Cock & Bull Monk's Habit

[rough60]

Hey all,
Tried this after a mate bought a bottle back from NZ, probably the best beer I've ever had.
After an ag recipe for something close if anyone has done it.
It doesn't taste like a belgium to me but is delicious, this is from there site.
I thought i could taste amarillo, thats how much i know.

Monk's Habit
Abbey Ale

The Trappist monasteries of Belgium are world famous for the special styles of beer they produce. One mouthful of Cock & Bulls own Abbey inspired Ale and you will know why! Large amounts of Munich, Vienna, and Crystal malts, along with generous portions of Saaz and Styrian Goldings hops and brewed with a special yeast, all add up to a taste experience which will titillate your taste buds. A warming spicy beer with a rich copper colour, served in a traditional style glass. Be warned... a very moreish drop!

Thanks guys.

 

[rough60]

Hey all,
Tried this after a mate bought a bottle back from NZ, probably the best beer I've ever had.
After an ag recipe for something close if anyone has done it.
It doesn't taste like a belgium to me but is delicious, this is from there site.
I thought i could taste amarillo, thats how much i know.

Monk's Habit
Abbey Ale

The Trappist monasteries of Belgium are world famous for the special styles of beer they produce. One mouthful of Cock & Bulls own Abbey inspired Ale and you will know why! Large amounts of Munich, Vienna, and Crystal malts, along with generous portions of Saaz and Styrian Goldings hops and brewed with a special yeast, all add up to a taste experience which will titillate your taste buds. A warming spicy beer with a rich copper colour, served in a traditional style glass. Be warned... a very moreish drop!

Thanks guys.

Still looking for a clone guys :icon_cheers:

 

[sim]

...im still waiting for a taste. Come on, cough up!


sim

 

[Malted]

Still looking for a clone guys :icon_cheers:

I do not have the answer for you but I can help with some Sherlock Holmes-ing.



From BJCP 2008 style guidelines, a "Belgian Trippel"

The light color and relatively light body for a beer of this strength are the result of using Pilsner malt and up to 20% white sugar. Noble hops or Styrian Goldings are commonly used. Belgian yeast strains are used those that produce fruity esters, spicy phenolics and higher alcohols often aided by slightly warmer fermentation temperatures. Spice additions are generally not traditional, and if used, should not be recognizable as such. Fairly soft water.

Strongly resembles a Strong Golden Ale but slightly darker and somewhat fuller-bodied. Usually has a more rounded malt flavor but should not be sweet. Originally popularized by the Trappist monastery at Westmalle. High in alcohol but does not taste strongly of alcohol. The best examples are sneaky, not obvious. High carbonation and attenuation helps to bring out the many flavors and to increase the perception of a dry finish. Most Trappist versions have at least 30 IBUs and are very dry. Traditionally bottle-conditioned (refermented in the bottle).

So what have we got so far to make a Belgian triple in the style of Cock and Bulls version?

Original gravity between 1.075-1.085

Final gravity between 1.008 1.014

7.5-9.5 % ABV for this style




Pilsner malt (base)
Munich
Vienna
Sugar up to 20% (Belgian candy sugar is commonly used & would give good flavour)
Crystal



How dark do you want it to be? You could use a light coloured crystal and a dark coloured candy sugar or a light sugar and a darker crystal malt.



Munich and Vienna will add a rich maltiness that may need a touch more bitterness to balance it.


With a Pilsner malt, youll want to boil it for 90 minutes.



Saaz hops (about 4% alpha acid and used in late additions for flavour and aroma but you probably dont want much aroma)

Stryian Goldings hops (also a low alpha at about 5.4% AA, BUT commonly used for bittering) at 60 minutes



IBU bitterness 20- 40 (most Trappists are at least 30 IBUs).



A suitable yeast would be: Whitelabs Abbey Ale (WLP530) = low fruit character or Whitelabs Trappist Ale (WLP500) = high fruit character, or Abbey Ale IV Ale yeast (WLP540). Or you could use Wyeast Labs Trappist High Gravity (3787). Maybe there is something in the name of the beer that hints at which yeasts would be best



There is a good discussion of making a Belgian triple here: http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=44076



Googling Belgian Tripel Recipe gets loads of results. Not many are exactly as per Cock and Bulls version but they will give you a place to decide on how much grain to use.





So it is a matter of guessing the relative proportions of the grains and you can calculate how many kg for your sized batch. Same with the hops.



With this you are over of the way there and with a couple of years experience under your belt now, you should be able to put it over the line.

 

[rough60]

Thanks Malted but this beer is no Abbey Ale, even though the name suggests it.
It's a dark highly hopped, rich apa.
And it melts in your mouth :icon_drool2:

 

[Malted]

Thanks Malted but this beer is no Abbey Ale, even though the name suggests it.
It's a dark highly hopped, rich apa.
And it melts in your mouth :icon_drool2:

Sounds to me like they are describing a 'Trappist', so we use the BJCP stats for starters. I reckon the name hints at using Abbey Ale IV Ale yeast (WLP540).

* WLP540 Abbey IV Ale Yeast
An authentic Trappist style yeast. Use for Belgian style ales, dubbels, trippels, and specialty beers. Fruit character is medium, in between WLP500 (high) and WLP530 (low).
Attenuation: 74-82%
Flocculation: Medium
Optimum Fermentation Temperature: 66-72F

Edit: What I wrote more than that but it didn't post!

What you are describing sounds like my recollection of Belgian trappist ales I have tried and they were rather dark too. Bloody 'carpet slippers' they are.

The munich and vienna will make it maltier than a 'normal' trappist. A Belgian candi sugar will add malt & caramel flavour. A medium crystal malt will add caramel and toffee. All of these things will make it darker.

"A warming spicy beer" sounds like a high alcohol Trappist beer.

 

[stef]

Hey all,
Tried this after a mate bought a bottle back from NZ, probably the best beer I've ever had.
After an ag recipe for something close if anyone has done it.
It doesn't taste like a belgium to me but is delicious, this is from there site.
I thought i could taste amarillo, thats how much i know.

Monk's Habit
Abbey Ale

The Trappist monasteries of Belgium are world famous for the special styles of beer they produce. One mouthful of Cock & Bulls own Abbey inspired Ale and you will know why! Large amounts of Munich, Vienna, and Crystal malts, along with generous portions of Saaz and Styrian Goldings hops and brewed with a special yeast, all add up to a taste experience which will titillate your taste buds. A warming spicy beer with a rich copper colour, served in a traditional style glass. Be warned... a very moreish drop!

Thanks guys.

Doesn't sound like an APA to me...

 

[Aleosaurus cervisiae]

I lived in Auckland and as far as I can remember Monk's Habit, it was a fairly dark ale with lots of biscuit and very high ABV, hops as described, I would say Begian trippel. Nice drop it was, if you do come up with a decent clone, let us know.

 

[rough60]

maybe it was over hopped with the styrian :wub: but it really tastes like an apa, morish :chug:

 

[Malted]

Go on a tasting experiement and determine if it is a Monk's Habit Abbey Ale that you really want or an APA. Buy some Trappists beers and some APA's. Maybe try some IPA's for good measure too. I reckon the Holgate Double IPA wil blow your socks off (for a commercial beer).

A few folks have suggested that they don't think this beer is an APA. Maybe you like APA's and that's fine. Brew what appeals to you. Taste a few styles and determine what it is that you want from a beer. Sierra Nevada Pale Ale is available at the moment and seems to be a good representation of an APA, try it and see if it floats your boat.

 

[rough60]

not to ring my own bell but i have won some nsw and aust titles, so i am knowledgeable in different styles.
I wasn't after a beer in this style as their beer is not abbey ale style as far as i'm concerned.
What i'm after is a clone of this particular beer, not a recipe for the supposed style.
Cheers

 

[Malted]

not to ring my own bell but i have won some nsw and aust titles, so i am knowledgeable in different styles.
I wasn't after a beer in this style as their beer is not abbey ale style as far as i'm concerned.
What i'm after is a clone of this particular beer, not a recipe for the supposed style.
Cheers

If you have won such awards, by all means ring the bell.
Yep gotcha, you want a beer like theirs, not a Trappist Abbey Ale per se. Many commercial brews do not completely fit style guidelines and that's a good thing. Just saying they have kind of given you a good heads up in their description as to what makes theirs different to a 'normal' Trappist.
I understand that you get APA from your recollection of your tasting the brew, I've not tasted it so i don't have that experience. I am just going from the info in front of me and given those clues, I simply do not understand how you don't get Trappist with a difference from their description. Seems like they clearly spell out the differences.
Brew on brewbrother, I have nothing more to try to contribute. :kooi:

 

[domix]

I tried this at the NZ SpecTAPular held at the Local Taphouse for Good Beer Week.
I remember this beer well as it was one of my favourites of the day.
Managed to find the little pamphlet listing all the beers from the day.

Cock & Bull Monks Habit:
"A multi award winning ale brimming with bountiful hop aromas and complex malt tones that dominate the pallet.
A fantastic balance of complex dry-hopped aroma and sweet British barley. Brewed using a mixture of NZ and US hops.
- with the NZ varieties dominating."

For beer style it is classed as a US Red Ale / APA. IBU's not listed. 7% ABV

Quite different to the description on their website.
Not sure if they used Belgium yeast, but this might account for the monk's part in the name. It seemed like a hoppy amber ale to me.

 

[rough60]

yeah domix i can see why you liked it
that description sounds much closer to what it tasted like
cheers

 

[Kiwistiller]

Hey, there's actually a clone competition of this running at the moment over here in unzud. It's no trappist - more of an imperial red. General consensus and some tidbits dropped from those in the know are plenty of munich & vienna, Amarillo, riwaka, and styrian goldings, and american ale II yeast. I have no knowledge of the specialties (I've had two cracks at it and neither is THAT close), but the comp is in 2 weeks so you'll probably be able to glean some additional info from forum realbeer.co.nz after that.

apparently the recipe has changed significantly over the years, which accounts for the identity crisis.

 

[rough60]

Love to judge that competition :icon_drool2:

I'll check that site out in the coming weeks.

Cheers

 

[Echo2]

Love to judge that competition :icon_drool2:

I'll check that site out in the coming weeks.

Cheers

Thread dig.

Did you ever manage to find a good recipe for this clone?

 

[rough60]

Nah, I've moved on. Can't remember it well enough