2011 Funky Case Swap: Tasting Thread

[brendanos]

Drinking Manticles "Vanilla Bourbon Bretty Bruin". Intentionally tasted blind before checking what it was, and my impression was of Cherry Ripe & a brineyness akin to Liefmans pre-Moortgat. Deep mahogany, quite clear, very short-lived tan head. Really nice amount of acid, with lots of funk but nothing undesirable. Loads of ripe stonefruit & chocolatey malt character, a smoothness to the palate and just enough sweetness to carry the acid. A lovey beer, thanks Manticle. Would be happy to have paid money for this.

Was is bourbon barrel chips, or was it just/also bourbon in there? Seems to have some oak complexity in the palate/mouthfeel (red-wine-like tannin) but might just be grain/bugs. Vanilla is discrete/barely perceptible, but I reckon enhances the maltiness & brings out the chocolate character.

 

[manticle]

Soaked the oak chips in some quality bourbon. Can't remember if I added the lot or if I drained off the bourbon (and then drank it - done this with scotch before too and the spirit takes on a lovely complexity after just a week).

So the oak/tannin (and even possibly some vanilla although it did get some beans as well) you're tasting is actual oak.

Thanks for the review and glad you enjoyed it. Need to get cracking on another soon, given the amount of time these things need to age (only got two aging funk/sours at the moment).

 

[brendanos]

Josh's Spontaneously fermented Framboise

Pours the colour of an Orange C tablet with very little sparkle & little to no head. Colour perhaps indicates that fruit addition was on the lighter side - how much (ie in g/L) went into it? It has a little sparkle now but could do with quite a bit more conditioning/carbonation, though doesn't taste all that sweet/dextrinous so not sure how much more it will get. Aroma is of cough syrup - medicinal, chalky, sweet but in a syrupy/dextrin sweetness kinda way. Not a lot of funk considering spontaneous ferment? Flavour is light, lightly fruity (raspberry) and mildly acidic (fruit rather than ferment) and is overall quite watery. Very light bodied, and quite refreshing/drinkable, but I would love a bit more funk/acid/fruit.

 

[Josh]

Josh's Spontaneously fermented Framboise

Pours the colour of an Orange C tablet with very little sparkle & little to no head. Colour perhaps indicates that fruit addition was on the lighter side - how much (ie in g/L) went into it? It has a little sparkle now but could do with quite a bit more conditioning/carbonation, though doesn't taste all that sweet/dextrinous so not sure how much more it will get. Aroma is of cough syrup - medicinal, chalky, sweet but in a syrupy/dextrin sweetness kinda way. Not a lot of funk considering spontaneous ferment? Flavour is light, lightly fruity (raspberry) and mildly acidic (fruit rather than ferment) and is overall quite watery. Very light bodied, and quite refreshing/drinkable, but I would love a bit more funk/acid/fruit.

I tried mine the other night and agree with pretty much everything written here. There was 2kg in about 20L in the carboy. I suspect the lack of sourness came from the fact that the yeast grew up in a longneck of wort and then that was decanted off to taste what I had caught. So by the time it came to pitching, most of the growth had occurred outside of the fermenter.

I like the character of flavour, it just isn't intense enough.

I have another one fermenting now which had ALL of the beer used to catch the bugs added to the fermenter. I might get out the wine thief and see how it differs from the first attempt.

 

[manticle]

Plain bottle (stubby), no label or stamp, black cap.

Could be quintrex, although malt shovel bottles of my experience are embossed with 'malt shovel'. However the only other black cap bottles I can see are two pilsner urquell bottles and a coopers longneck. Then again it doesn't look even vaguely cranberry/raspberry coloured so I'm flummoxed. WHOSE BEER IS THIS AND WHERE"S MY CRANBERRY RED? Will have another look.

Pours golden, fairly clear, light haze. Fairly low carb but works with the mouthfeel.

Aroma of citrus and very faint toffee, some brett funk and sourness.

Flavour of citrus, wood, low funk, thin mouthfeel, finishes dry.

Slight tropical fruit aftertaste suggesting pineapple, very, very refreshing.

This is a very understated beer which I think is a real achievement with this kind of thing. Funk, sourness etc are all there but not overshadowing and as much as I like bold beers, I like subtle delicate ones too. Doing that with wild beer takes either some fluke or some effort.

Good job whosever it is.

 

[beers]

Plain bottle (stubby), no label or stamp, black cap.

Could be my fart

But from the description, maybe not.
My bottles were all unlabeled & capped with black caps.

 

[manticle]

Got no farts. Was it a golden colour?

 

[beers]

Was it a golden colour?

Closer to a Pilsner golden than a JS Golden Ale golden.

I don't get farts either... just being cheeky.

 

[manticle]

No, I understood.

I know from my own bottles that a couple near the end of bottling were not so great. I'm pretty sure I gave none of those away but perhaps the farty beer was a one off bottle thingamajig?

Anyway, nice beer. Thanks. I have another for later.

 

[beers]

Manticles Vanilla Bourbon Bretty Bruin.
Nice deep redish brown colour with zero head (possibly a consequence of our dishwashers poor performance). It seems to have a nice level of carbonation happening though.
Inititial aroma of berry, oak, & hint of acetic acid. A nice complex aroma.
Tasting I get a nice acidic note upfront (on the acetic side), leading into spiced dark chocolate, then a good sour hit nicely balanced with caramel sweetness, & finishing with some nice oaky vanillins.
This is beer packed with flavour, & is bashing my tastebuds all over the place.. & I like it a lot

A top beer Manticle.

 

[raven19]

Next time we should all write something on the lid to avoid this confusion over whose beer is whose! :icon_cheers:

 

[Florian]

However the only other black cap bottles I can see are two pilsner urquell bottles

These are mine if anyone else wondered. Berliner Roggenweisse.

 

[manticle]

Like our swap numbers? Black lids no good, so get jiggy with the gold lids and permanent marker swappers.

 

[barls]

Like our swap numbers? Black lids no good, so get jiggy with the gold lids and permanent marker swappers.

i think this as a minimum, if not a label.

 

[raven19]

Pretty hard to beat woolies for value on gold caps too. 100 for under $2 iirc...

 

[manticle]

Strange that I seem to have no bottles I can identify as Quintrex's since the box came via him.

 

[barls]

thats at his end mate, he kept the ones down there from him.

 

[manticle]

Yeah I meant strange becuase Q actually delivered mine to me.

 

[Quintrex]

Yeah I meant strange becuase Q actually delivered mine to me.

Hmmmm, I thought I gave you a longneck of it? I'll see if I've got any left and hook you up.

Will be in touch

 

[manticle]

Coopers longneck?

Black cap?

In that case, I think I have it - I was looking for the specified malt shovel bottles. No worries. I have another coopers longneck with JW which I presume is JonW's orval?

Next swap I vote black caps are out unless labels are used instead. All caps numbered with swap number as per non funked swaps.

Way too confusing otherwise.

Glad I didn't miss out.