Beerswap 2007: Rhoobarb's Beers

I’m sending beer to Olllllo, ScoutMan and chillHayze tomorrow (Sat., 3/10). They are each getting my D. McElderry’s Irish Wake Stout and Yellow Rose IPA. The Yellow Rose is brewed with Amarillo hops only.

I await your honest reviews!

Yellow rose IPA, cool name and those amarillo hops are nice. Wanna share a recipe?

Sean said:

Yellow rose IPA, cool name and those amarillo hops are nice. Wanna share a recipe?

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I thought I had posted it in the past, but I was wrong. I'll post it this weekend.

If you like citrusy IPAs like the "C hops" tend to impart, then you'll like this a lot! It is citrusy, but a bit smoother than Cascades, IMHO.

Package rec'd today. Fortunately it was only 87 today. Currently chilling.

Glad the beers arrived intact! In fact, according to UPS, it looks like they all have been delivered.

Sean said:

Yellow rose IPA, cool name and those amarillo hops are nice. Wanna share a recipe?

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Sorry it took so long. I just posted the Yellow Rose IPA recipe in the recipe database. You can see it here.

Thanks for the brew's Rhoobarb. Got in off of the road tonight and SWMBO had your Yellow Rose IPA nicely chilled for me.

Pour: Nicely carbonated, with a creamy 1" head that hung around for the entire glass.

Aroma: I couldn't pick up much of a hop aroma, but got a big nose full of malty goodness. "Earthy" I think best describes the smell. Caramel is very present. Lack of hop aroma is most likely due to a lingering head cold.

Appearance: Darker than I would have expected, but certainly within the style guidelines. A dark amber with a slight orange tint. Clarity was good, despite the somewhat rough treatment the package was given by the shipper.(Box was mangled, but the beer was intact)

Flavor: Quite malty with that great Amarillo balance. I am bias here as Amarillo is my favorite hop. Caramel up front with a toffee flavor that lingers on the back of the tongue. A nice medium mouthfeel that fit this beer well.

Overall: A great tasting drinkable beer that lends itself towards the English IPA style. Since I like maltier type beers, and love Amarillo hops, this has been my favorite beer of the swap thus far. Thanks Rhoobarb

Wow, thanks for the nice review, Scoutman! I'm so glad you liked it.

I had one of these last night and, while a head cold doesn't help, the aroma has subsided. I got just a hint of it when I had mine last night and I had to practically stick my nose in the foam to detect it.

I have found that with IPAs - both mine and some commercial examples - the aroma decays pretty quickly over time. The Yellow Rose had a nice bouquet when it was 'new', but I find the aroma lessens almost daily! I may double the dry hops next time I do this, just to try and prolong the hop aroma. IMHO, an IPA just isn't an IPA without a big dose of hops hitting you in the nose!

Anybody else try any?

Got a chance to give the Irish Wake Stout a try last night.

POUR: Follow Lable Instructions!!! (Pour Slowly). A Huge frothy head that lasted till the end. Great carbonation.

AROMA: Picked up a little hop aroma and lots of typical "coffee" type aromas.

APPEARANCE: Nice and dark with no floaties. Slight amber tint when held to the light, but no light gets through. Head was creamy tan color.

FLAVOR: Coffee flavor that lingers and blends well with the chocolate malt flavors. I was impressed how well the chocolate malt came through using only 4 oz. I had trouble trying to decide which hops you used until I cheated and looked up the recipe.

OVERALL: Very light and easy drinking for a stout. Lots of flavor from the Perle hops. Well balanced overall. Wish I had a few more for tonight.


Thanks again for the opportunity to try your brews Rhoobarb. It's been a lot of fun.

I checked out your beers last night, Rhoobarb.

We'll start with the stout:
I don't know if I got a bad bottle or what but mine smelled a bit off. Not terribly bad just a hint of bacterial funkiness.

The carbonation was quite high for a stout. I poured it slowly and let it sit for awhile bit but still I detect the unmistakable carbonic acid flavor.

The body was also a bit low for a stout. But like I said, possible my bottle was a little contaminated causing lower body.

Flavor - now this coffee/chocolate flavor is awesome but there is that acidic cringe from ... whatever it is from.


On to the IPA:

Now this beer is exactly what I look for in an IPA. Incredible balance between malt and late addition hops. My IPA attempts seem to go after IBU number but I should learn from this one and know the IPA is about flavor notsomuch a super bitterness. I also enjoyed the low carbonation making for easy drinking.

Aroma really compliments the flavor and lasts till the (not-so) bitter end. Also not too fruity like some IPAs.

Color is at the higher end of the range but still a really cool deep amber color.

This was a great beer. Wish I had a keg or 2 of it right now!

chillHayze said:

...I don't know if I got a bad bottle or what but mine smelled a bit off. Not terribly bad just a hint of bacterial funkiness...

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Well, that ain't right! I'm both puzzled and apologetic. Just my luck that one I'd send out would have this flaw! All the dozens of other I've had were fine - trust me!

I'd send you another bottle, but both it and the IPA are gone! I need to brew them again, as they go fast. But I have a Bock, a Wild Rice lager and my house ale in the pipeline. I'll send you one of those when they are ready to make up for this.

That said, I really appreciate your reviews. The stout, when it is right, is lighter bodied, along the lines of a non-nitro'd Guinness. And, as noted, the chocolate stands out.

The IPA is one I enjoy brewing almost as much as I enjoy drinking! The only thing I may change is cutting the roasted 2-row to 1-1/2 or 2 lbs.

Thanks for your critiques!

Hey Rhoobarb. I apologize. I'll get on this.

olllllo said:

Hey Rhoobarb. I apologize. I'll get on this.

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No problem. I was late sending it, so who am I to b*tch about anyone's 'lateness'!

Stout:

First of all a well thoughtout name and a history to the beer. This is always a plus.
Popped off the cap with a reassuring pop. Followed the direction for a slow pour and obtained a massive foamy head.

I let this chill a bit too much so I gave it a rest for a few minutes.

Even after a longish warm up l detected little to no hop aroma and just a hint of semi-sweet chocolatey goodness. Head retention was outstanding.

Body and mouthfeel was good with a pleasant carbonation bite.

Color was much darker then the deep dark ruby of a Guinness.

This beer is in the advertised Guinness bottled style right down to the planned acidity. This beer is right in my wheelhouse as I am a Guinness connoisseur.

There are actually many varieties of Guinness and getting a "Clone" right sometimes can be difficult because of this variety. Most people are only familiar with the can draft or from the tap. I've actually had the pleasure of having a few of their brewhouse versions that accentuate different aspects of the Guinness trademake flavor. There are also several different version of the bottled version that is dependent on where it is being shipped. It's really better to think of them more as a family of flavor.

My impression is that you are taken with the bottled tang and have chosen to accentuate it. Kudos! I'm getting that sensation but the chocolate aspects are balancing it out nicely so that you ARE NOT left with a sourness that some stouts can give you. I really like that.

I am in the process of converting to all grain and so I think that I will be taking a hard look at this recipe for future.

BTW if you are interested, my understanding is that the bottled version for Africa is intentionally soured. You may want to look into that as well.

Very happy to have had this beer. Thanks.

Thanks for the review, olllllo! Glad you liked it!

Your thinking is correct; I was really trying for the Guinness 'tang', which is why I permanently added the acidulated malt to the recipe. IMO, you can still pick up that taste from the nitro'd version, but it seems a lot more subdued than in the bottle. If I can ever get my hands on the African version you mentioned, I'd love to try it. Although, it might be too sour for my taste. This version is about as far as I want to push it!

This is an easy AG recipe. I think most first-time AG'ers would be smart to do either a stout or a simple pale ale as their inaugural brew.

Hope you enjoy the Yellow Rose as much!

First a giant apology.

I thought I had all of my beer drinking responsibilities taken care of, but what did I find at the back of my fridge (the food one) but Rhoobarb's Amarillo Yellow Rose IPA.

I had it sequestered there because none of my friends would ever look there for beer (they know where to go) and my wife is familiar with my "beer homework".

So with a few hours of Sunday yardwork behind me and several ahead, I decided to take a break.

Pour:
I poured vigorously and was rewarded with a 2" head that lasted throughout.

Aroma:
I inhaled until I hyperventilated to see if I could pick up the hops... Perhaps because I sat on this bottle for so long. I haven't used Amarillo hops for any of my beers yet, but I do have some in the freezer for future. I'll have to look in your recipe to see whether you dry hopped.

Appearance:
A little roastier in color like when I use extract (I know that this is AG). I'll have to look at the recipe to see if I can figure out why. (I'm learning). I've never been one to care much about color as long as there is clarity and this one is pretty good despite my greedy pour.

Flavor:
A good many of the IPA's I have made are either too malty (to the point where I call them CHPA - Cape Horn Pale Ale (never made it to India) or over the top with hops. This is a good match with a fair balance. I think the trend has pushed the style too far in favor of a hop-fest. It's a real thirst quencher too that made for easy drinking. Perhaps low on the carbonation bite , but in my particular circumstances (85° today), really hit the spot.

Overall:
I had to restrain myself from just putting this one away. I'll go back and look at the recipe tonite and I hope that I can discuss this one with you. I'm already into my 3rd IPA batch so, it might be awhile before I can get to this one. i need to get these Amarillos into a brew and this one might fit the bill.

Thanks for the fine Brews Rhoobarb.