11-11-11 Old Ale Swap and Critique Thread

[KingBrianI]

Brown porter

Ahh, ok. That sounds really good. I'll probably do it next!

smokinghole's 11-11-11

Since your wife likes this glass so much, I decided to use it again for your beer!

Aroma - Upon opening and hearing the big pfft the aroma hit me. Very strong brett character. Lots of pie cherry, muscadine grapes, smoky oak, the stuff janitors use to clean high school floors. There's a smooth, creamy malt character underlying the brett.

Appearance - Deep toffee-colored amber, tinging on red. Poured with a creamy, 1-finger khaki head that holds well. Moderately clear.

Flavor - Surprising flavor. There's a nice sweet maltiness upfront, that pairs with a fruity tartness through to the finish. The finish is clean and short, with a smooth bitterness and a lingering smokiness. The maltiness is becoming more complex as the beer warms. There's a dominant caramel flavor with a gentle nuttiness coming through. I'm getting very little in the way of roasty or toasty flavors, though the smoke from the oak or yeast is nice.

Mouthfeel - Very nice. Moderate-full body and moderate carbonation feel just right. I was a bit worried about the carbonation being too high when it let out the big pfft when opened, but it is just right. The mouthfeel is very smooth with good weight behind it.

Overall - Another great old ale. This one retained much more malt character than mine did as well, which I really like. You mentioned that body building techniques were important for this beer and it seems to have worked for you. I mashed at 158 and the saccharomyces only got my beer down to 1.028 so I'm not sure what I could have done to retain that maltiness like yours and Alphawolf's beers had. Anyway, back to your beer. I enjoyed it very much. The body is especially nice, feeling nice and heavy in the mouth. Despite the brett character, the beer is very clean and I can tell it was well-made. I think a trend of these beers (or possibly this brett strain) is a complex aroma but a fairly clean taste. In this beer the major flavor I was getting from the brett was a mild fruity tartness. It blends with the malt sweetness and dense mouthfeel to almost give the impression that a fruit juice is being drunk.

 

[smokinghole]

Thanks for the kind words. I know body building is important with this kind of beer especially using brett. The thing is short of mashing at 158 the only other option would be docoction mashing or even mashing at 160 (which would be a marginal difference). I just did a RIS with this yeast blend and I used a docoction mash to try and get it to finish between 1.020 and 1.030. I hope the sacch takes it down to about 1.040 when I transfer in a week or two.

I have to get to reviewing the last few beers this week.

I checked the case of this I have sitting at my inlaws house so I don't drink it all. I popped the tops of each and every swing top to see if they were carbonated appropriately. I have uneven carbonation in this batch it seems. Some gave me a very intense pfft, while some were quiet.

 

[CA-LT1]

MarsColonist's 11-11-11

Aroma - A slight bready smell, the brett notes are pretty subtle. I noticed candy orange and candy pear notes. Something just hit me late in the glass. Shooting range. The smell from smokeless power. Ah, I get it, a tangy smokeness.

Appearance - Crystal clear! Did you filter this? Head was a lasting 1-2 finger, and slightly off white. Color is spot on for what I was thinking when I read the thread last year: Mahogany!

Flavor - Big carmel and malt. Toasty. Very clean in flavor, doesn't leave any off tastes on your tong. The bitterness is interesting. I think my roommate put it best "You cant even tell the bitterness comes from hops, might as well be from burnt carmel". It lingers for quite a while. A little leathery too, like fresh leather.

Mouthfeel - Big body, but not quite syrupy. Carb level was high for the style (I suppose).

Overall - Solid. Different then mine, and the other's I sampled. I really enjoyed being a part of this swap, and seeing all the differences (and similarities) there are with the same recipe, just different process'.

 

[KingBrianI]

jmo88's Brown Porter

Aroma - Toasty, roasty and caramelly malt aromas in abundance. Fruity esters are there too. Milk chocolate. Definite sharpness from the co2 after swirling.

Appearance - Poured a very nice dark mahogany color, quite clear, with a two-finger off-white head.

Flavor - I'm getting dark bread crust, caramel, and cocoa powder. There is a bit of a minerally bite from the co2 that detracts a bit from the malt flavors. I'm going to give the beer a good swirl to knock out some of the carbonation to see how it changes the flavor. Much smoother and rounder flavors now. The malt comes through more strongly without having to fight the sharpness of the carbonation. It tastes a bit sweeter and full of flavor now. The bready, caramelly flavors are heightened. Bitterness is low. Balance is good. Finish is dry and minerally.

Mouthfeel - Medium-low body is nice. Medium-high carbonation is a bit too much for this beer to me. There's a touch of carbonic bite that takes away from the smoothness.

Overall - A very nice beer, especially after I decarbed it a bit. Try this beer with a bit lower carbonation and see if you don't like it better. I almost wish for a bit more roasty flavors in the beer but it is still good as is. Overall a really good beer though. Thanks for sending it!

 

[jmo88]

Thanks for the review! I agree, the English style should be a lower co2 level. I'm curious if my 11-11-11 will seem high too, since they were hooked up to the same regulator.

I hand wrote notes for a couple beers this weekend. I'll try to get them posted tonight.

 

[KingBrianI]

AnOldUR's Oaked IPA

Aroma - Burnt sugar, raisins, cocoa powder, and buttery caramel dominate. Lightly fragrant hops and a touch of smoke play a smaller role in the aroma.

Appearance - Poured a dark amber to chestnut brown. Pretty clear but I was overzealous in the pour and got too much head, so had to break the pour in two. The second pour introduced a little sediment. A big ivory 3-finger head was produced featuring small bubbles. It fell slowly and retained well.

Flavor - Extremely complex on the palate. Rich malt, sticky hops and tannic oak all hit at once. Malt flavor tends towards dark caramel and light cocoa. Bitterness is firm but not overpowering. Oak is very light and blends into the other flavors. This is a fairly sweet beer. I think the aging on oak has allowed the hop presence to dwindle somewhat, as it is not where I would expect an IPA to be. The caramel sweetness and cocoa flavors are reminiscent of candy, and the bitterness only does a little to dispel that impression.

Mouthfeel - Moderate-full body and moderate-high carbonation. Slight tannins from the oak in the finish.

Overall - This was a very interesting beer. I wasn't expecting the complexity of flavor that hit me on the first sip. The oaking came through very lightly but was definitely noticeable. This is more of a cold night by the fire or dessert beer than I thought it was going to be. I'd ordinarily prefer and IPA to be less sweet, lighter on the caramel and cocoa flavors, and more hoppy, but I think that the oaking of this beer complements those characteristics. I think if it had been called a "holiday ale" or something along those lines, the dark flavors and lack of hops would have been less unexpected and I might have been able to appreciate those first few sips more. It's a great beer though, whatever it's called, and I'm glad to have tried it!

 

[jmo88]

King Brian's RIS

Aged Roast aroma. Wood and Liquor (rum?) Some dried fruit notes mingle with roast. A nutty pecan aroma hides in the malt.

Poured a deep black. The head quickly fizzed to no head. Soda-like.

Sweet, but not cloying caramel malt and aged roast hit first with a dried/caramelized fruit finish. Really nice. The beer tasted well-aged with no noticeable oxidation.

Very full and silky rich. Great mouthfeel.

Nice job. The aroma, flavor, and especially mouthfeel were nicely executed. A nice example of a RIS. The only thing that was underwhelming was the appearance of the pour. Some head retention would've made this a great example on all accounts.

 

[jmo88]

MarsColonist's 11-11-11

Rich caramelized malts, subtle fruity esters. Some subtle brett notes- smokey, rugged leather. Some earthy/grassy notes (did you use finishing hops?)No oak noticeable.

Poured with a nice 2-finger head that settled to a thin foam and dense ring. Nice amber color. Somewhat hazy. Very attractive.

Firm bitterness and rich complex malt flavors. Dark bread crust. Caramelization is noticeable. Great flavors! Maybe a bit on the bitter side.

The first thing I noticed was the full rich mouthfeel. Nice job.

Great beer. Verry well done. I'm liking the aroma, appearance, flavor, and mouthfeel where they are. The level of brett in this is wonderful- not too much in the foreground but present and balanced.

 

[KingBrianI]

smokinghole's Pumpkin Ale

Aroma - Fruity esters hit first backed by thick, sweet malt. Then the spices come through, gentle but noticeable.

Appearance - Upon opening I knew I would have to pour carefully and I still had trouble getting it into the glass. Poured with a voluminous eggshell foam with a very fluffy texture. Color of the beer is a really nice dark amber, with a slight haze and countless streams of bubbles rising through.

Flavor - Very unique flavor. Sweet and slightly tart, with a strong fruity character. The fruity tartness continues into the finish where grainy, malt and dark fruit (raisins, underripe plums) linger. The spices are there in the aftertaste too, with no single spice sticking out and more of a general pumpkin spice character dominating. Bitterness is moderate, with a slightly tingling flavor mid to back palate.

Mouthfeel - Moderate body and high carbonation work well for this beer. I was a bit worried about the carbonation when I opened the bottle and when I was pouring, but it doesn't come off as harsh in this beer. The mouthfeel is nicely round and a bit slick. Slightly warming from the alchol.

Overall - Not what I was expecting, but very good. This is a very fruity beer! The fruity esters and dark fruit malt character really dominate this beer for me. The spices end up playing second fiddle. I'm not really pulling out any pumpkin character in the beer apart from maybe the bit of roundness and slickness in the mouthfeel. I wouldn't guess that this beer was the 9.something % you said. It hides it very well. Thanks for sending it!

 

[smokinghole]

JMO88's 11-11-11

Aroma - Sour leather? It has a tart nose with a smokey accent. I swear I smell baseball glove with many of these 11-11-11s.

Appearance - Mostly clear with a slight haze. I poured it vigorously and got a two finger head that cascaded like a nitro stout. However it died down to just a thin ring of bubbles after about 45 seconds.

Flavor - My senses are tasting some smokey burnt marshmallows with a fruity caramel flavor. The brett smokiness is apparent along with the fruity flavors. I can't pick up pie cherry notes as easily as I did in the other beers. There's still a firm bitterness. I think it's a combo of hop bitterness and a bit of bitterness from brett (I perceive bitterness from many bretts). As it is warming up the bitterness is slightly mellowing.

Mouthfeel - Medium. It's not thin but it's not full. It reminds me slightly of the sweetness level and mouthfeel of Greenking Old Suffolk. With it warmer the mouth feel is very smooth and almost slick.

Overall - Solid beer that all I could ask for is more body. It doesn't have that blast of brett on the nose but you can certainly tell it's there. Compared to mine which is a brett bomb to the nose, your's is restrained. It's a solid beer that I hope will age nicely for you and the rest of us.

 

[smokinghole]

smokinghole's Pumpkin Ale

Aroma - Fruity esters hit first backed by thick, sweet malt. Then the spices come through, gentle but noticeable.

Appearance - Upon opening I knew I would have to pour carefully and I still had trouble getting it into the glass. Poured with a voluminous eggshell foam with a very fluffy texture. Color of the beer is a really nice dark amber, with a slight haze and countless streams of bubbles rising through.

Flavor - Very unique flavor. Sweet and slightly tart, with a strong fruity character. The fruity tartness continues into the finish where grainy, malt and dark fruit (raisins, underripe plums) linger. The spices are there in the aftertaste too, with no single spice sticking out and more of a general pumpkin spice character dominating. Bitterness is moderate, with a slightly tingling flavor mid to back palate.

Mouthfeel - Moderate body and high carbonation work well for this beer. I was a bit worried about the carbonation when I opened the bottle and when I was pouring, but it doesn't come off as harsh in this beer. The mouthfeel is nicely round and a bit slick. Slightly warming from the alchol.

Overall - Not what I was expecting, but very good. This is a very fruity beer! The fruity esters and dark fruit malt character really dominate this beer for me. The spices end up playing second fiddle. I'm not really pulling out any pumpkin character in the beer apart from maybe the bit of roundness and slickness in the mouthfeel. I wouldn't guess that this beer was the 9.something % you said. It hides it very well. Thanks for sending it!

That beer was somewhat of an accident. I meant to split the batch between WLP510 and WLP028. Well my 510 didn't take off so I ended up using ECY13 instead. Then the WLP028 got replaced by a tube of WLP099 that I grabbed by accident. I didn't realize until after I pitched the starters. That damn 099 has done this to me before where I thought it was done fermenting, but then it knocked a couple more points off in the bottle. I think it'd be better with lower carbonation but whatever I guess I gots to deal. Sure I could vent the bottles for a while to decrease the pressure. I have plenty of caps and half of it in fliptops.

The beer has big time flavor difference between the two yeasts though. There are slight flavor similarities but different aspects are amplified in one vs the other. I thought the Belgian version chewed up the spicing flavor which was more noticeable in the 099 version.

 

[KingBrianI]

AnOldUR's 11-11-11

Aroma - Very familiar. That same brett character that all of our beers have is again present, though in this case the pie cherries have a bit of company from a bit of funk. I'm also getting some toasted coconut (probably from the oak?). The pie cherry aroma isn't as sharp in this beer and there is a sweetness from the malt accompanying it giving the aroma a very pleasant character. There are aromas playing around with the toasted coconut that are hard to put a finger on. Maybe a bit of molasses and some of the malt breadiness. They are all blending together making it hard to pull each out. Overall a very nice aroma.

Appearance - Poured much darker than the other 11-11-11s I've had. It's an almost opaque brown in my fat glass, but the edges show through with a deep amber. The head was an attractive tan, 1-finger, that slowly settled to a thin cap on the top of the beer.

Flavor - Wow, it doesn't dissapoint. Everything I was getting in the aroma is here in the flavor, plus a thick malt backbone that is incredibly nice. My first impression is that you need to do this recipe exactly the same again but use a nice british yeast and no brett. The brett character is nice, but the underlying beer and malt character is so good that it deserves to stand out. That's not to say that it isn't good with the brett. It is an "A" beer with the brett, but I feel like it could be "A+" without. The malt is bready and caramelly and most importantly, very "full". It doesn't come off as sweet, but that malt really puts on a show. It's rich and bold, but still very drinkable. Bitterness is low and at the perfect level to let the malt shine without overpowering. Finish is very clean with a touch of tartness. The low bitterness lingers a bit, mingling with the toasty malt aftertaste.

Mouthfeel - Great mouthfeel, with a nice thick body, great creaminess, and a perfect amount of low carbonation.

Overall - My favorite 11-11-11 so far. This is a very well-done beer. Easily the most drinkable of those I've tried while having the most malt flavor. I really like this beer, if you couldn't tell. Between the really chewy malt flavor and thick, creamy body, this beer has everything anyone could want in an old ale. The brett character is lighter in this beer than the others I've tried, but still takes some of the spotlight off the malt. I really think you should make this beer again with a different yeast strain, like I said in the flavor section. This beer is really good, but I think with a different yeast it could be really, really good. That's just personal preference though. Thanks again for sending along a special shipment for me! I hope you can ignore whatever BS you encountered and get back on the boards soon!

 

[smokinghole]

JMO88's Ramble on Rose

Aroma - Smells sort of like a cherry icee you'd get that sits next to the coke icees. I can semll some belgian esters hiding behind the cherry.

Appearance - Brilliantly clear with a wonderful red hue. Poured with a good 2-3 finger head that lasted for about a minute and a half. It has since retreated to a thin layer of bubbles supported by the small nucleation site in the Rodenbach glass I'm using.

Flavor - Tart cherry with a toasted marshmallow type flavor. It is very pleasant. It has hints of the cherry icee flavor but tastes more natural.

Mouthfeel - light to medium, it is on the drier side. I think its about perfect. I have a hard time not gulping the beer down.

Overall - I love this beer. It's something I could drink and I bet it's something my wife would even enjoy. When she gets done with her bad mood maybe I'll give her a sip to see what she thinks. Thanks for sending the recipe I'll have to check it out and maybe do my own twist on it.
__________________

 

[jmo88]

Thanks smokinghole. I'm not sure what I'd change. Though I medalled with this beer, the judges were loving the aroma but not as impressed with the way the flavor didn't scream cherry. I disagree though. I like beer first, fruit later– not the other way around.

What would you change or tweak?

 

[smokinghole]

Not sure. My own twists usually occur because I use what I have on hand, so my twists would be substitutions for hops and such. I might go with sour pie cherries instead of bing cherries (next spring/summer). Other than that I wouldn't change anything. Might use a little vienna instead of all pils.

And I'm with you I like a fruited beer not a beered fruit beverage. I've found that at comps judges want extreme everything. Extreme phenolics for belgians, extreme dryness for saison (along with dry mouth feel), intense fruit, and the most intense bitterness/hop aroma in IPAs. It's not about balance it's about standing out.

 

[KingBrianI]

Drinking one of my 11-11-11s right now. After having so many others, I had forgotten what mine tasted like exactly. Not bad, better than I remember. While dryer than some of the others I've tried, it is still pretty malty and has really good flavor. It takes a bit more searching to find the malt flavors, but they're there. It makes me feel better about the beer than I did after drinking others.

 

[jmo88]

MarsColonist's Dark Strong:

Aroma: Chocolate cheese cake with plum sauce. A few weeks ago my wife made a dessert that smelled just like this, and was the aforementioned cheesecake. Tart raspberries begin to reveal themselves through the malt. Graham crackers. Really fun to just smell this beer.

Appearance- Poured a dark hazy red, just perfect for the style. One finger head that fell in about 30 seconds to a small ring.

Flavor- Delicious sweet malt finishing with raisin. Much of the fruit, tart, and graham character isn't coming through in the flavor. This makes for a nice multi-dimensional beer. I'm not very convinced of its Belgian character though. The yeast isn't as phenolic as I anticipated. Much of the aroma and flavor is malt driven instead of yeast influenced. Nice low bitterness. The IBU's are perfect.

Mouthfeel- medium mouthfeel, medium carbonation.

Overall- A really solid beer. I feel this is almost a combination of many strong ale styles. It has a nice dried fruit character from the malt expected of the Belgian style, but also has a clean yeast character. The richness of the malt suggests a high percentage of base malt rather than a decent portion of simple sugars. Is that correct or is it the age of the beer that's leading me that way?

 

[MarsColonist]

Its the New world Westy clone from HBT with 3.5# of homemade dark candi. 1st BSD at DixieCup this year and got me in the MCAB.

 

[MarsColonist]

MarsColonist's 810 Dry stout

O- I went in to this beer with expectations, sorry I couldn't help it Your other stout with wlp005 was AMAZING but I feel this yeast didn't work for this beer. I assume the yeast is the only difference? .... Thanks for sending this beer. I really enjoy experiencing the differences the yeasts make!

Ah.... its 410, Belgian Wit II yeast, not SanFran (which I use a lot)!
I actually preferred this stout over the other (liked them both!).. I thought it was a cleaner yeast profile, but yes, it was the same beer with different yeasts, hopefully carbed the same. I make 10gallons and tend to do a lot of yeast experiments.

I need to get on the ball doing reviews... I took notes on one of CA's beers (dont remember off the top of my head which it was; dont know if I can find my notes), but sampled a few (CA's torpedo, and strat's bock) during my weekly beer gathering sessions, but was too preoccupied with the guests to do a formal review.. (man, that bock was really nice strat_thru_marshall.. superb aroma, body a little light, but nice!) I vow to do a good review of the rest! Ill do all 11-11-11's I have at the same time (mine+3), but source hidden by the GF to give a objective breakdown.

 

[KingBrianI]

jmo88's Ramble on Rose

Aroma - Very low aroma. A touch of soapy hops and maybe a bit of fruit coming through but the esters and phenols I expect from a saison are missing. Once I drank the beer down a little I was able to swish it around the glass and the aromas started appearing. The saison yeast character became more pronounced.

Appearance - Poured a striking pinkish-orangish-red color. Very clear except for a fine "dust" floating around that is hardly noticeable. A nice rocky head popped up but quickly faded.

Flavor - Flavor is much more like a saison. Spicy phenols and slightly sweet cherries and pilsner malt show up front with the cherries becoming rounder and fuller mid-palate and finishing dry and fruity. Strong pilsner malt aftertaste is pleasant. I think I remember reading that this beer was oaked but I'm not getting much of that character. There might be a slight mustiness in the background I sometimes associate with oak. A quickly passing impression somewhere in the aftertaste could be oak as well. As it warms, finish is less dry and a cherry syrup flavor comes out.

Mouthfeel - Moderate-light body and moderate carbonation are nice in this beer. No tannins detected from the oak. Very smooth.

Overall - Very nice beer! The color was great, added another dimension to the beer. I didn't get much oak character but that was ok. I thought the beer was good without it. The yeast character was somewhat subdued for a saison. But again, I didn't mind the subtleness of the yeast. It helped the pilsner malt and the cherries shine through. I'm not usually a fruit beer kind of guy, but I really liked this beer. It's very easy to drink and I tore right through it before I knew it. Good flavor from the malt and cherries but the dryness and slight cherry tartness keeps it refreshing and keeps me going back for another sip. Nice job!

 

[jmo88]

Damn, that's a beautiful picture. Maybe I should send you more of my beer just so you can photograph it.

Thanks for the review!

 

[KingBrianI]

Damn, that's a beautiful picture. Maybe I should send you more of my beer just so you can photograph it.

Thanks for the review!

Deal!

 

[smokinghole]

King Brian's Holiday Spiced Ale

Aroma - When I opened it I smelled candied fruits like you would have in a fruit cake, molasses, and spiced plums. It smelled slightly like spiced rum

Appearance - Deep dark brown. When poured there was little to no head but I didn't pour very vigorous.

Flavor - I love it. I am picking up sweet spiced rum notes, nutmeg maybe, and maybe a very slight orange peel. It reminds me of a rum soaked bready dessert. I don't know what the abv is but it was very drinkable for me. This beer had no hot alcohol burn but I could tell after i was done drinking it, this wasn't a session ale.

Mouthfeel - I would say damn near perfect. It is balanced by the spices and the residual sweetness in the beer. I really like this beer.

Overall - Awesome I would drink more of these if I had them. In fact would you share the recipe with me? Very very good spiced ale because the spicing is on the reserved side of things which how they should be. I hate spiced beers that are spice bombs, and this certainly is not a spice bomb.

 

[KingBrianI]

I'm glad you liked it! It was kind of a kitchen sink beer I brewed to use up leftover grains back in 09. Here is the recipe:

5.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) UK (3.0 SRM) Grain 27.87 %
2.50 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) Bel (3.0 SRM) Grain 13.94 %
2.50 lb Pilsner (2 Row) Bel (2.0 SRM) Grain 13.94 %
2.00 lb Pilsner (2 Row) Ger (2.0 SRM) Grain 11.15 %
1.00 lb Wheat, Torrified (1.7 SRM) Grain 5.57 %
0.50 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (60.0 SRM) Grain 2.79 %
0.50 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt -extra dark (150.0 SRM) Grain 2.79 %
0.50 lb Pilsner (2 Row) US (1.0 SRM) Grain 2.79 %
0.50 lb Special Roast (50.0 SRM) Grain 2.79 %
0.44 lb Special B Malt (180.0 SRM) Grain 2.45 %
0.25 lb Chocolate Malt (450.0 SRM) Grain 1.39 %
0.25 lb Victory Malt (25.0 SRM) Grain 1.39 %
1.00 oz Perle [8.20 %] (90 min) Hops 26.0 IBU
0.80 oz Northern Brewer [10.50 %] (20 min) Hops 15.1 IBU
1.00 oz Bramling Cross [6.00 %] (15 min) Hops 8.8 IBU
1.00 oz Bramling Cross [6.00 %] (0 min) Hops -
0.20 oz Northern Brewer [10.50 %] (0 min) Hops -

I added a quart of homemade dark amber candi syrup with 30 minutes left.

0.5 t. cinnamon 5 min
0.25 t. allspice 5 min
0.125 t. nutmeg 5 min
0.125 t. cloves 5 min

zest of 4 clementines and the peel of one of those 5 min.
1.5 oz. fresh grated ginger 5 min.

I also add half an oz of medium toast hungarian oak cubes that had been soaked in black rum and an equal amount of spices as added to the boil to secondary. The rum and spices went in as well. I've been nursing this beer but I think it actually peaked last year. The last bottle I had of it a couple weeks ago had some signs of oxidation starting to come through.

 

[DMartin]

Is there a 12-12-12 being set up anywhere? I want in!

 

[smokinghole]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f12/12-12-12-wee-heavy-recipe-formulation-271379/

 

[DMartin]

found it and replied to it. thanks, I should have hit the search button before asking...

 

[smokinghole]

Well guys I'm drinking a 11-11-11 right now and I tossed some of the fermenting wort from my 12-12-12 at 1.052 and ******* this is a good mix. The caramel sweetness from the wee heavy and the old ale flavors are sublime.

 

[CA-LT1]

Just had strat_thru_marshall's Northern English Brown:

Poured dark red/brown, one finger head that thinned quickly. When held to light, I could tell it was crystal clear. Slightly fruity aroma. a little more bitter then I was expecting, light mouthfeel, toasty aftertaste with a hint of coffee.

I'm curious, what yeast did you use?

 

[CA-LT1]

And had strat_thru_marshall's Traditional Bock:

First off, I notice this one isn't in your recipe list. Would you mind sharing it?

Poured dark cherry red, thin head. Aroma of blackberry and cherry, and something a little earthy. Man, this tastes like carbonated cherry juice! But not too sweet, big mouthfeel, just a hint of bitterness in the aftertaste. I also got a doughy chewiness in the backside too.

Wow!