Vic Case Swap: Xmas In July Tasting Feedback

[manticle]

#20: Wolfy 10 min greenbelt chinook IPA

Pours very clear amber, faint white, thin head, some lacing.
Aroma of subtle malt and the unfortunate sodium met that is still on my fingers from my bottle cleaning process.

Carbonation moderate to low - probably too low for many palates but I prefer lower fizz in my beers.

Flavour of rich grain/malt, slight hint of sweetness, smooth subtle biterness. I'd be hard pressed to distinguish chinook. Homegrown?

I was expecting a far greater hit of hops and bitterness and it seems a long way from an IPA/AIPA. However, I care not a whit for style guidelines as long as the beer is balanced and tasty.

This is very clean and to my palate very rewarding. In line with an English pale maybe. Leaves the palate feeling cleansed.

Different from what I expected but delicious nonetheless.

Just to be sure - Your caps say '20' in black texta and have a blue triangle on silver cap yes?

A really nice beer overall.

 

[Steve@PMF82]

3 - Zebba - English Pale

Poured with a large thick white head that hung around for quite a while, dies down to half its size after 5 mins, thick lacing.
Beautiful golden amber colour, fairly clear, slight haze.

I got honey and floral wiffs in the aroma.

Taste was interesting/different for me, intial taste was sweet and quite floral (i have no idea if/what type of hops were used or if
this is esters from the yeast prob a bit of both worlds?
Sweet breads with a slight crust maltiness if that makes any sense...

Restrained bitterness which is assisted by the livley carbonation eqalizing the slightly more than moderate? body and mouth feel on this beer.

I am really enjoying the aftertastes this beer leaves me with, not too sweet, honey/malty, slight fruity/floral hop flavours or could be yeast esters in there as well? i am not experiecned enought to make that judgement.
All in all something different for my tastes, it leaves me really enjoying the aftertaste for a long time and
encourages me to take my time more and get to know this beer better.

 

[Wolfy]

#20: Wolfy 10 min greenbelt chinook IPA

Aroma of subtle malt and the unfortunate sodium met that is still on my fingers from my bottle cleaning process.
...
Flavour of rich grain/malt, slight hint of sweetness, smooth subtle biterness. I'd be hard pressed to distinguish chinook. Homegrown?
...
I was expecting a far greater hit of hops and bitterness and it seems a long way from an IPA/AIPA. However, I care not a whit for style guidelines as long as the beer is balanced and tasty.
...
Different from what I expected but delicious nonetheless.

Just to be sure - Your caps say '20' in black texta and have a blue triangle on silver cap yes?

Yep (home grown Chinook), yep (very different to what I expected also - but not in a bad way I hope), and yep (right bottle and cap).
Never used sodium met, so can't blame me for that one, but hopefully there is hop-aroma there too.
The 'IPA' is more the name from where the recipe was taken from, in theory the brewing software suggests its 60IBU but I think in practice that it's much much less bitter than what the software suggests.

 

[manticle]

Sodium met was entirely my fault. I clean bottles, rinse, rinse with met, rinse again then starsan. Procrastinating bottling 3 batches over the day.

I don't mind getting different to expectation when it's not disappointing. No disappointment this end from your beer.

 

[Fourstar]

13. Bullsneck - pale ale - attending - drink now!!

resonating what everyone else has said.

Great malt profile, balanced, beautiful hop flavour, passiona all round! :icon_cheers:

hit this thing with a filter or some decent clarification and she'd be rocking. great beer mate. kudos

Up next wolfys IPA.

 

[Lecterfan]

10. Scums Steam cal common. Visually clear and bright. Tight white head that stayed for the whole glass, great bracI mean lacing. Pretty high level of carbonation but suits the beer and it certainly is in no way overdone. Nice clean, lingering bitterness with a little hint of some citrus hops sneaking through. Again, Im still new to this style, with only two previous experiences and the BJCP website to guide me but Im putting it out there and saying this is a great beer both to style AND to my palate. Also loved the label.

20. Wolfys Chinook ale. Interestingly, contrary to Manticle, this is precisely what I was expecting albeit still not as bitter. Both my harvest ales have had huge whacks of homegrown Chinook and both have imparted this same flavour and aromaand both have been far maltier than expected/calculated. Even on my second one where I guessed it at about %5-6 (going from an experienced AHB members tasting thoughts) the AIPA still came out at probably 30-35 IBU (perceived) rather than the calculated 55. BUT BUT BUT (for those who havent tasted this beer or one like it), still a really nice beer, and the bitterness is thereat the very end of the beer, which is nice, but would be good if it was a bit closer to the front to counteract some of the initial maltiness. The carbonation is on the low end of where I like it, but still fine for the style (and me). The colour is nice, head is ok but isnt huge due to lower carbonation. Pretty clear, if not bright. Nice one.

So
Aroma:
Appearance: ^_^
Flavour: ^_^
Overall impression: B)
(with apologies for being a smart arse haha)

23. Iamozziyobs Central Heating Pale Ale. Pours with a nice tight white head that doesnt hang around too long. Clear and bright. Lovely hop aroma and flavour, well balanced, on the lower side of IBU but the bitterness is lingering. This is very drinkable, I could smash through a heap of these in one session if push came to shove. There is something that I cant quite put my finger on in regards to the bitternessI think as it warms it starts to become a bit less balanced becomes maltier, to some degree thats to be expected I guess I dont have a problem with this beer. Top job.

 

[manticle]

#19 Nick Penno: APA

Pours golden, reasonably clear, slight haze. Fluffy white head, seems to want to linger.

Aroma of citrus and pine, some sweet malt.

Carb moderate.

Flavour of piney hops, some woodiness (this is a good thing), little hint of sweet malts, reasonably full bodied. Soft finish with a lingering, but not harsh bitterness.

Balance of malt and hops is good with hops being the dominant party.

I can get a bit tired of the over-emphasis some brewers and craft breweries place on hopping the shit out of beer so I really appreciate a hoppy beer that takes care of other elements. The pine and the woodiness I describe work well together. I think the wood relates to a grain flavour but can't put my finger on it.

I haven't looked for a recipe but I'm going to suggest either chinook plays a part here or you're using a hop I'm unfamiliar with.

Great beer anyway. Really well balanced.

 

[Fourstar]

#20: Wolfy 10 min greenbelt chinook IPA

Deep copper to mahogany in appearance with a low tight creamy foam (thanks to a pipette). Clean, sweet malt on the nose with a touch of fruit/melon.

Moderate to full palate and velvety. Flavour is rich sweet malt, somewhat toasty with a mild lingering toffee note in the finish. There is a mild astringency which may be due to the hops (there isn't any malts that would contribute it.) Bitterness is moderate and relatively clean considering the use of chinook (homegrown or not.)

What can i say, two beers down and two great beers at that. Could this be the best swap ever? well so far we are running at 100%. keep up the good work fellas, hopefully mine doesn't let the whole thing down.

:icon_cheers:

 

[razz]

19. Nick Penno APA
Bloody beaut mate! The others have already said it, Kleiny has the best description, so I won't go over old ground. This ale reminds me of BrewDog Punk IPA. Please put the recipe up asap Nick, I hope you used 1272 as I have a pack in the fridge.
:super:

 

[manticle]

#4 Razz: Bender Brown Ale

Pours clear brown, slight tan head, dissipates with minimal lacing.

Aroma of toffee, hint of green apple.

Carbonation moderate, little bit spritzy.

Flavour of sweet toffee malts, rich malt profile, quite sweet.
Not a lot on the bittering front.

There's a wee hint of the apple character which comes and goes. There's also a hint of something I would describe as yeasty. I've had the same characters from some English yeasts I've used when I haven't racked to secondary at 3/4 the way through ferment.

Lovely grain flavour, could maybe benefit from a hint more bitterness (I realise it's not meant to be hop forward) and the absence of the things I mentioned.

 

[proudscum]

#20: Wolfy 10 min greenbelt chinook IPA

Pours very clear amber, faint white, thin head, some lacing.
Aroma of subtle malt and the unfortunate sodium met that is still on my fingers from my bottle cleaning process.

Carbonation moderate to low - probably too low for many palates but I prefer lower fizz in my beers.

Flavour of rich grain/malt, slight hint of sweetness, smooth subtle biterness. I'd be hard pressed to distinguish chinook. Homegrown?

I was expecting a far greater hit of hops and bitterness and it seems a long way from an IPA/AIPA. However, I care not a whit for style guidelines as long as the beer is balanced and tasty.

This is very clean and to my palate very rewarding. In line with an English pale maybe. Leaves the palate feeling cleansed.

Different from what I expected but delicious nonetheless.

Just to be sure - Your caps say '20' in black texta and have a blue triangle on silver cap yes?

A really nice beer overall.

a will second the above i too was expecting a much bigger hop kick.a nice simple clean beer .i should have captured the dregs to culture this yeast ...o well.

Cheers scum

 

[Wolfy]

Entry: #07 - Beer4U - Cali Common

Aroma: :mellow:
Apperance: :super:
Flavour: ^_^
Overall Impression:

i should have captured the dregs to culture this yeast ...o well.

Yup, you wont find it in shops locally and the only place that sells it does not ship Internationally.
I quite like it, Fourstar has a slant from the case-swap day, or I can make a slant if you really want to try it.

 

[scott_penno]

10. Proudscum - Steam Beer

Pffftttt upon opening. Pours a copper color with a nice fluffy white head. Floral type aroma. Smells quite inviting actually. After the first few mouthfuls there's like this clash of different flavors - can't quite figure out what it is but maybe it's the combination of hops used or maybe it's just me. Also appears to be a small amount of oxidation. Both seem to disappear as I drink more, maybe as it warms up or maybe I just don't notice it any more. Not a bad beer but not one I'd go back for in a hurry. No offence.

sap.

 

[scott_penno]

23. iamozziyob - Pale

Floral aroma upon pouring with a smallish head that persists (just) to the bottom of the glass. Yellow to gold color and amazingly clear to the point of brilliance. Fruity flavor that lingers on the pallete. Good level of carbonation and great balance to achieve a beer that is *very* drinkable. Could see myself drinking a number of these on a warmer summer afternoon. Any chance of adding the recipe to the recipe thread?

sap.

 

[Yob]

gush

 

[Kleiny]

13. Bullsneck APA
I think i got a different beer to the other comments.
Appearance: Was light amber and cloudy with no head
Aroma: very light for an APA and just not the punch that others have reported
Flavor: very light malt and moderate bitterness
Mouth feel: this was a big one, i found very watery and lifeless on the pallet. i had to tip it due to this.
Overall: very little character little hop aroma flavor, little malt flavor. Not what others have talked about when it come to your beer.

I dont understand between my experience and others, did you leave some rinse water in this one and top it off with your beer? it is as if it was an APA diluted, but did not have any cleaner or sanitizer twang.


3. Zebba English Pale
This one may be the cursed beer, after somebody earlier in this thread dropped there's only to watch it go down the drain, I open my kegerator and the bottle rolls out of its position to the bottom of the fridge cracking the seal and allowing half of the beer to spray my fridge like Webber would spray a grid girl after winning.

Shame because what i got to taste was nice just not enough left to give any real feedback.

 

[bullsneck]

Sorry about that Klieny. You obviously took the poisened one, bwahahaha.

Unfortunately, there's no more APA left, but if you're ever down this way pop in for a beer off draught.

 

[proudscum]

10. Proudscum - Steam Beer

Pffftttt upon opening. Pours a copper color with a nice fluffy white head. Floral type aroma. Smells quite inviting actually. After the first few mouthfuls there's like this clash of different flavors - can't quite figure out what it is but maybe it's the combination of hops used or maybe it's just me. Also appears to be a small amount of oxidation. Both seem to disappear as I drink more, maybe as it warms up or maybe I just don't notice it any more. Not a bad beer but not one I'd go back for in a hurry. No offence.

sap.

No drama...maybe it just needed some more lager time.I had a couple of non brew monkeys help bottle it.will have to sample mine and give myself some feedback.First time i have brewed this style and i did 2 in 2 days and thinking back i should have used a little less crystal and the Northern brewer hops where 2009 crop as that was all that was available.

Cheers and no offence taken.

 

[Siborg]

17. sappas - Choco-lot Stout

Appearance: Black with some hue visible when held to the light. Very fluffy tan head.
Aroma: Sweet malts, some soft chocolate notes, no hop character.
Flavour: as above. Wasn't as chocolatey as I was expecting. Not too sure if that's a good or a bad thing, though. All the malt flavours were a bit sweet and it finished a little cloying with a touch of alcohol warmth.
Mouthfeel: Full and smooth. Carbonation maybe a touch too high.
Overall, not bad. The alcohol warmth at the end made it nice to drink on a cold winters night. As I said, not as chocolatey as I was expecting. What sort of chocolate did you add? It tasted more of malt sweetness than chocolate to me.

20. Wolfy - 10 Min Chinook Greenbelt IPA

Appearance: dark copper, big off-white head.
Aroma: Some malt sweetness, with a little hop aroma
Flavour: First sip was nice and smooth. I got the crystal sweetness, quickly followed by some very smooth moderate hop bitterness. Finished only slightly sweet. I really like how the hopping has come out on this one. It's bitter and hoppy, without being over the top and harsh. The malt profile really supports the hops as well.
Mouthfeel: Big. Very smooth all round. Carbonation was perfect.
Overall: Mate, this is another cracker from the hoppy beers of this swap. It definitely has something different to it than the other hop-forward swaps (probably the home grown edge). My only criticism is maybe either a) a little too sweet on the finish or b] not quite bitter enough. I reckon either of those will put this beer into perfect balance. As it was, VERY drinkable beer. Top stuff, Wolfy!
edit: extra points for the apperance, Wolfy. Looks just as good as it tastes!

 

[Wolfy]

Entry: #06. Siborg - American Stout

Aroma: B)
Apperance: :huh:
Flavour:
Overall Impression: h34r: