Qld Xmas-in-july Case Swap 2011 - Tasting Notes

[winkle]

I'll stick those two beers in the fridge for Friday, sounding tasty.

 

[winkle]

Paxx - IRA

Thanks for reminding me of this style Paxx, I remember wishing for one of these at the Milking-the-cow festival for a break in the uber hopped lineup.
Back to the beer, colour - deep red, bright, and lasting white head. Really nice malt upfront, lingering bitterness in the finish. This is a good beer, and would be a decent sessionable ale. I must slot an IRA into the brewing list.
The only quibble I have (and its minor) is that the underlying bitterness is slightly harsh, maybe FWH a portion of the bittering hop?

 

[NickB]

Nicks IPA was pretty dam good my carbonation was fine, Nick you must teach me how you carbonate from the keg?

CPBF my friend Fill nice and slow, keep bottles cold beforehand.

 

[lczaban]

1. Winkle - Tin Tin Dark Strong 8%. OK now but best give it until the end of July.
2. DKS - Octoberfist. Drink now. 6.5% WLP830. Almost three months old now.
3. NickB - American IPA - bottled from keg, OK to drink now!
4. stl - Altbier - ready to go now but could handle some more cold conditioning.
5. Pocket Beers - English Mild - Bottled on swap day from fermenter Condition for 2-3 weeks (I marked the lids with 30/7 - 3 weeks).
6.
7. scoundrel_rouge - Loyal Old Hound Wheat Ale (8%) Ready to go in 2 WEEKS.
8. frag_dog - Steam Beer (Cal Common), Bottled from fermeter day before swap. Give it a month (at these temps....)
9. Bradsbrew- Flibberti Puck IPA (english IPA). Good to go in week but would be better in 4 weeks.
10.
11. Florian - German Trash (A Pilsener exclusively hopped post ferment with German iso hops and aroma extract) Drinkable now, but could do with some more cold storage IMO to mellow that aroma extract out a bit.
12. GravityGuru Kilbung APA - Bottle conditioned, bottled on 25 June 2011, 5.2%. Have tried a spare swap bottle, is nicely drinkable now but will moderate in hoppiness over the coming 4-6 weeks...
13. Stillscottish - Coffee Oatmeal Stout 5.5% 40 IBU. Been in the bottle for 6 weeks but give it another 2 or three.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18. Shed101 - Squig's Secondhand Porter - bottled a week before swap could leave for 6 months I guess, up to you. 5.6%.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24. Paxx- Irish Red- Bottled from the keg good to go now[/quote]

 

[lczaban]

OK, after the swap shenanigans the fun part begins... :icon_drunk:
#1 - Winkles Tin Tin Dark Strong

Poured nicely with a thick, coarse off-white head which dissipated readily into a thinner more persistent head. Lovely copper golden colour, slightly hazed, good active carbonation bead...

Noticeable yet not overt aroma. Assertive phenolic/ester profile with a good supporting malt character.

The carbonation keeps the beer lively, while the esters provide a rich spiciness. Good malt balance which gives the beer an adequete body. The alcohol level is appropriate - it drives the ester flavour profile in the initial sense but also drives the finish to long, pleasant conclusion. I got a noice glow when drinking this late at night watching the TdF... :icon_cheers:

The style isn't one I personally could have a session on without getting completely messy, but it was a good drop to chew over and finish on. Noice....


#2 - DKS Octoberfist

Coarse persistent off-white head that readily foamed up (probably because I can't pour for shit...)

Burnished gold colour, slight chill haze. Good, consistent carbonation bead (fine stream of bubbles from the bottom of the glass with some bigger, more persistent bubbles toward the top)

Good aroma, rich and malt driven with some pleasant background estery notes

The carbonation level is good as it allows the malt to shine and be rich but without it being cloying. The esters assist in driving the richness, while the light hopping helps to balance the beer. I had a note about whether the finish should be drier, and according to the style guidelines it should be moderately dry. It doesn't detract from the drinkability for my liking, but if we were judging to style that is something I'd comment on...

It's an impressive beer Daz - it's not very far off a commercial example at all. Have you got any spare bottles that need a home???


#3 - NickB's IPA

As soon as I cracked the bottle I got a whiff of the hop aroma - it was a great indicator of things to come...

Thin, fine white head which was non-persistent. The head formed more readily on the second, more vigourous pour when I wasn't giving a toss about whether I would spill the beer over the top of the glass... The initial head pour was somewhat understandable given it was bottled from the keg too.

Lovely, classic gold/deep straw colour, Fine carbonation bead. A classic IPA hop aroma with a good supporting malt background.

It was a sensation as soon as the beer hit my mouth. The hops stimulate and cleanse the palate really nicely, and the carbonation level was spot on and complemented this process perfectly. The body was good, supporting the bitterness well. The hopping had depth, but this doesn't detract from the beer, I would like to see the hops provide a better defined finish - while it lingers at the moment it tends to peeter out rather than giving a more sharply defined finish.

Is this supposed to be inspired by Sierra Nevada? It's been a while since I've had a bottle of SN, but for whatever reason this beer reminds me of SN... It was pretty scrummy, not quite sessionable for my liking (unless once again I want to get completely wasted...), but it was pretty close to this and very pleasant and impressive never-the-less...


#12 - An APA brewed by some schmuck...

I haven't gone into judging my own beer in as much detail as the others here, but I'll say this. It is bottle conditioned and carbed, and when I tried it a couple of days ago it was drinking acceptably. The aesthetics of the beer are spot on (for a crash chilled, non-fined beer at least). The body is OK, but the hopping is unbalanced. I used high AA hopes throughout and while it has a strong bittering and (somewhat) flavouring component, these dominate the beer to it's detriment. I'll continue to work on this in the coming months, and while it's better than what I might have initially hoped (I had the usual "Is it infected?" issue on a couple of the initial tastings, and the hops will mellow further with time as they have already done) the recipe is still a work in progress...


So there you go - I'll post up more reviews as they come to hand.

GG

 

[NickB]

Thanks all for the kind words.

Beer was inspired by what US hops I had on hand

Went with additions of Cascade, Citra, Centennial, Columbus and Simcoe, at 30, 15, and into the cube, with a big whack of the same dry hopped. Was 225g in the single batch, which is why the aroma is so pronounced...

This particular batch was brewed at Winkle's, and is my one and only BIAB. The previous batch was brewed at StillScottish's place, so I've still not brewed a batch at home...yet. Due to the fact the remainder of the keg seems to have had a leak in it (leaking into the glass frequently!), I'll be brewing it once again shortly!

Cheers

 

[lczaban]

Thanks all for the kind words.

Beer was inspired by what US hops I had on hand

Went with additions of Cascade, Citra, Centennial, Columbus and Simcoe, at 30, 15, and into the cube, with a big whack of the same dry hopped. Was 225g in the single batch, which is why the aroma is so pronounced...

This particular batch was brewed at Winkle's, and is my one and only BIAB. The previous batch was brewed at StillScottish's place, so I've still not brewed a batch at home...yet. Due to the fact the remainder of the keg seems to have had a leak in it (leaking into the glass frequently!), I'll be brewing it once again shortly!

Cheers

It was a really nice drop Nick - I'll be trying to get more of the aroma and uplifted flavour notes into my version. Well done! :drinks:

 

[Shed101]

#12 - An APA brewed by some schmuck...

I haven't gone into judging my own beer in as much detail as the others here, but I'll say this. It is bottle conditioned and carbed, and when I tried it a couple of days ago it was drinking acceptably. The aesthetics of the beer are spot on (for a crash chilled, non-fined beer at least). The body is OK, but the hopping is unbalanced. I used high AA hopes throughout and while it has a strong bittering and (somewhat) flavouring component, these dominate the beer to it's detriment. I'll continue to work on this in the coming months, and while it's better than what I might have initially hoped (I had the usual "Is it infected?" issue on a couple of the initial tastings, and the hops will mellow further with time as they have already done) the recipe is still a work in progress...

Well, this is one of the two beers I did receive, so i'm sitting with it here now. Made notes before reading what was written above.

As the lid unscrewed a gentle escape of gas carried with it a sharp citrus hit and that LCPA caramelly aroma.
It poured very nicely with a little finger's worth of foam on the top. Clear as a bell and a good coppery amber colour.
Flavour dominated by a surprisingly strong and lingering bitterness competing with a hefty sweetness for the most noticeable characteristics.

Tonight i'm classifying all my beers as stand up comedians: As an American Pale Ale this is more Denis Leary than Bill Cosby. I'm not saying Cosby's not funny, but Leary cusses and spits and snorts coke before coming on stage, whereas Bill thinks it's naughty to eat a big sandwich(?).

My kind of beer in a lot of ways... oh and it's nearly all gone already.

 

[Shed101]

The aesthetics of the beer are spot on (for a crash chilled, non-fined beer at least).

Just seen this. Impressed! I would have guessed there was some gelatine going on.

And you didn't say what ABV, but i'd be guessing towards the upper 5s.

Apologies it's written on the friggin' bottle. 5.2% ... I'm getting old.

 

[Shed101]

Well seeing as nobody else is playing, i'll post my other review.

The other beer I actually received :angry: was #1 Winkle's Tin Tin Dark Strong.

This had pleasant light carbonation, presented an appetising dark cherry red and while the aroma was subdued, there were hints of rum and raisin.

For 8% it was very drinkable, characteristic for the style, with a velvetty mousse mouthfeel and a warming alcohol afterglow.

However ... I didn't enjoy this as much as Winkle's/Tin Tin's Belgian in the last caseswap which to my mind (befuddled as that is) had a more mellow backbone and some underlying spiciness going on.

 

[winkle]

Well seeing as nobody else is playing, i'll post my other review.

The other beer I actually received :angry: was #1 Winkle's Tin Tin Dark Strong.

This had pleasant light carbonation, presented an appetising dark cherry red and while the aroma was subdued, there were hints of rum and raisin.

For 8% it was very drinkable, characteristic for the style, with a velvetty mousse mouthfeel and a warming alcohol afterglow.

However ... I didn't enjoy this as much as Winkle's/Tin Tin's Belgian in the last caseswap which to my mind (befuddled as that is) had a more mellow backbone and some underlying spiciness going on.

Ta Shed, drinkblity was the aim with this one and I'm still coming to terms with the yeast. Next version should be a ripper.

 

[winkle]

3. NickB - American IPA

I'm starting to expect good examples of this style from you Nick and this is no exception. Lasting small head and pretty good carbonation considering it'd been bottled off keg. Reasonably bright with a hint of haze. Nice big yanky hop aroma that lasts through-out, good underlying bitterness, balanced with a substantial malt body.
Good beer, although there is the faintest sniff of cloth, er linen, er pillow case in the background h34r:

 

[Shed101]

Hmmmm, found anothery :blink:

#24 Paxx (not Paxo) - Irish Red

I normally think Irish Red isn't so much a beer style as an apology. The only two commercial styles i've really known are Kilkenny and Beamish Red ... maybe Caffreys was supposed to be a variety (not sure that even counts as beer).
And these beers are characterised in my memory as being blander than white sauce.

So I wasn't particularly excited about this. It poured very nicely, perfect carbonation and a deep mahogany red. Still looks aren't everything are they?

Tasting was a really pleasant surprise though. There's an almost sour hint to it which is very nice indeed, so much so that the whole thing slid down a treat.


... the weird thing is, I think someone made an Irish Red for the last caseswap and I really like that too.

There's something about Ireland and the Irish when outside Ireland. Anyone and anything with a little Irish heritage seems magnified. And maybe I actually like Irish Reds but only ever tried crap ones from Ireland. In Australia they're more Irish than Ireland?

 

[bconnery]

Hmmmm, found anothery :blink:

#24 Paxx (not Paxo) - Irish Red

I normally think Irish Red isn't so much a beer style as an apology. The only two commercial styles i've really known are Kilkenny and Beamish Red ... maybe Caffreys was supposed to be a variety (not sure that even counts as beer).
And these beers are characterised in my memory as being blander than white sauce.

So I wasn't particularly excited about this. It poured very nicely, perfect carbonation and a deep mahogany red. Still looks aren't everything are they?

Tasting was a really pleasant surprise though. There's an almost sour hint to it which is very nice indeed, so much so that the whole thing slid down a treat.


... the weird thing is, I think someone made an Irish Red for the last caseswap and I really like that too.

There's something about Ireland and the Irish when outside Ireland. Anyone and anything with a little Irish heritage seems magnified. And maybe I actually like Irish Reds but only ever tried crap ones from Ireland. In Australia they're more Irish than Ireland?

Kilkenny isn't a great example of anything other than what mega brewers can do to a good beer to stuff it up.
Smithwicks is a great beer but there's an argument about whether Irish Red is even a style, or just a variant of bitter.
I think they are sufficiently different myself...

 

[winkle]

Daz Octoberfist.
Initially poured this into a footed pilsner glass, gave myself an uppercut and put it into a stein. Presents beautifully, deep amber with a lasting medium head and small beading. Tastes as good as it looks, some might argue its slightly too sweet but not me :icon_cheers: .
Side note, drank this while watching the Bulldogs v Chooks and eating pepper Jatz with Beetroot Tzatziki, opened a chunk of blue cheese and the cat turned up with its begging bowl look. I diverted its attention with the now 99.8% empty Beetroot Tzatziki container and was treated to one of the entertaining displays ever, much better than the footy :icon_cheers: . Fussy buggers female cats.

 

[winkle]

The above shows why you shouldn't post a review after drinking several beers then a iStout .

11. Florian - German Trash

Looks like you've hit all the targets here Florian, presents very well. Bitterness is spot on, even had a reasonable aroma. I could have been eaily convinced I was drinking a Warsteiner (which I hope is not a insult).

 

[Shed101]

It's alright Winkle, i'm still playing.

2. DKS Octoberfist

Initial smell led me to believe this was slightly 'off.' But tasting changed my mind. Far nicer than I expected, having been a bit bored by o/fs being too well balanced in the past. This had some balls, which I prefer. Though there was a little too much alcoholic bite it was better than some of the bland commercial efforts to my mind.

Good.

3. NickB - American IPA

I thought this was slightly undercarbed for style (but fine for a pom like me). Floral resiny notes were strong, it was pretty sweet, towards the top end of town I thought. At one point I thought the IBUs were a bit on the low side, but as I got through it decided I must have served it too cool initially.

This was beer well worth drinking!

5. Pocket Beers - English Mild

I have to say i never really drank mild in England ... I recall a CAMRA push to 'save' mild from extinction in the late '90s, but you had to wear a flat cap and donkey jacket and smoke rollups back then in order to get served mild, and my rollups got me thrown out of most pubs in town. Still Bateman's Dark Mild (DM) was my local brew and this looks for all the world like one of Mr George's (RIP) pints.
Dark, very dark - like a coal miner's spit.
Subdued aroma (to style), slightly more carbonation than i expect in a mild
Tight lasting head, flavour somehow reminiscent of chestnuts.
I've no doubt this is a good example of the style ... but not really my kind of pint.

7. Scoundrel Rouge - Loyal Old Hound Wheat Ale

**** me. This is the anti-mild. The beer equivalent of S&M?
Slightly orangey aroma (or is that grapefruit h34r: )
Sparkling, hazy, golden orange honey colour.
Like being smacked in the face with a bitter sherbet grenade ... which it turns out I seem to like. It masks the 8% abv.
Somewhere in there is a hint of cinnamon ... but that gets twatted by the exploding sherbert ******* too!

Ooooh. Lovely.

 

[Florian]

11. Florian - German Trash

Looks like you've hit all the targets here Florian, presents very well. Bitterness is spot on, even had a reasonable aroma. I could have been eaily convinced I was drinking a Warsteiner (which I hope is not a insult).

Cheers Winkle, glad you liked it. Haven't had one since, but it seems like that yeasty taste I was so annoyed with has gone, so I might give one a go soon.
No insult with the Warsteiner. Although it is not one of my favourites, that was exactly what I was trying to brew, a totally average german megaswill Pils. Hence the name giving.

 

[NickB]

8. frag_dog - Steam Beer (Cal Common), Bottled from fermeter day before swap. Give it a month (at these temps....)

Whacked this in the fridge this morning, and sampled after lunch.

Sparkling clarity, beautiful dark amber colour. Good head retention despite it sitting out in the garage in the cold over the past few weeks. Malty backbone, caramel and hints of dark fruit. Hop flavour cuts through in aftertaste, and the balance is absolutely spot on. Wish I had a few more bottles as this is a fantastic session beer!

Nicely done frag_dog! Feel free to share your beers here anytime! Hope to see you at some more swaps in the future!

Cheers!

 

[NickB]

12. GravityGuru Kilbung APA - Bottle conditioned, bottled on 25 June 2011, 5.2%. Have tried a spare swap bottle, is nicely drinkable now but will moderate in hoppiness over the coming 4-6 weeks...

Poured slightly cloudy (couple of floaters), but most likely due to my poor pouring! Colour spot on.

Slight aroma - piney, resiny, citrus, although less than I was expecting. Flavour is a big hit of in-your-face resiny US hops, but with enough bitterness to balance the malt backbone well. Mouthfeel medium-high, maybe slightly sweet/malty for style but still reasonably balanced. A nice, sessionable US APA. Bring a keg around for a visit, Luke. Anytime

Cheers