Beerswap 2007: Torchiest's Beers

I sent beers to RichBrewer, Hopfan, and Evets. They will each be receiving one bottle each of #6 Black Helicopter Porter and #7 Razz Buried. Here are the recipes:

Black Helicopter Porter

Malts:
8.00 lb Amber LME
1.00 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L
1.00 lb Chocolate Malt
1.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row)
0.50 lb Special B Malt

Hops:
0.50 oz Williamette [4.20%] (40 min)
1.00 oz Williamette [4.20%] (15 min)
1.00 oz Cascade [6.00%] (0 min)

Extras:
8.00 oz Cocoa Powder (60 min)
0.25 L Hazelnut Syrup (0 min)
2oz. Vanilla Extract (0 min)

Yeast:
1 Pkgs Nottingham Yeast

Stats:
OG: 1.067
FG: 1.023
SRM: 44.3
IBUs: 10.2
ABV: 5.7%

7 days in primary
12 days in secondary

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Razz Buried

Malts:
4.00 lb Wheat LME
3.00 lb Pale LME
1.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row)
1.00 lb Wheat, Torrified
0.50 lb Oats, Flaked

Hops:
0.67 oz Centennial [10.00%] (25 min)
0.33 oz Centennial [10.00%] (0 min)

Extras:
1.00 tsp Coriander Seed (10.0 min)
1.00 oz Orange Peel, Sweet (5.0 min)
2.50 lb Raspberries, Frozen (Secondary 11 days)
4.00 oz Raspberry Extract (Bottling)
1.00 lb Milk Sugar (Lactose) (Bottling)

Yeast:
1 Pkgs Belgian Wit Ale (White Labs #WLP400)

Stats:
OG: 1.048
FG: 1.015
SRM: 8.2
IBUs: 14
ABV: 4.3%

15 days in primary
11 days in secondary
7 days in tertiary

Tonight I'm trying the Black Helicopter Porter.

Pour: Noticeable carbonation upon opening the bottle making a creamy tan head that dissipated fairly quickly.
Appearance: Very dark almost black porter. Very pretty.

Aroma: Roasted maltiness dominates with no hop aroma.

Taste: This is a very interesting beer with some flavors I can't identify. I'm sure the hazelnut, Cocoa powder and vanilla contribute to this but I just can't put my finger on any particular flavor. It is like a roastiness with a bit of maltiness in the background. This is followed with a taste I've never experienced before. It is certainly not an unpleasant flavor. As a matter of fact I rather enjoy it.

Proximity to Traditional Styles: I would say this might fit into the porter category but I'm no expert.

Overall: This is a very drinkable porter that is off the beaten path. I enjoyed every sip and was wishing there was more when the glass was empty. This is a dog gone good beer and you say it's only your 6th brew? Great job!

Wow, thanks for the positive review. I'm truly flattered to hear such kind words from someone of your stature. It is my favorite recipe so far, and one that I plan on brewing a regular basis.

finally got around to trying this tonight:

Good carbonation - Head was a nice creamy tan color but dissipated quickly.

Aroma was good, not too hoppy and just subtle malt aroma. I like it so far.

First taste - WOW, quite a mix of flavors, but they go well together and nothing too dominant. Somewhat toffee like and it leaves a pleasant chocolate/malty after taste . Very nice mouthfeel.

Still drinking and thinking. After a few sips, I sucked in a deep breath to see if the taste intensified and then I had it...this reminds me of those chocolate & hazelnut dessert balls (Ferrero Rocher?) that SWMBO's mom always puts out at Christmas.

Visual - excellent deep mocha color and good lacing in the glass.

Overall - This is a fantastic brew. I will definitely be brewing this next Fall so it will be ready to go when the weather turns (to me, Porters are only best when it's cold outside which is part of it's lore anyway) I can't believe this is only your 6th batch. Puts my brews to shame.

Thanks for the great beer. Looking forward to the Razz Buried half wit.

I'm drinking the Razz Buried tonight

Pour: High carbonation upon opening the bottle and the pour created a nice creamy head that lasted throughout.

Appearance: Light amber color and is a bit hazy which I think is appropriate for this beer..

Aroma: The raspberry comes through quite well with a hint of maltiness. I can't detect any hop aroma.

Taste: I can taste the raspberries right off the bat. Very little bitterness or hop flavors. Very clean and a bit sweet. maltiness is there but muted. All in all I like the balance of the flavors. I also like the high carbonation with this beer.

Proximity to Traditional Styles: I honestly don't know if this beer fits a particular style. I'm not familiar with wheat beers. I can say that this will make a fantastic summer beer. Sitting in the back yard in the shade sipping on one of these is what it's all about.

Overall: Wow! I love this beer! I actually drank it too fast so I probably didn't evaluate it all that well. The balance of malt and the raspberry is just wonderful. Don't change a thing. I will be converting this to AG and I'll make it to enjoy this summer.
Thanks for sending me this beer!

Thanks to both of you for the great reviews! It's pretty cool to hear that you want to brew them yourselves. The Razz Buried was the most difficult thing I'd done so far, with the pasteurization and three stage fermentation, but it seems to have paid off.

Black Helicopter Porter

Good carbonation. Poured a nice big tan head which settled quickly to a thin layer of foam which lasted throughout the beer.
Dark brown, almost black in color.
No noticeable hop aroma but a nicely balanced hop bitterness that blends well with the malt flavor.
The choc. malt works well with the "extras" and reminds me of the chocolate cokes I used to get at the soda fountain as a kid. Very nice. I believe I'll be making this one myself. Good job!

Thanks for another good review. I just brewed another batch of the porter yesterday, and I think I'm going to add cherries to the secondary.

I'm also planning on doing a blueberry version of the raspberry half-wit next, but I'm getting such rave reviews on the raspberry version that I think I'll brew another batch of that one too!