New Australian Style - Experiment Invite/Discussion

[peas_and_corn]

If I may add two worthless cents:

Does it really matter?

Outside of a competitive entry submitted for judging, brewers will always just make what beer style suits them. I mean who ever heard of something black as the ace of spades being classed as pale? ie Black Indian Pale Ale maybe - I'm missing something. What's next...a Black Belgian Witbier?

Black wits do exist- is called a dunkelweissen (not belgian though)

 

[Pilchard]

From a not too involved brewer and new to this scene, I would have to say S&W pacific was a big new contender for me. An easy drinking summer ale, he'll Darwin is nearly summer ale temps, even Newcastle is not that cold, it would only be non applicable to the southern states in winter, sly fox is another I put into this category. I reckon being the sunburnt country we should be producing light bodied with adequate floral/nasal hop characteristics to be a world leader. This is what I am working on and haven't had many complaints from the mates. I started with the S&W recipe from the brewery. I just like it a little more bitter with more passionfruit.

 

[pajs]

And I reckon a lot of Commons and cream ales are being brewed here because they're in the (American) guidelines.

Not sure about cream ales, but I think more Cali Commons/steam beers make sense for Australian brewing. A good style for making in Australian climates, I think, given our limited window of ambient temperatures suitable for cold lager brewing.

 

[Blind Dog]

If I may add two worthless cents:

Does it really matter?

Outside of a competitive entry submitted for judging, brewers will always just make what beer style suits them. I mean who ever heard of something black as the ace of spades being classed as pale? ie Black Indian Pale Ale maybe - I'm missing something. What's next...a Black Belgian Witbier?

If at some stage, their beer doesn't sit within the style guidelines of BJCP or AABC, it doesn't detract from the said beer being gob smackingly delicious. If they want it judged then they can enter it into the specialty beer category and have the beer judged on it's own merits.

BTW, Amber Ales don't have a category under AABC either. (Correction, they do now for 2014, tks Andrew)

Maybe. I'm sure they help both brewers and judges for comps and I do use them as guides to figure out recipes for styles outside my normal repertoire. But I also struggle with the proliferation of styles. There's seems to be a new one every time I look.

But there are some really good points being made in this discussion and I'm kind of being persuaded that Nizmoose, LRG et al have a point

Also a really great wit with chocolate overtones from dark malts sounds fabulous...

 

[Moad]

:icon_offtopic:



I'm a bit behind in this thread, but I think the word you're looking for is "provenance". Providence means something completely different...or a town in Rhode Island, USA.

Prevelance?

 

[Elz]

Australian style
Strong ale style beer but a little cloudy. Likely to be drunk in the cooler months say 10-20 oC. Slight smokiness, reminiscent of our brushfire heritage. Maybe a touch of smoked eucalypts during kilning. Also a little on the malty side which I reckon could be balanced with the smallest amount of saltiness (girt by sea) I mean really a small amount of saltiness. Hops would be universal which represents our heritage of multiculturalism. I reckon a blend of Aus, UK, Europe and NZ, chuck in USA if you want? Aged in a cask for 6 months. Served at 7oC, lightly carbonated with a nice thick head. Great lacing, definitely aromatic but not too bitter (40-45 IBU). Sold in 750 ml bottle. ABV 7-8%. could do with some bottle ageing also.Beautiful!

 

[Kizza91]

I have been thinking about this and have just bottled my attempt. Made with all Aussie hops and added a dose of 100% eucalyptus oil to the fermenter and at bottling. I'll see how it goes in a couple of weeks.

 

[vykuza]

Nice! Love people trying new things. That could be extremely refreshing...

 

[barabool]

12B. Australian Sparkling Ale

Aroma: Fairly soft, clean aroma with a balanced mix of esters, hops, malt, and yeast – all moderate to low in intensity. The esters
are frequently pears and apples, possibly with a very light touch of banana (optional). The hops are earthy, herbaceous, or might
show the characteristic iron-like Pride of Ringwood nose. The malt can range from neutral grainy to moderately sweet to lightly
bready; no caramel should be evident. Very fresh examples can have a lightly yeasty, sulfury nose.
Appearance: Deep yellow to light amber in color, often medium gold. Tall, frothy, persistent white head with tiny bubbles.
Noticeable effervescence due to high carbonation. Brilliant clarity if decanted, but typically poured with yeast to have a cloudy
appearance. Not typically cloudy unless yeast roused during the pour.

Flavor: Medium to low rounded, grainy to bready malt flavor, initially mild to malty-sweet but a medium to medium-high
bitterness rises mid-palate to balance the malt. Caramel flavors typically absent. Highly attenuated, giving a dry finish with
lingering bitterness, although the body gives an impression of fullness. Medium to medium-high hop flavor, somewhat earthy and
possibly herbal, resinous, peppery, or iron-like but not floral, lasting into aftertaste. Medium-high to medium-low esters, often
pears and apples. Banana is optional, but should never dominate. May be lightly minerally or sulfury, especially if yeast is
present. Should not be bland.

Mouthfeel: High to very high carbonation, giving mouth-filling bubbles and a crisp, spritzy carbonic bite. Medium to medium

full body, tending to the higher side if poured with yeast. Smooth but gassy. Stronger versions may have a light alcohol warmth,
but lower alcohol versions will not. Very well-attenuated, should not have any residual sweetness.



Overall Impression: Smooth and balanced, all components merge together with similar intensities. Moderate flavors showcasing
Australian ingredients. Large flavor dimension. Very drinkable, suited to a hot climate. Relies on yeast character



Comments: Coopers has been making their flagship Sparkling Ale since 1862, although the formulation has changed over the
years. Presently the beer will have brilliant clarity if decanted, but publicans often pour most of the beer into a glass then swirl
the bottle and dump in all the yeast. In some bars, the bottle is rolled along the bar! When served on draught, the brewery
instructs publicans to invert the keg to rouse the yeast. A cloudy appearance for the style seems to be a modern consumer
preference. Always naturally carbonated, even in the keg. A present-use ale, best enjoyed fresh.

History: Brewing records show that the majority of Australian beer brewed in the 19th century was draught XXX (Mild) and
porter. Ale in bottle was originally developed to compete with imported bottled pale ales from British breweries, such as Bass and
Wm Younger’ Monk. By the early 20th century, bottled pale ale went out of fashion and “lighter” lager beers were in vogue.
Many Australian Sparkling and Pale Ales were labeled as ales, but were actually bottom-fermented lagers with very similar grists
to the ales that they replaced. Coopers of Adelaide, South Australia is the only surviving brewer producing the Sparkling Ale
style



Characteristic Ingredients: Lightly kilned Australian 2-row pale malt, lager varieties may be used. Small amounts of crystal
malt for color adjustment only. Modern examples use no adjuncts, cane sugar for priming only. Historical examples using 45% 2
row, 30% higher protein malt (6 row) would use around 25% sugar to dilute the nitrogen content. Traditionally used Australian
hops, Cluster, and Goldings until replaced from mid-1960s by Pride of Ringwood. Highly attenuative Burton-type yeast
(Australian-type strain typical). Variable water profile, typically with low carbonates and moderate sulfates.
Style Comparison: Superficially similar to English Pale Ales, although much more highly carbonated, with less caramel, less
late hops, and showcasing the signature yeast strain and hop variety. More bitter than IBUs might suggest due to high attenuation,
low final gravity, and somewhat coarse hops.

Vital Statistics: OG: 1.038 – 1.050
IBUs: 20 – 35 FG: 1.004 – 1.006
SRM: 4 – 7 ABV: 4.5 – 6.0%
Commercial Examples: Coopers Sparkling Ale, Coopers Original Pale Ale

http://www.bjcp.org/docs/2014%20BJCP%20Style%20Guidelines%20(DRAFT).pdf

 

[elollerenshaw]

I think this is a really interesting topic Sippa. And I understand your point exactly with Refrigeration.

We are generally focussed on reproducing beer styles from overseas (for good reason) but wouldn't it be great if we could create a our own distinctive style.

Especially as being Australians we pride ourselves on our beer drinking (swilling) abilities.
I do remember James Squire (?) making a pepper berry winter ale which is a native plant.
also Two Metre Tall in Tassie, emphasise using local/native ingredients.

For example; they make a dark huon ale which uses apple juice (from the huon valley) in a true secondary fermentation.
Just a pity it doesn't taste that great! Hopefully others disagree.

The other ingredient that comes to mind is honey. e.g. native eucalyptus flowers. Bee's may have been introduced within last 200 yrs.?

Don't know what the answer is, but excellent starter Sippo. I'm sure with some australian creativity we can well improve on "Aussie Bitter".
Is that really a proper style anyway?

 

[elollerenshaw]

Hmmm.
I read page 1, but not Page 2-9 before making that last post.!

 

[technobabble66]

Fwiw, i spoke to an overseas friend today who said he went to a craft beer bar & bottle shop in Singapore on saturday. He mentioned there were several beers there from, namely, the UK (& maybe US also) that were labelled as Pacific Ale or South Pacific Ale.
So it seems like there could be a new style/label organically emerging after all.