Beerswap III: BierMunchers Junk

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BierMuncher

...My Junk is Ugly...
HBT Supporter
Joined
Jan 17, 2007
Messages
12,440
Reaction score
952
Location
St. Louis, MO
Beers Sent (12 Oz's each):

OktoberFast
Category 3. EUROPEAN AMBER LAGER, 3B. Oktoberfest/Märzen

Old SPeckled Hen
Category 8. ENGLISH PALE ALE, 8C. Extra Special/Strong Bitter (English Pale Ale)

Centennial Blonde
Category 6. LIGHT HYBRID BEER, 6B. Blonde Ale

American Stout
Category 13. STOUT , 13E. American Stout
 
So far I've had the Oktoberfest, and man oh man was it ever tasty! It was almost like a liquid Heath Bar. Tons of caramel and toffee. One of the best beers I've ever received from a swap.

EDIT: Please post the recipe
 
Cheesefood said:
So far I've had the Oktoberfest, and man oh man was it ever tasty! It was almost like a liquid Heath Bar. Tons of caramel and toffee. One of the best beers I've ever received from a swap.

EDIT: Please post the recipe

Here's a link to the recipe...The thing I'd add...is that at about a 1.015 reading..I tossed in 2 Teaspsoons of potassium sorbate to "kill" the yeast. This insured that I'd have a nice malty flavor with lots of sweetness.
 
Old Speckled Hen:

Again, another very good beer but this one has an aroma of cigarette ashes. No hops (like the Okt) and a malty finish.

Good, but the cigarette smell is a bit disturbing. Do you smoke, BM?
 
Cheesefood said:
Old Speckled Hen:

Again, another very good beer but this one has an aroma of cigarette ashes. No hops (like the Okt) and a malty finish.

Good, but the cigarette smell is a bit disturbing. Do you smoke, BM?
Nope, never have. Wonder if the packing peanuts or the newspaper did something.

I never noticed anything like that in mine, but wonder if it was the invert sugar imparting some sort of aroma. It also had a pound or so of biscuit malt…maybe that was it.

Do any of these characteristics fit?

Flavor: Medium-high to medium bitterness with supporting malt flavors evident. Normally has a moderately low to somewhat strong caramelly malt sweetness. Hop flavor moderate to moderately high (any variety, although earthy, resiny, and/or floral UK hops are most traditional). Hop bitterness and flavor should be noticeable, but should not totally dominate malt flavors. May have low levels of secondary malt flavors (e.g., nutty, biscuity) adding complexity. Moderately-low to high fruity esters. Optionally may have low amounts of alcohol, and up to a moderate minerally/sulfury flavor. Medium-dry to dry finish (particularly if sulfate water is used). Generally no diacetyl, although very low levels are allowed.
 
I wish I could pin-point the aroma to something less negative than cigarette ash. I drank the entire beer, but there was a very very subtle ash-tray smell. Sorry, I don't mean to diss your beer, especially after how good the Oktoberfest tasted.
 
Cheesefood said:
I wish I could pin-point the aroma to something less negative than cigarette ash. I drank the entire beer, but there was a very very subtle ash-tray smell. Sorry, I don't mean to diss your beer, especially after how good the Oktoberfest tasted.
No biggy. We'll see how others weigh in.

I’m on my second keg and haven’t noticed anything like that.

I’ll draw a pint tonight and see if I can “find” it. I’ll chalk it up to the “sulfury” aspect that the invert sugar probably gives and look to tweak future recipes.
 
Funny...I had O Flain's Pumkintastrophe last week and it was a great pumpkin beer...but it had a VERY subtle cigarette-ash thing on the finish. I wonder what it is that leads to this, but like Cheese, I was unable to describe it any other way than cig ashes.
 
Evan! said:
Funny...I had O Flain's Pumkintastrophe last week and it was a great pumpkin beer...but it had a VERY subtle cigarette-ash thing on the finish. I wonder what it is that leads to this, but like Cheese, I was unable to describe it any other way than cig ashes.
I've never smoked so not sure I'd know the taste.

Evan…Cheese…do / did you smoke? Maybe we’re on to something.

[EDIT], I’m entering this into a competition in two weeks. I’ll be interested in hearing the feedback.
 
I'm a rabid non-smoker, but I sure as hell know what cigarette ash smells like. I've never eaten a turd either, but I know what sh*t smells like.

Cheese is about as as rabid as I am, maybe moreso.

EDIT: BM's beer in no way smells or tastes like a turd :D

At least, not that I know of...;)
 
*******
Batch Size: 11.75 gal
Boil Size: 14.55 gal
Estimated OG: 1.052 SG
Estimated Color: 8.4 SRM
Estimated IBU: 44.8 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.0 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU
15.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 71.4 %
1.50 lb Biscuit Malt (23.0 SRM) Grain 7.1 %
1.00 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM) Grain 4.8 %
1.00 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (60.0 SRM) Grain 4.8 %
3.00 oz Northern Brewer [8.50%] (60 min) Hops 40.0 IBU
1.00 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.50%] (15 min) Hops 3.9 IBU
0.66 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00%] (5 min) Hops 0.9 IBU
2.00 lb Invert Sugar (0.0 SRM) Sugar 9.5 %
0.50 lb Dememera Sugar (2.0 SRM) Sugar 2.4 %
Nottingham slurry from prior weeks brew.
*******
I mashed this at 165 degrees and the malt profile is crazy good. This is a beer that should be poured at around 45-50 degrees and low carbonation.


OSH_Pour.jpg
 
Evan! said:
I'm a rabid non-smoker, but I sure as hell know what cigarette ash smells like. I've never eaten a turd either, but I know what sh*t smells like.

Cheese is about as as rabid as I am, maybe moreso.

EDIT: BM's beer in no way smells or tastes like a turd :D

At least, not that I know of...;)

I smoked for about 14 years and know all about butts in bottles. I was able to drink the whole beer so I'm pretty sure there was no tobacco. It'd make me throw up if I'd tasted it. But the flavor was great. Nice and malty.

The pour had a nice lingering head that lasted throughout. Good carbonation. On top of the ashy smell was a nice mix of malty grainy olefactory hues that were pleasant and inviting - kind of like cookies (made by an aunt who smokes).
 
Centennial Blonde:

Beautiful golden color. Rich head that sits nicely on top. Subtly sweet, grainy flavor.

In other words - YUMMY!!!! This is about perfect in terms of balance and flavor, staying on the malt side. I could easily drink a lot of these.

Now I know why BM brews so much. His beer is DAMN good.
 
Centennial Blonde

Nice color, great head. Slightly hoppier than I was expecting. Very good beer, wished I had another one when it was gone.
I think this one would pleas the snobs and the BMC gand as well.

Old Speckled Hen

Nice copper color, this is the color I picture for a tasty brew. Nice head, Good malty smell, no cigarette ash smell at all for me. Nice balance of hops to malt.

OktoberFast

This one and the BC were neck and neck for my favorite. This could have had any micros label on it, it was super smelling, looking and tasting.

American Stout

Nice dark stout color and head. Nice coffee/chocolate aroma. Has that alcohol feel to it. I would call this a textbook stout. It kind of reminded me of a slightly less hoppy Stone Imperial Russian Stout (recieved on last months swap)

Overall 4 out of 4 very good brews. Too bad you are getting 4 of mine :eek:
 
My review of the OktoberFast:

Aroma: Very light toasted grains

Appearance: The beer pours a crystal clear light orangish amber color with a moderate white head atop that dissipated to a ring around my glass. A constant bubble show is on display. It is a very attractive beer.

Flavor: The flavor is weighted towards the malts up front, with light biscuit or lightly toasted bread flavors mingling with the rich malty sweetness. The hops arrive late to balance the sweetness, finishing things off with just a touch of refreshing bitterness.

Mouthfeel: Pretty darn creamy and very smooth. Perfect carbonation

Overall: mmmmm, beeeeerrrr. This is the best Octoberfest/Marzen I have tasted. Often, in my opinion, the biscuity flavors are overdone. This one is perfect. I liked it a lot. Well done!
 
I'm drinking the Old Speckled Hen right now. My thoughts:

Now, this is what makes these swaps fun. I'm drinking a beer that is quite different than anything I've attempted so far, and it gets the gears grinding a bit. I need to expand beyond Cascade:cross:

The beer pours a nice copper/light amber color, crystal clear, with a one-finger creamy off-white head atop. Lacing all the way down my glass.

The nose is different than I've experienced so far. I have to chalk it up to a mix of hops I'm likely to have not brewed with so far. It's somewhat peppery/spicy and maybe even a touch of alcohol.

The caramel malts come right through in the beginning, but soon play second fiddle to the hops, which are, I assume, of the UK variety and are obviously not the NW versions I'm used to being on the west coast. The flavor is earthy/woody. A slight lingering bitterness is left on the back of my tongue.

Mouth feel is right on - not thin and slippery, but not chewy either - a solid medium. Carbonation is perfect.

Overall, I could see me drinking more of these:mug: Another quality brew.
 
Thanks BB.

It's a different recipe to be sure.

With all the additional sugars (Invert and Dememera), there's a definite alcohol warmth that comes through. Different...but apparently within line with style guidelines.

It needs an appropriate name like "Fireside Ale" or something that denotes a slow sipper in the cold weather.
 
Alright. I haven't been drinking much beer of late, but I am now enjoying another offering from Biermuncher - the Centennial Blonde:

This beer pours a crystal clear yellow gold color with a small white head atop. The bubbles would drive that yellow trigger fish on Nemo crazy. Huh?

I don't really get much of a nose on this one - just a hint of sweetness.

The flavors are spot on for the style. It starts off with light sweet malts and finishes with a balancing hint of hops bitterness.

The mouthfeel is a solid medium - not slippery, not chewy. Carbonation is right on towards the medium/high side.

Overall, if it were 90 outside by the pool, I'd love to have a cooler full of these. Very nice:rockin:
 
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