Vic Case Swap Xmas In July 2010 Tasting Thread

[manticle]

Brewing a german style lager today (not a regular lager brewer) so it seems appropriate I should try Haysie's Bo pils.

Pours very clear (can read through it) golden/straw colour.
Aroma is like honey and tangerine/mandarin.
Meringue head, permanent lacing

Carbonation moderately high (but not over the top).

Flavour has the same sweet citrus - very refreshing. Doesn't have the same saaz hit as an earlier one of yours I tried - the citrus reminds me a little bit of tettnanger (which I prefer to saaz anyway). Body and mouthfeel are pretty much perfect - enough maltiness to carry such a light beer. Balance is really good. Today I've been enjoying sambor brok and DAB dortmunder export - this has more flavour than both but is not overpowering in any department. Bitterness is subtle.

I know you've mentioned perceiving diacetyl in some of your beers - if the honey characteristic is this (although I'd put it down to the pils malt) then it's subtle and it suits. Definitely no overpowering butterscotch to my palate.

Great, simple, refreshing beer with a good malt backbone. Cheers

 

[manticle]

MXD - Yarrasipi pale

Pours reasonably clear amber, fluffy head with lacing.

Moderate carbonation. Slight toffee aroma.

Seems like there may have been some good and some bad. Fortunately I got one of the good. Flavour of toffee with a hint of fruit, lingering subtle bitterness, good balance.

Not over the top in terms of hoppiness but I don't think that's always a must. Enjoyable beer, thankyou.

 

[Wardhog]

18. mcook - American Pale Ale

Yet another good beer from mcook, but finishes a little bit sweet. Maybe get the bittering up a bit and/or some late hop flavour.

 

[haysie]

Been away guysngals, havent had a swapbeer since Kleiny`s, drunk Manticles today and have # 10 in the fridge
4
great artwork, took an extra step,nice malt aroma with a very nice subtle hop aroma that i cant pick so i`ll blame this screaming head cold I have, very nice appearance, pours well. The bitterness is terrific the mouthfeel thick to medium but finishes a little bit full of carbonation and malt for mine, a little bit heavy I guess i`m saying, not a session beer but with an eye fillet this would be a perfect companion. A really good beer that I would clone with a drier finish only, apart from that the balance of bitterness and nose was sensational.
Good stuff Manticle, a nice clean well presented beer, Kudo`s mate.

#23 was in the fridge not 10, without making another post here is #23

23, wanting to use then reuse the glass first this was next in line, nice hiss upon opening but poured as flat as a tack, heaps of spices up front, so much so this is nearly a ginger/spice beer, as it warms and settles i pick up some English yeast character but i could be pissing in the wind, this is a very spicy gingery beer. Nil carbonation, Low- none malt nor hop aroma. Not for mine Wolfy, thx for the contribution and a take on Randy.

 

[WarmBeer]

23. Wolfy - 1822 London Ale

Pours nearly completely flat, just a little ring of carbonation sticking to the outside of the glass. Rich dark amber colour, with almost a hint of red through it. Nice and clear. It looks the goods.

First smell, and my senses go straight back to my childhood. But I can't put my finger on it, it reminds me of visiting the Milk Bar as a kid. It smells "spritzy" is the best word I can put on it.

A couple of tastes, the light carbonation continues. There's a strange taste to it, not at all unpleasant, but not compelling either.

About half way through the glass, serendipity hits. The aroma reminds me of the Coke bottle lollies I used to get from the local milk bar as a kid. No other way to describe it.

I don't believe it's a fermentation fault, it's just a strange aroma I've never encountered in a beer before.

This is a well made beer. Now that I realise this is from Mosher's Radical Brewing, and is not supposed to be a contemporary beer, I can understand the difference in flavour/aroma to what we have been conditioned to appreciate in a beer.

But I still wouldn't go back and order another.

B-

 

[haysie]

25 Don Mateo
Are you a banana farmer Don? :icon_cheers:
This beer was mostly bananas, as it warms up I find some clove and the bubblegum, but the overiding chewiness of banana halts everything else. Was this a wbo6 yeast? Certainly no faults I can detect thats why i am guessing the 06 yeast, when i have made dunkels with 3068 or 3787 if a big banana comes thru so does the hot alcohol, this beer was very clean though.
Thanks Don.

 

[manticle]

Cheers haysie - glad you enjoyed. A recipe I'll be re-brewing and tweaking quite a bit I think. I recently bought a kilo of target hops (target might be aroma and flavour you're experiencing - hops are EKG and target late and dry hopped, fuggles and EKG early).

Malt is just TF Marris Otter and JW med crystal with some wort caramelised and added back to the boil.

mmmmmmmmmmm eye fillet.

 

[manticle]

Fergthebrewer: Oatmeal stout

Have to confess I didn't rinse the guinness out before I poured.

Pours with a massive head, off white/tan that is tight and lingers. Black with ruby highlights in the light.

Aroma of rich dark malts, slight yeast.

Carbonation moderate to low - perfect for a big malty beer.

Mouthfeel smooth. Slight burnt malt characteristic but not over the top, silkiness from the oats. Tastes like an exceptional stout, no yeastiness carried over from the aroma. Hints of coffe and choc, very balanced in terms of roast and slight, lingering bitterness.

Spot on I reckon. My kind of beer this.

Glad I saved it till now.

 

[Wardhog]

15 - Hutch - Belgian Tripel

This is a tripel? Every homebrewed tripel or strong Belgian I've tasted has had an extremely alcoholic flavour to it. This one is very smooth on the palate, has some great spiciness about it, and should come with a warning sticker. It would be too easy to hoe into a large amount of this and leave yourself a slobbering mess in the corner.

Well done, Hutch, this is a great beer. As you say, a little overcarbed, but still a great beer.

 

[Wardhog]

19 - Chris Taylor - English Brown

I'm with Manticle on this beer, there is a burnt rubbery kinda vegetal flavour about this one. It looks the goods, and still has discernible toffee flavour - which I absolutely love, Baron's Black Wattle is a favourite and not because of the wattle - but something has crept in here, Chris. I would love this beer without the off flavours.

 

[Fourstar]

23. Wolfy - 1822 London Ale

At first i was thinking, "this tastes spiced and like a witbier with orange notes"?!? wtf is wrong with my palate?!?! went and checked out your recipe and so it is! :lol:

Interesting concept! Sounds like the British folk used to follow similiar procedures like Belgian Farmhouses. In my honest opinion, i dont know if im confused because i dont expect this in a malty british ale or im expecting belgian yeast characters familiar to these kind of malt/spice bills in beer. Maybe back in the day of 1822, this was run of the mill swill for all those with a turned up nose but im unsure if it fits the modern tastebuds. The orange lingers on the palate and seems to wash away the majority of the malt flavour. The nose is quite clean overall and a mild hop aroma. I almost detect some onion or ginger characters too. It kind of reminds me of tom yum (without the goong). The finish is malty, bitter and a mild warmth tingles the tongue (assume this is the ginger).

A well made beer wolfy, i dont know if i'd dive in and make a keg of it for myself. Definitely one of those beers for a case swap as one is more than enough in 12 months to consume.

I congratulate you on going out on a limb to make something different with the possibily of it being spectacular. unfortunatly it only fits the category of the former for me. But overall a unique beer im happy to have tried.

Cheers! :icon_cheers:

* Also, put antoher beer into the xmas swap. the quality of the beer is great. just dont think this style is to everyones tatsebuds. You should have done a 1770's porter! (without the licorice (add 2% black patent instead) :icon_drool2:

Im toying with a recipe for a kentucky common.. if i can get it right, it will be my swap beer come xmas. a style very fiew would have attempted. :icon_cheers:

 

[Wardhog]

#20 - Cocko's APA

Another really good beer. Clear as a bell, and a really interesting colour. As soon as I saw that deep deep colour I knew I'd enjoy this beer. Head retention wasn't its strong suit, but that's not a big deal.

The only thing about this beer is it's too mild in its hop profiles. Up the bitterness by about 5 IBU, and go nuts with the late hops. Give it a really punchy hop aroma, and shedloads of 5-10 minute additions and you got one hell of an APA here. Good work.

 

[Cocko]

#20 - Cocko's APA

Another really good beer. Clear as a bell, and a really interesting colour. As soon as I saw that deep deep colour I knew I'd enjoy this beer. Head retention wasn't its strong suit, but that's not a big deal.

The only thing about this beer is it's too mild in its hop profiles. Up the bitterness by about 5 IBU, and go nuts with the late hops. Give it a really punchy hop aroma, and shedloads of 5-10 minute additions and you got one hell of an APA here. Good work.

I hope you enjoyed it mate!

I used to brew it pretty much to your exact additions but being the house ale it has been stepped back over time to a quaffer rather than the APA typical hop fest!

But you are right, its time to bring it back to its former glory!

Cheers!

 

[Hutch]

5. Supra-Jim - The Curly Devil (american amber)

Mmmmmm. Lovely Hop-dominated flavour, some dry-hop astringency, not to everyone's liking, but certainly to mine!
Deep amber towards brown, slight haze, great head retention that's lasted the whole pint. Moderate carbonation.
Well balanced malt/hops with moderate bitterness, and lingering hop flavour. Could certainly enjoy a lot of this!
Top work SJ!

 

[Wardhog]

21. Haysie - Bohemian Pilsner

Wow. I am blown away. This is a magnificent beer.

Crystal clear, great flavours, great aromas, everything about this beer is right.

I'd be pretty damn happy if I could turn out beer like this.

 

[Supra-Jim]

Thanks Hutch, glad you liked it.

23. Wolfy 1822 London Ale

As a few of the previous reviews have pointed this is one different beer. Hard to give meaningful feedback on it as i have no real reference to judge it against, so i'll give my thoughts on it.

Poured very clear with virtually no carbonation, I got ginger and a kind of earthy aroma from it. Flavour was different, not what i was expecting, but I persisted with it and each mouthful, I kind of warmed into it. For me, I think it would be better with a touch more body and some carbonation.

Bring on the Christmas swap, Wolfy, and make sure you give us something different again!

Cheers SJ

 

[Siborg]

1. Warmbeer - American Porter
Probably just a bit under-carbed for me. Poured with little head.
Taste-wise, I didn't mind it. There was a decent amount of bitterness (either from the roast malts, or hops), a nice roasty aftertaste. Colour-wise, I know people said it was more like a brown... but that would have to be a darker brown. Anyway, why are we talking colour? Great label, great beer.

11. Fents - Citra APA
Well, what can I say about this beer besides the fact that it was just awesome?
It poured a little cloudy, which I personally don't mind. Poured a nice thick white head, which laced all the way to the end of the glass. Beautiful aroma. Only recently tried citra in Cocko's APA, and I'm starting to really love it.
Flavour-wise, it had a nice malt profile, which was quickly devoured by all that citra... mmm nice. Will definitely have to have a crack at this one myself for summer sessions.

 

[Wardhog]

#24 Siborg - Amber Ale

Another good beer. Nice and clear, massive rocky head indicates a little too much carbonation - but that's the only gripe about this beer. Top job, Siborg. Could quite happily sit and drink a few pints of this.

 

[zebba]

23. Wolfy 1822 London Ale

Pulled it out of the fridge a couple hours before drinking. Poured flat, but that's my fault 'cause it went into the fridge the day I got the swap - I do what I want, dammit. Fairly hazy, but that's of no concern.

The smell was all orange, and the taste backed this up - orange and spice, with a smooth bitterness that I thought balanced nicely.

The wife was eating ice cream at the time, and I ordered her to try some. "Icecream and beer?!?" she exclaimed - "Yuck!!". I again ordered or, and she took a mouthfull. I was right, it matched perfectly.

Personally, I loved it. Gladly have another few bottles sitting around for when the mood struck me.

The only thing I thought was lacking is it could have done with some more of the toasted malt - heaps of yeast character, the spices, etc, all worked together well, and I reckon just a little more toast would have rounded it out nicely. But that's my tastes.

Well done, would drink again.

 

[manticle]

25: Don Mateo: Dunkelweizen

Drank this a couple of nights ago so notes are from memory

Pours cloudy chocolate brown with good tan head that lasts.

Carbonation moderate.

Aroma of bananas

Mouthfeel full. Flavour is very strongly banana - almost overwhelming at first. Beneath this however are flavours of chocolate and a very decent hefeweizen - a litte bit of schofferhoffer but with choc overtones and biscuity/bready undertones. a little rich on the banan for me (prefer clove in my hefes) but nice complexity and some really delicious layers. Overall a pretty damn good DW.

Think I only have Wolfy's left now.