MM Case Swap - Tasting Thread

[mugley]

[SIZE=13.63px]16. Crouch (Viv) - APA[/SIZE]

[SIZE=13.63px]Pours with a good fluffy head that laces well. Aroma is pretty subtle, but the flavour is a full-bodied combo of biscuity malt and grapefruity hops.[/SIZE] Tasty stuff.

 

[beermeupscotty]

Snuck in a few before work the other day. ******* awesome beers so far - super impressed with the efforts.

These are from my notes scribbled on the back of envelopes and stuff – finally got around to posting ‘em… Not sure if it’ll read like a pike of wank or not, but I mostly drank the beers alongside the BJCP guidelines and so I’ve tried to loosely compare to the prescribed style.

#14 – Brew Like a Monkey – Belgian Dark Strong
Alcoholic, spicy, banana, date, dark, sweet, caramel, almost like wine.

I didn’t know such a nice beer could be made from a kit – well done! I felt like it really deserved a nicer bottle.

Smooth, silky texture. A denser, moussier head would have been nice – but not easy from a kit, I’d think.

#10 – Cherry Porter
Lovely tan head. Lots of deep toast in this one (ha). Chocolate, caramel, toffee, almost licorice. I got some currants, plum, fig. Definite cherry but I thought it was quite subtle (in a nice way, but I'd be curious to taste this with more cherry).

Not terribly full bodied, but not thin. I’d have liked a touch more carbonation or fuller body, myself.

Got almost sticky sweet as it warmed.

Bloody delicious beer.

#4 – Mongrel Saison
Boy oh boy (oh boy!). So far, I've not been taken by the traditional Saison style but this was a bloody pearler(!) and call me crazy but this was possibly my favourite beer I’ve ever tasted. Super keen for the recipe if it's not vault-bound, or to even buy or trade some of this from you if there's any left...

Little to no head. Slightly tart aroma - citrus, apple, grape, alcohol – almost like white wine.

Low carb for a saison?

No tartness on the tongue. I was getting apple, clove, alcohol, ginger, a touch of banana and slight lemongrass for taste.

Definitely best cold, as the alcohol began to dominate at higher temperatures.

Overall, delightful fruit and spiciness with a soft malt backdrop and noticeable alcohol.

#20 – Amarillo Berliner Weisse
I popped the top on this and went to get my BJCP guidelines only to find the beer was gushing onto my desk! Hehe. Easily taken care of though.

Pale straw, hazy appearance.

For the aroma, I got apple and lemon, and a bit of orange. Fruity and flowery. Slight tartness / acidity on the nose.

I really enjoyed the sourness of this beer. It was, thankfully, not overwhelming. I’m usually not crazy about sour beers, as the others I’ve had basically tasted like apple cider vinegar and began to irritate my throat after a few sips, but this was like a sweet tartness to me – very pleasant.

I got a taste of apple and lemon with a light malty finish. The alcohol was perceptible but obviously light. I found the carbonation dissipated quickly.

- - -

Feedback on #5, 7, 1 and 22 to come.

#11 - White IPA
This is my beer. I've had a few over time and wanted to be the first to say it's not an easy drink. Too much going on with the flavour and too bitter. I think the coriander seed came through too strong after I crushed it and threw it into the wort. If I were to have a second attempt, I think the recipe would need to be modified for no chill (especially the hops) and the method/amount for coriander seed addition needs revision too.

 

[mugley]

[SIZE=13.63px]8. Parktho - 'Hop Suspension' ESB[/SIZE]

I got one of the flattish bottles. The cap came off super easily and the carb is low. Ah well, imagining it's from a cask
Nice malty base with some tropical tones - guessing hops combined with yeasty esters, as there's a bit of banana coming through. On the aftertaste there's a lingering bitterness that sneaks up slowly. I reckon a fizzier sample would be a pearler.


[SIZE=13.63px]15. Kevin H - ESB[/SIZE]

Having a fair idea of Kevin's beer preferences and having not paid attention to the booklet, I was expecting an English malt monster. Very surprised to discover this is a hoppy one! Cloudy to the eye but clean on the palate, this one has lots of floral, citrussy cascade blended with marmaladey EKG. One of my favourites so far.

 

[New_guy]

15 - Kevin H ESB

This was a great beer that instantly took me back to Scotland and the hand pumped ales that the UK does so well. A great beer Kev - well balanced malt and hops that I thoroughly enjoyed.

 

[pomsaleius]

Thanks Gents! Glad you enjoyed it. Nice to have confirmation I can still brew!

 

[plunkett195]

WARNING!! Similar to Jesse, I tried my stout and it frothed all over the table when I opened it.

Really sorry guys, hopefully not all bottles are over carbonated.
I've never had a home brew of mine froth quite like that before. 1000 apologies if you get an overactive bottle.

However, once it calms down its not bad.... Could definitely do with more chocolate though.

 

[carniebrew]

Lots of good feedback going into that Google Doc. Just had Zeggie's Highland Amber, really enjoyed it...feedback in the sheet.

The link again: bit.ly/2014mmcaseswap

 

[beermeupscotty]

Following that link on my phone, I'm seeing a blank sheet? Just me?

 

[zeggie]

Yeah the spreadsheet is always just blank to me...I've jotted down my notes but been lazy and havent posted here, will do so after xmas

Lots of good feedback going into that Google Doc. Just had Zeggie's Highland Amber, really enjoyed it...feedback in the sheet.

The link again: bit.ly/2014mmcaseswap

Cheers

 

[zeggie]

Well I'm an idiot, just noticed the bright red text instructions on the spreadsheet, will add all my notes soon :lol:

 

[carniebrew]

Yeah, just give it a minute to load, and you'll see a heap of little yellow triangles in the top right corner of those cells with comments. Just hover over them, and you'll see each comment.

 

[New_guy]

The notes don't come up on ur phone

 

[brouhaha]

Hey guys a couple of you had asked for my Cherry Porter recipe in your notes. You can find it here.
http://brewrr.com/posts/brew-day-robust-cherry-porter

 

[TimT]

That's awesome! I never got to taste the cherry porter but just a heads up folks, apparently Aussie cherry farmers are looking at a bumper harvest this year. I might look at doing a cherry brew.... if I can spare some of those sweet fruit from immediate consumption, that is....

 

[brouhaha]

I've got a friend up here who owns a cherry farm and he's already out of stock! Huge demand. Bloody good cherries though.

 

[TimT]

When you get 'em you can get 'em by the boxload. That's a lot of cherries, and they've got to either be eaten quickly or used in cooking before they go off. So now would be an excellent time for cherry brews I reckon - buy one for the house and one for the beer, and one extra. I reckon a big brew like a cherry porter or barleywine or braggot could do with some ageing and come out really nicely during winter.

 

[carniebrew]

I took new_guy's Mornington IPA clone to a xmas party with some old mates, and kinda wish I hadn't. Despite being Corona/Becks/Stella drinkers, they LOVED this beer, and I didn't get more than half a glass for myself! I've had this brew from Tim a few times, and I'm always massively impressed....it works perfectly for my palette. A huge hop bomb, with massive tropical fruit aromas and flavours. Brilliant.

 

[plunkett195]

I have drunken lots, but written little.

See if I can remember: (not sure if I've written before)

3. Shan, iPa. Loved it. ( may have reported already)
4. Luke, saison. For me the ginger was too overpowering, but was still a nice drop.
11. Jacob, hop to wit. Didn't get heaps of aroma hops, but was nicely bitter. coriander was a good amount.
12. Tim. Lovely mate, nice job. Enjoyed it.
13. baz, SSS. I got saisony, phenolic flavours from this too. Interesting beer, not what I was expecting, but still quite enjoyable.
16. Viv, apa. Quite sweet for an apa, could do with some thinning out and a few more hops. But had a nice rich flavour.
19. Jordan, Aipa. Can't rember it heaps, but do remember really enjoying it and it's flavour, but craving more bitterness (no surprise here for people who know the kind of iPa I like)

 

[swedebeer]

Alright update!

Declan - Mississippi Mud Stout! // Interesting mix of flavors here! A lot of chocolate and coffee but then the mint wants to join in. Together they're performing a beautifully coordinated example of synchronized swimming. Love the balance. I just wish the carbonation was a bit higher. Great job mate.

Jacob Rogers - Hop To Wit // Holy smokes, white IPA anyone? This is awesome. Love the coriander notes and the spicy phenolics. This is easy drinking 7%. Love it! If you ever get a chance to age this bad boy in chardonnay barrels, do it! Big ups on the brew mate. Rewind selecta! Give me another one!

 

[beermeupscotty]

Cheers Mattias! Glad it was so enjoyed. My last post ragged on how shite and undrinkable it was but I actually enjoy it now myself. It seems to have 'come good', to my buds, in the last week or two.