you guys use and your pitching rates and fermentation temps/schedules. As I said - want to start using more English yeast (only really used Nottingham and 1968 before). Looking at Wlp007/1098, albeit for more american hopped beers but I may crop it for an ESB batch on the side?

Mine was Wyeast 1187, about half the slurry from the previous batch which was the Ordinary Bitter that was at the case swap (which had a fresh smack pack dumped in). Fermented at around 22 degrees I think for a couple of weeks then a week or so in secondary (no temp control here, so just at ambient).

 

[technoicon]

Oxidation is most likely to be caused by splashing after the ferment (during racking or possibly bottling) or maybe a poorly sealed secondary if there wasn't enough CO2 to create a blanket. Of course, I could be completely wrong and it's not oxidised.

I reckon you could go a bit more chilli in there, but not too much more if you want to keep it hidden reasonably well.

Ok yeah that's what i thought it was. this could be true because i think it finished a little higher than i wanted (1020) so i might have tried to sturr up the yeast a little.

There was no secondary, just straight into bottles.

your right just a little more, with the chilli it's hard to estimate as some are hotter than others and some not so much. i think i used about 5 dried (really hot) chilli's. 6 or 7 would have been better.

way more hops next time.

 

[jbirbeck]

Kieren's Litha

lovely colour, good clarity and a low head...definitely get the galaxy hit on the aroma its all about the hop and its a big hit of it. the flavour is mostly hop, tastes great, well balanced - too many I've seen over do Galaxy but this is great and well supported by the malt and just perfect bitterness. Really enjoyed this one.

some Awesome Fire Ale

Great colouring with good clarity, really good complex malt aroma with that deep munich style maltiness with hints of choc and caramel. I didn't get any really hop aroma from it, med light body. The malt flavour was well down on the aroma hit and there was a slight vegetal type flavour coming through. Oxidised? hmm maybe but I wasn't getting that same staleness you get from oxidised beers. It could be the chilli doing that. I liked the level of chilli, justa bout right for some tingling but not genuine heat. A slight increase would work but I'd watch out for the vegetal flavour increasing.
There was still good choc, sweet malt flavours coming through, but less intense than the aroma, some raisins/dried fruit flavours as well - could be where Goo is coming from in terms of oxidisation, I took it as a slight aged character. Nice beer.

Smurto's Homegrown
good colour, great clarity, low carb and low head. Tasty malti aroma with some hints of rye spiciness and estery. The esters were slight to begin with and devloped as the beer warmed, they worked reasonably well. When I was first smelling and tasting I got a fair hit of lolly bananas. It faded as I drank more (or maybe I adjusted) but it was odd. Strangely though it worked well with the fruity hop flavours. It had good bitterness but it was the sweet malt flavours that lingered to the point of being cloying. Maybe another couple of IBU or a slightly drier finish. Overall a very easy drinker. I think I preferred the version you had on tap at your place that used a different bittering hop.

 

[jbirbeck]

Ravens Brown
lovely reddish brown colour, slight haze and a light white head that holds well, some good sweet malt aroma but a big hit of esters and slight banana. As it warms there is a fight between some nice citrus type hop aroma, some floral hop and the big esters. Much the same on the palate but the esters are more noticeable. Good firm bitterness well supported by the malt and some slight stringency on the finish but well balanced. Probably pushed the yeast a tad hard as everything seems to be there but the esters dominate.

 

[drsmurto]

Carpfish head summer ale

Yet another very easy drinking beer. Lower on the malt backbone but given you labelled it a summer ale then you have inferred that anyway (or at least that's how i interpreted it) with a nice amount of hop flavour/aroma but without going overboard. Some yeast esters as well so another tick. Carbonation was medium-high and i threw this back in no time flat. Really enjoyed it but then i do love challenger hops :icon_drool2:

Rather than brew for ourselves i suggest a monthly case swap - with this standard i would be happy to drink all of your beers all of the time.

Just not sure my liver could stand monthly case swap days.....

EDIT - just read you were disappointed in this beer. Not sure why? Its a very nice beer and one i could happily drink all day. It reminded me that i still have quite a few challenger plugs that i should use soon.

 

[jonocarroll]

Rather than brew for ourselves i suggest a monthly case swap - with this standard i would be happy to drink all of your beers all of the time.

30 attendees registered interest within a week of starting the 'emergency' swap... I reckon if we get any better at this we'll call it a festival and sell tickets h34r:

 

[Mayor of Mildura]

Carpfish head summer ale

Yet another very easy drinking beer. Lower on the malt backbone but given you labelled it a summer ale then you have inferred that anyway (or at least that's how i interpreted it) with a nice amount of hop flavour/aroma but without going overboard. Some yeast esters as well so another tick. Carbonation was medium-high and i threw this back in no time flat. Really enjoyed it but then i do love challenger hops :icon_drool2:

Rather than brew for ourselves i suggest a monthly case swap - with this standard i would be happy to drink all of your beers all of the time.

Just not sure my liver could stand monthly case swap days.....

EDIT - just read you were disappointed in this beer. Not sure why? Its a very nice beer and one i could happily drink all day. It reminded me that i still have quite a few challenger plugs that i should use soon.

I didn't like the grassy flavour (kieren picked up a dms like flavour). Other than that I was happy.

Cheers Dr S

 

[raven19]

Ravens Brown
lovely reddish brown colour, slight haze and a light white head that holds well, some good sweet malt aroma but a big hit of esters and slight banana. As it warms there is a fight between some nice citrus type hop aroma, some floral hop and the big esters. Much the same on the palate but the esters are more noticeable. Good firm bitterness well supported by the malt and some slight stringency on the finish but well balanced. Probably pushed the yeast a tad hard as everything seems to be there but the esters dominate.

I was keen to get a brew down after my infection issue on the planned swap brew. Duly noted for next time re: pushing the yeast at higher than my prefereed temps, thanks mate!

 

[Kieren]

RKs Smoked Schwarzbier

Med-high carbonation, solid head that lasts the whole glass. Hard to tell but seems hazy - not that I care to much about clarity. Aroma is all smoke for me - love it. Smokiness carries through with malt in the background. Good mouth feel/body.

Excellent level of smokiness. How much smoked malt did you use RK? I bottled a smoked ale this week with 98% smoked malt, tasted full on

 

[raven19]

Kieran's Litha Ale

Another cracker swap beer. I think my aroma senses are severely hindered from hayfever so I dont get much aroma compared to other swappers notes. Thin frothy head and medium carbonation in my bottle.
Cloudy but due to some yeast in the bottom of the bottle making its way into the glass, clean finish with a ever so slight lingering bitterness. No detectable off flavours, and as it warms slightly I get some of that aroma coming thru...

Belching some nice hoppy goodness now though! A cracker mate!!!

Looking forward to the remaining brews in the fridge and milk crate at this rate.

 

[raven19]

Awesome Fury's Amber Fire Ale

2/3rds the way thru this brew now. I have a nice tingling on the tongue from some nicely hidden chilli.
Low in bitterness, slightly sweet on the initial palette, moving into the chilli bite & sensation soon after.

Not too bad at all for my first chilli beer!

 

[drsmurto]

A3K's Bright Ale

Pours clear (not bright - if it had been filtered it would sparkle although i would still give it full marks for appearance in a comp ) with plenty of carbonation. Very golden in colour. The aroma hit me straight away and if you hadnt said you had cube hopped it i would have guessed dry hopped. Quite grassy and i tend to struggle with dry hopped beers (cant stand the Stone and Wood Ale everyone seems to rave about) but this wasnt over the top. Not a huge malt backbone but that just made it quite easy to drink. The hop flavour was complex, i couldnt pick any one hop but it was very nice. The bitterness lingered a little. Overall a very refreshing beer to drink during a tropical thunderstorm!

OT - the creek started flwoing again last night. In December. It normally only flows in winter :huh: Can't complain though, havent watered the vegie patch of hop plantation in 2 weeks and the tanks are full again.

2 beers left for me, the chilli beer and the belgian. Timed it well as i haven't had any beer on tap for the last 3 weeks so have been drinking the swap beers instead. Plan on kegging the next in the series of home-grown hopped rye golden ales this weekend (POR).

 

[jbirbeck]

RKs Smoked Schwarzbier

Med-high carbonation, solid head that lasts the whole glass. Hard to tell but seems hazy - not that I care to much about clarity. Aroma is all smoke for me - love it. Smokiness carries through with malt in the background. Good mouth feel/body.

Excellent level of smokiness. How much smoked malt did you use RK? I bottled a smoked ale this week with 98% smoked malt, tasted full on

I'm pretty sure it was around the 50% mark, even 55%. I'll have to find the recipe and check it.

 

[Kieren]

Gopha's Simarillo Ale

Med-high carbonation, good head. Slight haze which went after a little warming. Nice pale copper colour. I get a what I think is a little yeastiness(?) on the nose but lots of hops too. Flavour I get amarillo goodness with malt in the background. Finish is dry good bitterness. Very enjoyable.

 

[raven19]

#6 Hatchy's APA

Light golden in colour, very slight phenolic (?) aroma but not to the beers detriment,
Thin minimal head with low to medium carbonation,
Well balanced with lingering bitterness, light bodied with a light slick mouthfeel.

Could go more hops for an APA imo, but not too bad Hatch man!

 

[raven19]

QB's Ruddles English Ale

Thick off white fluffy head with low to to medium carbonation. Similar to other comments on this thread my bottle had slight haze, however clears during sampling. Aroma - slight malt and yeasty esters are present, a low to medium hoppy aroma in the initial pour was nice too. A slightly malty/sweet beer, with some nice tangy bitterness at the end imo.

'Oi, Gimme another barkeep!' :chug:

 

[raven19]

#3 Philip's 10min IPA

Nice hit of bitterness with this beer, coupled with some grassiness - no doubt from the massive late hop hit. :super:
Bubbly medium head, with medium to high carbonation. Light bodied brew, light golden in colour with slight haze, and a good aroma. Good clean ferment with no detectable off flavours. I can see why this brew is popular in the database.

Nice work Phil. Another good case swap beer.

 

[jbirbeck]

TonyC's Northern Brown
lovely choc aroma and slight esters with a hint of sulphur but otherwise clean, nice sweet malt aroma dominates. Rich malt flavour with hints of choc, good bitterness supporting that malt and some nice toffee and caramel notes. Some slight astringency on the finish but a nice dry finish despite that nice full malt flavour. I really liked this one. The only fault I could say was the lack of head and those lovely small bubbles, it poured a bit like two day old coke.


Carpfish Summer

Love the golden colour, love the clarity, love the tight white head, love the aroma, full of fruit - I got dried apricots, pineapple, Lychees. Little to no malt aroma. Med light body but perfectly balanced, bitterness and hopping is spot on for me.easy drinker without doubt.
The hop flavour was lower than I expected after the aroma but I got that hit of dried apricots and lycheses with a nice balanced finish. Could drink this one all day.

A3K bright
Another ripping summer beer, deep straw coloured, brilliant with a light white head, fruit hop aroma. I got some slight plasticine, really odd flavour but not unpleasant, reminded me of my childhood...Beautiful aroma, I was getting lemon and lime. The bitterness was quite forward but there was enough malt there to support it. Slight resiny astringent finish for me, probably that dry hopping but really nice beer.