BeerSwap 2007 - Scoutman's Beers

I personally like all three beers that went out, but don't really have anybody else from which to get feedback, so I look forward to your comments and suggestions.

#1 - Sixgun Stout

Type: Partial Mash
Date: 12/26/2006
Batch Size: 5.00 gal
Brewer: PhilBilly Brewing
Boil Size: 3.50 gal Asst Brewer:
Boil Time: 60 min Equipment: My Equipment

Ingredients

Amount Item Type % or IBU

6 lbs 8.0 oz Dark Dry Extract (17.5 SRM) Dry Extract 76.5 %
1 lbs Caramel/Crystal Malt - 80L (80.0 SRM) Grain 11.8 %
12.0 oz Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM) Grain 8.8 %
4.0 oz Black (Patent) Malt (500.0 SRM) Grain 2.9 %
1.00 oz Chinook [13.00%] (35 min) Hops 24.9 IBU
1.00 oz Chinook [13.00%] (10 min) Hops 10.9 IBU
1.00 oz Centennial [10.00%] (5 min) Hops 4.6 IBU
1.00 tsp Irish Moss (Boil 15.0 min) Misc
1 Pkgs English Ale (White Labs #WLP002) Yeast-Ale



Beer Profile

Est Original Gravity: 1.066 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.021 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 5.9 %
Bitterness: 40.4 IBU
Est Color: 38.9 SRM

Carbonation Type: Corn Sugar Volumes of CO2: 2.4
Pressure/Weight: 3.8 oz Carbonation Used: -
Keg/Bottling Temperature: 60.0 F Age for: 21.0 days
Storage Temperature: 52.0 F

Notes

Steep/Mash specialty grains in at 154* in 1.5 Gallons of water for 30 minutes. Sparge with 2 quarts of 170* water.
Add 8 oz of lactose to the secondary

#2 - Christmas Ale. Not really a pale ale or an amber, but somewhere in between. The LME was a late addition (45 min into boil), so this throws off the color and IBU estimates.

Christmas Ale
American Amber Ale

Type: Extract
Date: 12/6/2006
Batch Size: 5.00 gal
Brewer:
Boil Size: 3.50 gal Asst Brewer:
Boil Time: 60 min Equipment: My Equipment
Taste Rating(out of 50): 0.0 Brewhouse Efficiency: -
Taste Notes:

Ingredients

Amount Item Type % or IBU

3 lbs 8.0 oz Light Dry Extract (8.0 SRM) Dry Extract 42.4 %
3 lbs 8.0 oz Pale Liquid Extract (8.0 SRM) Extract 42.4 %
1 lbs Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 12.1 %
4.0 oz Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM) Grain 3.0 %
0.75 oz Chinook [13.00%] (60 min) Hops 25.3 IBU
0.50 oz Pearle [8.00%] (60 min) Hops 10.4 IBU
0.75 oz Cascade [5.50%] (45 min) Hops 9.8 IBU
0.50 oz Centennial [10.00%] (15 min) Hops 6.4 IBU
0.75 oz Saaz [4.00%] (10 min) Hops 2.8 IBU
0.50 oz Williamette [5.50%] (5 min) Hops 1.4 IBU
1.00 tsp Irish Moss (Boil 15.0 min) Misc
6.00 oz Malto-Dextrine (Boil 30.0 min) Misc
1 Pkgs California Ale (White Labs #WLP001) Yeast-Ale

Beer Profile

Est Original Gravity: 1.057 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.013 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 5.8 %
Bitterness: 56.3 IBU

Carbonation and Storage

Carbonation Type: Corn Sugar Volumes of CO2: 2.4
Pressure/Weight: 3.8 oz Carbonation Used: -
Keg/Bottling Temperature: 60.0 F Age for: 21.0 days
Storage Temperature: 52.0 F

Notes

Steep grains at 156* for 30 minutes in 2 gallons of water. Sparge with two quarts of 170* water. Begin boil with the DME, Adding the LME at 45 minutes.

#3 - Angry Squirrel Hazlenut Brown.
SWMBO uses lots hazlenut coffee creamer in the morning, and I always liked the smell of it. I made this thinking she might like it, and she did..

Angry Squirrel
American Brown Ale

Type: Extract
Date: 1/21/2007
Batch Size: 5.00 gal
Brewer:
Boil Size: 3.50 gal Asst Brewer:
Boil Time: 60 min Equipment: My Equipment
Taste Rating(out of 50): 0.0 Brewhouse Efficiency: -
Taste Notes:

Ingredients

Amount Item Type % or IBU
3 lbs Light Dry Extract (8.0 SRM) Dry Extract 44.4 %
3 lbs Amber Liquid Extract (12.5 SRM) Extract 44.4 %
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (60.0 SRM) Grain 7.4 %
4.0 oz Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM) Grain 3.7 %
1.50 oz Fuggles [4.50%] (60 min) Hops 19.5 IBU
0.50 oz Fuggles [4.50%] (5 min) Hops 1.3 IBU
1.00 tsp Irish Moss (Boil 15.0 min) Misc
6.00 oz Malto-Dextrine (Boil 30.0 min) Misc
1 Pkgs SafAle English Ale (DCL Yeast #S-04) Yeast-Ale

Beer Profile

Est Original Gravity: 1.048 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.013 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 4.7 %
Bitterness: 20.8 IBU
Est Color: 17.4 SRM

Carbonation and Storage

Carbonation Type: Corn Sugar Volumes of CO2: 2.4
Pressure/Weight: 3.8 oz Carbonation Used: -
Keg/Bottling Temperature: 60.0 F Age for: 21.0 days
Storage Temperature: 52.0 F

Notes

Steep Grains in 2 gallons of 154* water for 30 minutes, Sparge with 2 quarts of 170* water.
DME is added at beginning of boil, LME with 15 min. left in boil.
Add Hazlenut Extract to taste when you transfer to secondary. I believe I used a little over an ounce

OK, here goes. Chritmas Ale
Nice Pssst at opening and a nice frothy 1" head. Good laceing all the way down. Poured nice and clear but quickly aquired a slight chill haze which doesn't bother me in the least. Was able to pour it all into a pint glass at once. Had a slight malty aroma which increasd a bit as it warmed. The color is a nice dark amber with a reddish tint. Well balanced hop/malt flavor overall. Nice medium mouthfeel. I liked this beer very much,and I would'nt change a thing, except I think I'd give it another name. It doesn't really remind me of "Christmas" like some other "Christmas" ales I've tried. Very good.

Well, I had an Obsidian Stout in the fridge, so I figured I'd do a comparison review. I have drank a lot of stouts in the past but, since brewing, have been hooked on IPAs and haven't had a stout for over a year.

Here are the results

Appearance:
Large creamy light brown head that lasted several minutes - around 1.5 inches tall. The Obsidian head was a bit darker but equally as tall and lasting about the same.
Great lace, clear body with no particles whatsoever. The color was dark to black, with a nice black ruby shine when held up to the light - comparable to the Obsidian.

Aroma:
Average, not overpowering with molasses and nutty tones. Hops were present up front and were flowery and perfumery in a pleasant way. Light yeast smell detectable along with a slight musty hint. Very light alcohol presence. The Obsidian had much more of a burnt coffee smell with no detectable hop or alcohol aroma, not as desirable to my nose.

Palate:
Light body, almost watery mouth with thin texture and soft carbonation with a hoppy presence. Nice and smooth. Very drinkable! I could have several of these without feeling full before dinner. The Obsidian was much thicker with a full feel. I couldn't drink one with or before a meal and not feel full.

Flavor:
Flavor didn't linger but was satisfying with moderate sweetness and bitterness. No off flavors that I could detect. Much more desireable than the Obsidian, which had more of a burnt coffee taste lingering much too long.

The hop aroma and flavor add to the enjoyment without the burnt coffee character, which made this very drinkable. I enjoyed it very much and would buy it over an Obsidian any day. Great job and thanks for the opportunity to give it a try.

Overall ratings:
Sixgun stout 33
Obsidian stout 28

First of all, thanks for the honest feedback. It's kind of hard to get an accurate review of your brew when all your buddies have sold their soul to Pete Coors. The "Christmas" Beer really deserves a name change and was so named only for the fact that is was done at X-mas time and is the beer I gave out as gifts.
It seems that so far, the stout hit the mark as a "session' stout that has a little more hop character that what is currently available. The lack of body is a problem that I have been working on with all of my brews. The last APA I kegged seemed to benefit from the addition of Carapils and my extract brews have been getting a dose of malto-dextrine.
I need to work on getting my mash temps adjusted to give more body, but have been having trouble getting the BrewSmith software to emulate actual results. Thanks again for your imput, it is greatly appreciated.

Angry Squirrel Hazlenut Brown.

Alright, I gotta be honest right off the bat. This beer really didn't do it for me.
The main problem for me is it seemed a bit thin to me. A little more body would go a long way IMO. The flavor was good, overall, just a little weak. The Hazlenut was nice enough, but not really what I like in a beer. The carbonation is adequate but the head dissipated fairly quickly, which is no big deal, tho. Actually, this beer started getting better for me as it got a bit warmer; a little maltier, which I like.
At any rate, It's not a bad beer by any means, just not my "cup of tea", as it were. But also, I gotta say, I'm by no means an expert judge and may not know what I'm talking about at all. Maybe I'm just an EAC beer snob. Anyway, I 'd still rather drink this than any BMC and I hope you don't hate me now.

Evets,
No Problem at all. That batch has some major consistancy problems. Some bottles with average/good mouthfeel and carbonation, others that plain stink. Not sure whats causing it, though I put another batch, same recipe, in the keg last weekend and will see if the consistancy improves. Thanks for the honest feedback.