Hub - Xmas In July 2010 Tasting Notes

[loftboy]

2. Loftboy - 'Call me Amber' (American Amber Ale. OG 1.050, US-05). It's amber all right. Excellent clarity, smallish head with plenty of staying power. Sweet toffee & caramel malts on the nose, balanced with some American hops. Plenty of piney hops in the mouth, malt sweetness, more toffee, a touch of bready yeast. Mouthfeel is soft & fullish, yet somehow there is crisp and dry into the finish. The bitterness is balanced and an excellent counterpoint to the malty sweetness. Carbonation is perfect, helping with the mouthfeel & balance. A ripper of a beer, I enjoyed every drop. Cheers.

Scott,

Thanks for the feedback. I must admit, I had 2 pints of this tonight & am really happy with the way it is now. It's getting a real earthy background note, which I think is coming the Challenger I chucked in at flameout.

Drink up #2 now guys, it's ready to roll !

Looking forward to your Schwarzbier over the weekend

 

[loftboy]

12. Rurik Belgium Blond. ABV 5.6%

Had one of these last weekend, even though it's a bit early according to the swap list. Despite that, it's coming along well.

Lovely clear light gold colour. A subtle lemony aroma & flavour, yet enough of that Belgium influence to make it interesting. Carbonation is a little light on, but still enough to make it drinkable. I'm sorry I didn't take better notes of this one, but I just grabbed it out of the fridge when I was whipping up a big batch of chicken pesto.

Well done Ben. I'm looking foward to the second bottle in a couple of weeks.

 

[m_peve]

2. Loftboy - 'Call me Amber' (American Amber Ale. OG 1.050, US-05)
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Well I'm not going to the naughty corner for slackness in posting (I had my beer ready for swap day )
Sorry it's taken a while to get these up.
Mid August started on the 9th for me. Sorry Dave, I got confused and opened too early - Just too keen
The beer poured with a very thin head that dissipated quickly.
A lovely amber colour with what seemed to be some chill haze.
I noticed some Toffee on nose but couldn't find anything else.
It was very sweet when first in the mouth (my initial impression was sticky date pudding) followed by a dry finish that stopped any sickliness dead in its tracks.
Further mouthfuls, perhaps due to the beer warming up seem to have dulled the sweetness somewhat and the bitterness becomes more apparent
The body was thinner than I would expect from an Amber ale but it was a very enjoyable drop regardless of the label it is given.
Thanks Dave.

 

[m_peve]

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4. Shmick - Imperial Amber, OG 1.071, WY1028
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Another wonderful label. I wish I were that organised Shmick.
The beer poured with a thick creamy off white head that clung to the side of the glass.
A clear rich mahogany colour that was a feast for the eyes!!
First up, I received a piney hop aroma which left me anticipating the taste of American hops.
I was not disappointed. The taste was dominated by hop flavour. Some maltiness was detectable just before the bitterness jumped in and dried out the finish.
More malt flavours became noticeable as the beer warmed. For a high strength the alcohol was perfectly disguised.
With a medium-full body and fairly high carbonation I found myself wishing the bottle wouldn't end.
A fantastic beer Mick. Thanks muchly!!

 

[m_peve]

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23. Gus - Sparkling Ale
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Gee!! This one effervesced into the glass with a large fluffy white head before settling down to a medium-size.
It was very highly carbonated ... what remained in the bottle tried to climb out.
Standing in the glass the beer was a crystal clear golden colour that begged to be drunk and left a lacing down the side of the glass as it was consumed.
I detected little in the way of hops in the aroma but found a distinctly yeasty smell.
With a carbonic bite up front that was followed up by a fruity taste it is definitely a quaffable ale.
There was a little residual sweetness at the end of the mouthful which meant that it finished medium-dry and maintained a good balance between bitterness and sweetness.
Thanks Gus, a good session beer.

 

[m_peve]

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8. Benniee - Munich Dunkel - OG 1.052 - 4.8% ABV - Wyeast 2308 Munich Lager - Bottled 27th June
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You are being way too tough on yourself Benniee.
No immediately striking aroma perhaps a hint of breadiness (but then I seem to be a bit nasally challenged tonight).
Dark brown with a fairly persistent thin off white head
My first taste brought to mind images of brown bread straight from the oven (though this diminished over the course of the pint).
Contrastingly the body was quite thin and not reminiscent my vision of Baker's Delight.
Malt is the dominant factor in this beer with the hops only being used as a sweetness tempering agent
The carbonation was lower than I would have expected but it was a smooth and refreshing beer that I've enjoyed greatly.
Thanks Benniee

 

[Muggus]

Beer: 17. Steve - APA
Date: 16th August 2010
Details: 750ml gold cap 17, (Wyeast -2112 Californian Lager). Bottled early July
Sampling Notes:
Served in a pint glass.

Must have been thirsty Id gotten through half the bottle before it occurred to me to put pen to paperwhoops.

Pours a sparse foam atop a relatively clear deep gold body.

The nose isnt as punchy as I was expecting, but Im greeted with some citrusy hops, bit of grass and sherbet (?) about it. Cant pick up much malt, perhaps a hint of yeast though.

Subdued carbonation, medium-light bodied, quite thirst quenching, and may explain why almost all of its gone already.

More nice citrus hops on the body. Bit of orange and peach, bit of malt sweetness but its kept well tamed by a drying bitter finish.

Quite a simple, approachable APA. Not intense, just really easy and really begs for a long hot summers day, and big whopping mugs full of the stuff. Thanks Steve!

 

[Offline]

13 Muggus Raunchy Scottsman Smoked Brown Ale

I have misplaced my tasting notes on this beer. So this is just from memory of over a week ago. First of all I poured this beer very slow and carefully, after the comments of others, and still ended up with a sizeable head. What I remember most about this beer is what I perceived as peat in both the aroma and flavour. It gave me the impression of a Scotch or Irish whisky just lingering in the background. Combined with these muted earthy/peaty aromas was a malt backbone with little to no hop aroma. Bitterness was low with a dry mouth feel. Definitely a Scottish type ale. Thanks Muggus.

19 Conrad maple lager,

Tried one of these last week as well but have no notes on it. I had 2 bottles from Conrad so I thought Id give one a try now and one later. On initial pouring it had very little head that disappeared immediately, which reminded me of my early brewing experiences. As such I was expecting a dry flavourless type beer, sorry. I couldnt have been more wrong though mouth feel was medium to high. Carbonation was low, it may improve with age what did you prime your bottles with? I think the low carbonation is contributing to low levels of aroma as well. flavour is malt driven with a hint of what I would have guessed as honey if it wasnt called maple lager. Im looking forward to trying the next bottle, with my note pad as well though. Thanks Conrad.

8 Bennie Munich

Nice tight pale tan head, carbonation medium. Beautiful rich colour. Aroma is of German malts with little to no hops. Taste is very similar to the aroma for me with the initial malt flavours that give way to a lingering bitterness. Mouth feel is medium with an ever so slight gritty texture that I usually associate with a certain malt that I cant put my finger on right now. I enjoyed this beer thanks Bennie

21 Jordan Belgian Pale Ale

The aroma reminds me of Belgian triples but more subdued defiantly malt driven sweet and spicy/florally. Thin persistent tight white head that needed some initial coaxing when pouring. Mouthfeel medium to light. Great colour for style, clarity is good too. Flavour is also malt driven and spicy with just enough tail end bitterness for some balance. This beer has everything that I love about a belgian triple in it, just less. Making it, in my opinion, a easy drinking version of a Belgian triple. Thanks for sharing Jordan.

 

[[email protected]]

Hi All,

Feel free to get stuck in to my brew (No.9) whenever you feel the need. I revisited the keg yesterday and although it has settled down, it's still rather 'interesting'. I know the faults and how I put them in the beer so please taste/ judge it honestly and I'll attempt to explain how/what I done to get the final out come.

I'd describe it as 'a good beer to practice judging on'

Cheers
Geoff

 

[Muggus]

Beer: Conrad Maple Lager
Date: 21th August 2010
Details: 750ml bottled, gold cap 19
Sampling Notes:
Served in a pint glass.

Copper body, decent clarity from first pour with a white head that dissipates quickly.

Mild aroma; decidedly malt driven with caramel, golden syrup and some noticeable hop citrus.

Low carbonation seems to accentuate the syrup texture, and possibly the overall sweetness a bit. Medium weight on the palate.

Sweet malts upfront; pale toffee, brown sugar, honey, with a bitter orange hop flavour and a firm bitterness to finish.

Relatively clean, bitter/sweet sort of amber lager. Didnt pick up maple in particular, though it is quite a delicate flavour, but it did have plenty of caramelised malts. Not bad, cheers Conrad.

 

[Muggus]

Beer: 25. Trent - Head on Collision (Topaz SMASH)
Date: 23rd August 2010
Details: 750ml bottled, gold cap 25 OG ~ 1.070 WY 1028 - 45 IBU
Sampling Notes:
Served in a pint glass.

Pours a slightly hazy pale gold body with thick creamy white head that persists well.

Good smack of hops on the nose; resinous leafiness, herbaceous, almost mint like, pine sap and grapefruit, possibly pineapple. Noticeable grainy malt in the background.

Smooth texture with medium carbonation and a full body; certainly doesnt seem like a 7% beer.

Remarkably well-rounded body, certainly not as intense as I was expecting (and maybe hoping, just a bit); plenty of oily leafy herbs, cracker biscuit maltiness, sharp citrus rind, pine wood, mandarin oddly, some tropical fruit that gets a bit lost in the firm bitterness. Lingering leafy finish, like a big mouthful of stuff you shouldnt be eating

Nice stuff Trent. Huge fan of this hop, even brewed a couple of SMASH brews with it too. Certainly has a unique and potent flavour to it, and speaking of potent, this beer is deceptively so; feeling it towards the end of the bottle. Cheers!

 

[HarryB]

Just putting up a few notes on my own beer (#16) and give people the 'all clear' that it is now ready to drink.

This beer is a reprise of a raspberry wit I made about a year ago and brought to one of the first HUB meetings (some of you might have tasted it). The feedback I got was that it was OK, but a little on the sweet side. So for this one I mashed much lower and took out the small amount of crystal I had used in the previous one.

The result is a very dry beer (1.037 to 1.002) from memory. It is a blend of yeasts: wyeast forbidden fruit and wyeast Belgian wit.

Overall, the extra dryness allows the raspberry taste to come out a bit more and it was pretty much what we were aiming for. Give it a go!!

 

[Weizguy]

2. Loftboy - 'Call me Amber' (American Amber Ale. OG 1.050, US-05)
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Well I'm not going to the naughty corner for slackness in posting (I had my beer ready for swap day )

Cheeky boy. Would it be more slack to deliver an under-developed beer? Lol.
The weizenbock spent over a week in the fridge at 10C. Give it a couple of weeks to carbonate in a warm place in your house. It was lovingly crafted, but the esters are a bit "fruit tingle" for me at the moment. Keen to get feedback. My previous Quadrupelhellerweizenbock had the same aroma. Maybe the W3638 is not the best for a bock strength beer.

My respect to all who contributed. We are all put on notice for the Chrissy Case swap and should start brewing soon. No poseurs, no tyre-kickers and no window lickers.

 

[Muggus]

Beer: 2. Loftboy Call Me Amber (American Amber Ale)
Date: 24rd August 2010
Details: 750ml bottled, gold cap 2, OG 1.050, US-05, bottled 4th July
Sampling Notes:
Served in a pint glass.

Clean amber body with a finger of creamy white head that persists well.

Aroma of moderate intensity; good amount of hop lemon/citrus, pine herbaceousness with a hint of toffee malt.

Medium body, soft carbonation, texture is smooth, verging on chewy maltiness, but not quite there.

Bit of toffee malt provides a dash of sweetness upfront, but doesnt persist for long until lemony, grass hops show themselves with a hint of woodiness and dried fruits in the background. Moderate/high bitterness with a lingering dryness.

Nice, uncomplicated amber ale. Decent amount of hops, bit dryer than I was expected, which probably accentuated the hops even more. Cheers Lofty.

 

[Muggus]

Beer: 20. Brocky Dark Lager
Date: 24rd August 2010
Details: 750ml bottled, gold cap 28(yeah?), wyeast 2487 hellabock
Sampling Notes:
Served in a pint glass.

Loud opening, foam starts to creep up the neck of the bottle. Pours a big billowing foam atop a hazy copper body.

Pungent phenolic aroma; lots of pepper, wood, spice and band aid hard to see past it - possible infection?

High carbonation, lean body, bit of carbonic bite.

More phenolics on the body, bit too overwhelming and astringent to get to the base beer, and a bit too difficult to drink.

Sorry Brocky, couldnt finish this one. Im thinking more than likely an infection, possibly Brettanomyces of some sort - infected starter maybe? Im hoping this is just a dud bottle. Cheers.

 

[Muggus]

Beer: 26. Peve Black Sheep Riggwelter clone (Wheeler)
Date: 24rd August 2010
Details: 750ml bottled, gold cap 26, OG 1.057, FG 1.011, bottled 17/7/10
Sampling Notes:
Served in a pint glass.

Pours a very clean, clear amber-copper body with a dense inch of white head that hangs around.

Nice aroma of toasted cereal, bread crust, and chocolatey malts in combination with earthy spicy hops and red fruit esters.

Thick chewy malt texture with a creamy carbonation and excellent persistence on the palate.

Lovely complex body of flavour; chocolate malts, toffee, biscuits, roasted nuts, plums, cherry, tobacco leaf, orange marmalade, I could go on Very firm bitterness to finish, lingering with a dried herbaceousness.

Really liked this beer! Much more complex than your standard sort of English ale; the more you drink the more you taste. Cheers Peve!

 

[brocky_555]

Thanks for the honest reveiw. I also found it hard to drink. it is my first attempt at a lager and it hasn't come off might try that recipe again but not re-seed the yeast after the lagering priod.

any way thanks for saying it was shit and not sugar coating it

 

[Offline]

23 Gus Sparkling Ale

Pours a pale straw colour with good clarity and a large white head that dissipates after a short while. Very little aroma, there is a faint hint of something I cant quite put my finger on, like a vegemite sandwich maybe.
The flavor is also fairly muted, very little malt flavor or hops flavor with virtually no lingering bitterness on the palate. Mouthfeel is dry with a medium to high level of carbonation (sparkling if you like). All of these things combined to give me the impression of a dry type sparkling cider. I'm not really familiar with sparkling ales as a style, if i had to pick a style for this beer it would be American/Australian lager. Thanks Gus

 

[Muggus]

Thanks for the honest reveiw. I also found it hard to drink. it is my first attempt at a lager and it hasn't come off might try that recipe again but not re-seed the yeast after the lagering priod.

any way thanks for saying it was shit and not sugar coating it

I don't really like to write bad comments on peoples beers, but I think it's handy to know if someone's picked up any faults in it. I know i've brewed beers that I thought were ok, but others pointed out that they had serious issues...hopefully it's led to better brewing.

Out of interest, how did you treat the yeast?
Like, what temps ferment, did you make a starter, how much did you pitch, etc...?

I've had a few similiar issues with yeasts when using old starters and under pitching, tending to stress the yeast and letting off alot of phenolics into the beer.

 

[Muggus]

Beer: 12. Rurik Belgian Blond
Date: 27th August 2010
Details: 375mL, green cap 12 5.6% abv, bottled 21.7.10
Sampling Notes:
Served in a pint glass.

Pours quite a lively looking straw body with decent clarity. Inch worth of dense white head persists for the most part.

Decent intensity to the nose. Toasty, bready, cereally malts with a bit of juicy hop citrus and leafiness, with subtle notes of pepper and ripe peach in the background.

Quite a lean body somewhat spurred on by a lively carbonation and subtle tartness.

Nice delicate sort of flavour with cereally pale malts, golden syrup sweetness, ripe stonefruits and floral citrusy hops. Finishes smoothly with a moderate bitterness.

Highly drinkable blond ale! Seems to bridge the gap between Belgian, British and German(Kolsch) blond ales; best of each really. Good flavour, very well made, cheers Ben!