Bulrush Beer-dont Try This At Home

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Be kind folks, this is my first post.

Just a short post about a recent experience with trying something diffent for the indigenous brewing compettion to be held at Melbourne in October.
http://www.anhc.com.au/home/index.php?opti...s&Itemid=57

Bulrush beer it wasnt what I expected.

I collected about a kilo of rush makings to see if I could get any gravity out of macerated, boiled and mashed stock.


After shaking off a few leaches I collected at the same time, I froze, blended, boiled then cooled the remnants and did a mash resting for 45 minutes every 10 degrees between 40 to 70.

Mark from Marks Home Brew was kind enough to give me 20 mils of promash to use for conversion enzymes.

I can only describe the smell as cooking seamen, :icon_vomit: I persevered as there was a bit of green material that may have produced the smell, which I strained out and I thought the smell would boil off.


The smell did subside later in the boil and I let the liquid boil off to leave just enough to take a gravity reading.

I got 50 points out of 100 mils, when I tasted it was muddy and earthy and unpleasant. I couldnt imagine it complimentary with any beer or base malt that I have tasted.

After doing a bit more reading, there may be an opportunity to make flour out of the bulrushes, using more material collected from roots and rhizomes instead of the white base of the plant but given all the trouble I dont think it's worth it, and I am not sure the unpleasant flavors would be removed without considerable refinement. So whats the point?

Anyway, that my first look at outside the square for the indigenous brewing competition. :excl:

Thomas D

 

[Snow]

Sorry I don't get it - did you mash the bullrushes with malted barley?

Is there a reason why you boiled it before mashing it?

Cheers - Snow.
ps - so does cooking seamen just smell saltier than cooking air force men?

 

[MHB]

The boiling is for gelatinisation

ProMalt is an enzyme complex - part of my ongoing effort to make a Gluten Free beer that is better than just drinkable.

MHB

View attachment PROMALT_295.DOC

 

[[email protected]]

Sorry I don't get it - did you mash the bullrushes with malted barley?

Is there a reason why you boiled it before mashing it?

Cheers - Snow.
ps - so does cooking seamen just smell saltier than cooking air force men?

Snow, I didnt want to use any malt until I had done a mash with the rushes. I wanted to see what it was like by it's self. Freezing, blending and boiling was to break the material down so that I could mash it, like a cereal mash I guess.
The promalt is arfificial enzymes in place of the barley malt.

Seamen probably are saltier than semen or air force men for that matter, but it depends how long they have :lol:

 

[felten]

I couldn't think of any cool unique indigenous ingredients for the beer comp, so why not just bottle it inside a dead bilby, ala brewdog, that's indigenous right?

 

[scoundrel]

ive read about using banksia flowers and turning outsomething similar to a mead(ish) type beverage, not game to try it myself, the old man would shoot me for nicking his banksia flowers :S

 

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I couldn't think of any cool unique indigenous ingredients for the beer comp, so why not just bottle it inside a dead bilby, ala brewdog, that's indigenous right?

felten
I thought of a dingo (brew dog) but couldnt figure out how to deal with the protein rest.
TeeDee

 

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ive read about using banksia flowers and turning outsomething similar to a mead(ish) type beverage, not game to try it myself, the old man would shoot me for nicking his banksia flowers :S

Part of my dilema was picking winter to come up with the idea. Apparently spring brings new growth and lots more starch.
Given the time of year I will probably have to turn to something for flavour only, not much growing let alone flowering this time of year.
If you tell me where your old man lives I will give the banksia flowers a crack.
TeeDee