11-11-11 Old Ale Swap and Critique Thread

[strat_thru_marshall]

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?

I used 005, British Ale on that one. I like the slight mineral-y ester it puts off. It came out a little too roasty for the style, and therefore didn't place in the competitions I entered it into. I still think it tastes pretty good though.

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!

Thanks, glad you liked it.

Simple recipe, 90% Munich I, 7% Caramunich I, 3% Carafa Special I. All Weyermann malts. My notes indicate that I did a single infusion mash at 155F.

Hallertau Mittelfruh to 25 IBU, then finish with just a touch of Mittelfruh at the end of the boil (7 grams for 6 gallons). 60 minute boil.

This starts at 1.068 and finishes around 1.019. I used WLP830 that I had stepped up off of a tiny "lite" lager, then to a Pilsner, then to the bock. Fermented at 50F for two weeks, then lagered for a couple months at 32.

I cant remember if I filtered this one or not. It's highly possible though.

 

[KingBrianI]

jmo88's 11-11-11

Aroma - Familiar brett notes with the addition of dill pickles and smoky-wood. The pie cherry notes from the brett are mixing with the pickle smell to give a somewhat tart aroma.

Appearance - Poured a clear toffee-amber with a creamy, off-white head.

Flavor - Dryish, but packed with flavor. I'm getting lots of smoke up front. Creamy malt flavors follow through accompanied by a touch of malt sweetness and only a touch of tartness. Finish is dry and a bit chalky.

Mouthfeel - Full and creamy mouthfeel with just the right amount of low carbonation. There is a bit of astringency in the finish that while not unpleasant, does take away from the beer somewhat.

Overall - A good beer, but not my favorite among the 11-11-11s I've tried. The chalky, astringent finish was a distraction. I'm not sure where it comes from, but it may be connected to the smokiness I was getting. Definitely not a bad beer though, and plenty complex. I'm sure some people would find the characters I mentioned favorable in that they increase the complexity and overall volume of flavor of the beer.

 

[CA-LT1]

Alright, so I had smokinghole's Pumpkin ale:

So I'm not really all that familiar with the english yeasts, but this one really has some esters (I think, unless it's the spices I'm picking up). I can't quite put my finger on it, but the aroma has a plasticky (is that called phenolic?), and yet earthy note, and I love it!

Full bodied, medium bitterness up front, spicy sweetness after. Oh, and the carb level was good.

Nice, so how was the pumpkin added, and what spices did you use?

 

[smokinghole]

You guys are sure nice saying the carb level was nice. I was not happy with it so I popped the top of my remaining bottles and recapped them. Now it's better. The pumpkin was mashed, and the spicing was only nutmeg and cinnamon. I put 5-6 whole cinnamon sticks and maybe 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg in the last 10 min of the boil. The yeast was a complete accident. I wanted to use WLP028 but grabbed and grew a starter with wlp099. Didn't realize it until I had pitched the starter. If you never used it the 099 seems to be done but keeps working for a long time and that happened with this beer. I bottled it for like 2.3 volumes of CO2 and it came up more than that for sure.

 

[CA-LT1]

Getting around to drinking more beers

MarsColonist's Dry stout w/ WLP005
Aroma of a typical stout, some fruitiness. Thin head, faded to a ring around the glass.
Taste was very refreshing, maybe cuz I just got off work, but it was easy drinking. Light body, but sweeter then I would have expected. Not mush in the aftertaste, it faded quickly. Nothing seemed off, nice one, I could drink a lot of that.

Dry stout w/ WLP810
Ok, was it 810, which is the San Francisco hybrid lager strain, or the 410 Belgian?
Either way, same head as the british batch. The aroma was very muted, I can smell beer, but barely. Rich, creamy taste, much fuller body, which I didn't expect for a dry stout. The roastyness seemed to come through more on this one. Some lingering bitterness. what a contrast to the first one.

 

[MarsColonist]

410 Wit, not 810 San Fran; same wort, different yeast. same temp. Oh, and the BSD that I sent to some of you got a 3rd at 2011 MCAB.

 

[smokinghole]

Anyone still have some left of their old ale? I had one last week and it has a pronounced cherry flavor but it is starting to get a bit estery if i drink it at what I consider appropriate temps. I really enjoy blending it with some fresh beer like a pale ale or a bitter. Th last few bottles I popped had some drank unbranded just to see how it is, then the rest of the bottle I drank blended into other beer.

How's everyone else doing if you still have some?

 

[AnOldUR]

That's a good question. Got three gallons bulk aging in a topped of small carboy in the basement. Should think about kegging and then bottling. Naaah . . . five years sounds about right. :cross:

 

[AlphaWolf-Brewery]

I have 3 bottles left, opened one in December. I agree the Cherry notes have increased but other than that it tasted very close to the same 2 years ago. This has aged very well.

 

[orangehero]

I really like this recipe. In my opinion oaking it is important for aging. My oaked batch has a really nice roundness and depth compared with the non-oaked.

 

[smokinghole]

I want to try something similar again but instead of 9097 I want to try and see if I can find a couple bottles of George Gale's Prize Old Ale and and see other is anything living in bottle from the 2000s. If i get something I will use that in place of the wyeast two yeast culture in hopes of a more interesting and complex beer.

 

[MDVDuber]

I have some left. It wasn't ready for the trade and frankly I thought it tasted like a horses ass (ok what I imagine a horses ass tastes like), but I popped one this weekend and I've got to say its almost enjoyable now. Maybe I should start drinking the case and a half that's been taking up space in the basement since 2011....