HOMEBREW SWAP-O-RAMA #3 Lets try this again

[cmoewes]

First up was cmoewes' bitter.

At first I thought this one might have missed the mark as a bitter but turns out it was just too cold to taste all the flavors. Cold it had all the markings of a mild but as it warmed a few degrees the bitter came through.

Overall:
Appearance: moussey (i think that's a word) head that lingered and left lacing on the glass. Bad some chill haze. Dark caramel color reminiscent of a n English mild.

Aroma: malty with some caramel and earthy/floral hop notes that I tend to associate with a goldings or fuggle variety.

Flavor:very malty with mild complexity on target for style. Definitely earthiness from hops. Low esters with slightly fruity finish.

Mouthfeel: bready with a medium-heavy body. Pleasantly bitter.

Overall: a very enjoyable beer that showed great brewing technique. In a competition I would have scored this around a 40 most likely.

Wow, thanks for the great notes. That beer was based on the recipe from a BYO interview with Fuller's brewing Director (https://byo.com/equipment/item/2318-fuller’s-the-pride-of-london)

The numbers came out to OG 1.050 FG 1.012 with an IBU around 35.

 

[sfgoat]

The second of cmoewes' beers was a black ipa.

Aroma: very hop forward with a citrus punch to it.

Appearance: dark brown but not quite black. Nice creamy head that lingered and laced my glass.

Flavor: had some caramel malt notes and possibly special roast?. Dominating hop flavor, bitterness was on point for style. Hop flavor and aroma are definitely the highlights here.

Mouthfeel: creamy med-heavy body with good carbonation.

Overall: I enjoyed the beer and I would drink it again. The only thing I would change if I were brewing it would be to not completely mask the base grains with specialty malts. I think it would have given the hops a more well-rounded flavor. Otherwise I think it was great. In a competition I would have given this a 39.

 

[sfgoat]

The second of cmoewes' beers was a black ipa.

Aroma: very hop forward with a citrus punch to it.

Appearance: dark brown but not quite black. Nice creamy head that lingered and laced my glass.

Flavor: had some caramel malt notes and possibly special roast?. Dominating hop flavor, bitterness was on point for style. Hop flavor and aroma are definitely the highlights here.

Mouthfeel: creamy med-heavy body with good carbonation.

Overall: I enjoyed the beer and I would drink it again. The only thing I would change if I were brewing it would be to not completely mask the base grains with specialty malts. I think it would have given the hops a more well-rounded flavor. Otherwise I think it was great. In a competition I would have given this a 39.

Here is the pic. I keep forgetting to add it.

 

[sfgoat]

Third in the lineup is cmoewes' brown ale.

I actually didn't mean to grab this one as I thought I was grabbing one of mine. I am sick so I didn't want to offer tasting notes on a beer until it cleared but by the time I realized what beer it was it was already opened and poured. So here goes:

Aroma: apparent caramel malt with something else in the nose. Maybe special b or some other dark roast. Malt is the dominant aroma here and little to no hop aroma which is on point with the style.

Appearance: dark brown with a nice head that dissipated within a few moments leaving some lace on my glass. Some chill haze but nothing you would lose points over in a competition.

Flavor: very caramel with some nice hop bitterness that you don't always get in a brown. I think I detected some biscuit or victory which is a complement to the style. Low on hop flavor but that is to be expected. Nicely done.

Mouthfeel: creamy and bitter. Full bodied. Nice on the palette.

Overall: my notes may be off as I am sick but from what I can tell this was an excellent brown. Lots of malt complexity without going overboard and the bitterness was quite a pleasant surprise. This was a fantastic beer that I wouldn't mind having the recipe for. I would enjoy this in the evenings on my porch with a pipe or during the chilly nights by the fire. In a competition I would have given this at least a 45. Well done. Don't change this one , ever.

 

[sfgoat]

Third in the lineup is cmoewes' brown ale.

I actually didn't mean to grab this one as I thought I was grabbing one of mine. I am sick so I didn't want to offer tasting notes on a beer until it cleared but by the time I realized what beer it was it was already opened and poured. So here goes:

Aroma: apparent caramel malt with something else in the nose. Maybe special b or some other dark roast. Malt is the dominant aroma here and little to no hop aroma which is on point with the style.

Appearance: dark brown with a nice head that dissipated within a few moments leaving some lace on my glass. Some chill haze but nothing you would lose points over in a competition.

Flavor: very caramel with some nice hop bitterness that you don't always get in a brown. I think I detected some biscuit or victory which is a complement to the style. Low on hop flavor but that is to be expected. Nicely done.

Mouthfeel: creamy and bitter. Full bodied. Nice on the palette.

Overall: my notes may be off as I am sick but from what I can tell this was an excellent brown. Lots of malt complexity without going overboard and the bitterness was quite a pleasant surprise. This was a fantastic beer that I wouldn't mind having the recipe for. I would enjoy this in the evenings on my porch with a pipe or during the chilly nights by the fire. In a competition I would have given this at least a 45. Well done. Don't change this one , ever.

And the pic of course.

 

[MikePote]

thank you, that is exactly the profile I was looking for. this beer is a friend/family favorit that I keep in rotation. everyone loves it, but its nice to here it from someone that knows what there talking about. out of all my beers, this is the one I really was hoping you would like,

Terek,

How about a recipe for the black rye IPA. Sompols sent me A black double IPA (surly blakkr) and it was fantastic. It also was pretty well balanced with strong malts up front and strong hops at the end. Id love to give yours a shot.

 

[cmoewes]

Third in the lineup is cmoewes' brown ale.

...

Overall: my notes may be off as I am sick but from what I can tell this was an excellent brown. Lots of malt complexity without going overboard and the bitterness was quite a pleasant surprise. This was a fantastic beer that I wouldn't mind having the recipe for. I would enjoy this in the evenings on my porch with a pipe or during the chilly nights by the fire. In a competition I would have given this at least a 45. Well done. Don't change this one , ever.

Here you go


Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
1.00 tbsp PH 5.2 Stabilizer (Mash 60.0 mins) Water Agent 1 -
7.75 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 2 62.8 %
1.90 lb Aromatic Malt (26.0 SRM) Grain 3 15.4 %
0.75 lb Crystal, Medium (Simpsons) (55.0 SRM) Grain 4 6.1 %
0.75 lb Oats, Golden Naked (Simpsons) (10.0 SRM) Grain 5 6.1 %
0.75 lb Special B Malt (180.0 SRM) Grain 6 6.1 %
0.25 lb Pale Chocolate Malt (250.0 SRM) Grain 7 2.0 %
0.20 lb Black (Patent) Malt (500.0 SRM) Grain 8 1.6 %
0.75 oz Columbus (Tomahawk) [14.20 %] - Boil 60. Hop 9 36.1 IBUs
1.00 Items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 mins) Fining 10 -
2.50 oz Willamette [5.50 %] - Boil 1.0 min Hop 11 2.0 IBUs
1.0 pkg British Ale II (Wyeast Labs #1335) [124. Yeast 12 -

View attachment brown ale.bsmx

 

[sompls]

A darn good ipa from wilda22...and much needed on this Friday afternoon! Not much of a reviewer but here goes...great nose really the hop smell is outstanding! And the first sip they come through but there isn't that hop bomb aftertaste. Great color and good carb. Whatever you're doing keep it up, it's a very good beer and easy to drink. Thanks so much for sharing.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[jtd_419]

Forgot to take the picture but had terek's cider this afternoon. Crisp, dry cider the addition of tea adds an interesting twist. I might have to try tea in my next batch but maybe a touch less as it almost seemed to cover up some of the apple flavor but overall a very refreshing cidre

 

[Twobrokebrewing]

Got a chance to try the pumpkin ale and the wheat that I received. Personally did not like the pumpkin but it had all the right stuff that would make it good.

The wheat on the other hand was excellent. My second favorite so far the chocolate milk stout being first. The wheat had good head. Nice clarity. It had a distinctive flavor I've not had before. Very drinkable. I still got a few more to try hopefully will get to them this weekend. I forgot to take pictures on both of these ones.

 

[jtd_419]

Got a chance to try the pumpkin ale and the wheat that I received. Personally did not like the pumpkin but it had all the right stuff that would make it good.

The wheat on the other hand was excellent. My second favorite so far the chocolate milk stout being first. The wheat had good head. Nice clarity. It had a distinctive flavor I've not had before. Very drinkable. I still got a few more to try hopefully will get to them this weekend. I forgot to take pictures on both of these ones.

That wheat was brewed with raw Wheat from local farms and used calypso hops so either of these things could be the distinctive taste you're getting.

It's a family favorite at every event

 

[pointcity-homebrew]

I had the pleasure of trying the honeysuckle wine that was sent t me by nedvalton. I am not a wine drinker and have never had a wine that I would call "good". But I enjoyed this wine. It was a little boozy , but in a good way, and had a hint of sweetness on the back end.

I will be trying the beer, wine , and mead in the coming weeks and will post as I do.

 

[Johnnyhitch1]

That wheat was brewed with raw Wheat from local farms and used calypso hops so either of these things could be the distinctive taste you're getting.

It's a family favorite at every event

Mind sharing the recipe?
Been looking for a recipe to use some calypso in and im due for wheat.

CHeers!

 

[nedvalton]

I had the pleasure of trying the honeysuckle wine that was sent t me by nedvalton. I am not a wine drinker and have never had a wine that I would call "good". But I enjoyed this wine. It was a little boozy , but in a good way, and had a hint of sweetness on the back end.

I will be trying the beer, wine , and mead in the coming weeks and will post as I do.

Glad you enjoyed it. It was a test without a recipe to follow. Turned out nice and light. Hope you enjoy the rest and look forward to feedback

 

[jtd_419]

Mind sharing the recipe?
Been looking for a recipe to use some calypso in and im due for wheat.

CHeers!

Even though hops weren't added till 30 minutes, this was a 60 minute boil after mashing at 150 for 60 minutes

 

[Terek]

Terek,

How about a recipe for the black rye IPA. Sompols sent me A black double IPA (surly blakkr) and it was fantastic. It also was pretty well balanced with strong malts up front and strong hops at the end. Id love to give yours a shot.

9.5# 2-row
.5# 120L
.5# Carafa 3
.5# Cara-pils
2# rye

2oz belma at 60
1 oz of Belma/cascade at 15
1 oz of belma/cascade at 10
1 oz of belma/cascade at 5
.5 oz belma/cascade at flameout

mashed 4.06 gal at 152 f
fly sparged to reach 6.5 gal

I used a 6th generation of washed US-05 and all the water was hauled out of a creek in my turkey hunting spot.

OG was 1.066 and I got a brewhouse eff. of 73%

 

[Terek]

Forgot to take the picture but had terek's cider this afternoon. Crisp, dry cider the addition of tea adds an interesting twist. I might have to try tea in my next batch but maybe a touch less as it almost seemed to cover up some of the apple flavor but overall a very refreshing cidre

good to know. I used 6 bags of tea for a 3 gal batch. mabe 4 next time? i really want to clone a pumpkin spice one i made. i loved it but forgot the recipe. im kinda on a cider kick now and cant get enough i love experimenting with ingredients in one gal batches. just primaried one that hAS belgum candy sugar and coco nibs

 

[jtd_419]

Kind of a candy apple cider??? Sounds like it might be amazing

 

[coyote68]

sfgoat's last 3 beer reviews...

cherry beech smoked beer

This a very good smoked beer. the smoke flavors are easy to spot in here. there is a smoked flavor throughout the first taste, it is not overbearing and quite enjoyable. balanced and refreshing. i personally would not change a thing.

Maibock...

This was my favorite of all the beers you sent. Using liberty hops definitely added something special to this beer. as the name on the recipe sheet states "Gold Winning Maibock" i have to agree. the best compliment i can give you is... i just brewed a 5 gallon batch this morning. thank you!

PB Oatmeal Stout..


Ah what an awesome smelling beer. i had to split this bottle with my wife who absolutely loved it! i found it to be excellent. the PB jumps out at you from the first whiff, then you get a taste and the PB shouts here i am!!. then the coffee flavors kick in and what a blend of flavors your taste buds are sent on a rocket ride to the reese's plant. the carbonation is perfect and the mouthfeel and head/lacing created with the oatmeal takes this fabulous ale to new place at the top of the PB stout beers that are out there. i think this is very comparable to belching beavers PB milk stout, yours is lacking the lacto sweetness but the body and mouthfeel is about the same. Don't change a thing.

Thanks sfgoat for an opportunity to sample some really good beers and for the "new to me" taste of liberty hops. i gained some very useful insight that i will be using on my future brews, again thank you and i hope we can do this again sometime.

 

[sfgoat]

sfgoat's last 3 beer reviews...

cherry beech smoked beer
View attachment 204729
This a very good smoked beer. the smoke flavors are easy to spot in here. there is a smoked flavor throughout the first taste, it is not overbearing and quite enjoyable. balanced and refreshing. i personally would not change a thing.

Maibock...
View attachment 204730
This was my favorite of all the beers you sent. Using liberty hops definitely added something special to this beer. as the name on the recipe sheet states "Gold Winning Maibock" i have to agree. the best compliment i can give you is... i just brewed a 5 gallon batch this morning. thank you!

PB Oatmeal Stout..
View attachment 204731

Ah what an awesome smelling beer. i had to split this bottle with my wife who absolutely loved it! i found it to be excellent. the PB jumps out at you from the first whiff, then you get a taste and the PB shouts here i am!!. then the coffee flavors kick in and what a blend of flavors your taste buds are sent on a rocket ride to the reese's plant. the carbonation is perfect and the mouthfeel and head/lacing created with the oatmeal takes this fabulous ale to new place at the top of the PB stout beers that are out there. i think this is very comparable to belching beavers PB milk stout, yours is lacking the lacto sweetness but the body and mouthfeel is about the same. Don't change a thing.

Thanks sfgoat for an opportunity to sample some really good beers and for the "new to me" taste of liberty hops. i gained some very useful insight that i will be using on my future brews, again thank you and i hope we can do this again sometime.

Thanks for the feedback. Glad to hear that they were well received. Willing to swap homebrew anytime.

 

[Twobrokebrewing]

I finally had a chance to try the rest of mine. This one is the cider. Very nice color. Had little too none carbonation and still very sweet. Had good flavor.

 

[Twobrokebrewing]

This is the hard lemonade. It was kinda the same as the cider. Had good color. No carbonation and very sweet. Had a good tartness to it. Not bad.

 

[Twobrokebrewing]

This is the Berliner. I didn't like this one very much. I've not had many sour beers so it's hard for me to compare this one. Had a haze to the color. Lightly carbonated. Definite sour taste.

 

[Twobrokebrewing]

And the last one is the strawberry tart. This was my third favorite out of the batch. This had a very nice color. It was over carbonated like noted. Had a pleasant strawberry flavor. I didn't pick up on the sour part of it. Had a medium body to it. This was very drinkable and a thirst quencher.

 

[jtd_419]

I finally had a chance to try the rest of mine. This one is the cider. Very nice color. Had little too none carbonation and still very sweet. Had good flavor.

As part
of the backsweetening I added concentrate back in to add more apple flavor to it

This is the hard lemonade. It was kinda the same as the cider. Had good color. No carbonation and very sweet. Had a good tartness to it. Not bad.

Both of these are stabilized and backsweetened so shouldn't have had any carbonation.

 

[MikePote]

9.5# 2-row
.5# 120L
.5# Carafa 3
.5# Cara-pils
2# rye

2oz belma at 60
1 oz of Belma/cascade at 15
1 oz of belma/cascade at 10
1 oz of belma/cascade at 5
.5 oz belma/cascade at flameout

mashed 4.06 gal at 152 f
fly sparged to reach 6.5 gal

I used a 6th generation of washed US-05 and all the water was hauled out of a creek in my turkey hunting spot.

OG was 1.066 and I got a brewhouse eff. of 73%

Thanks! I will probably brew this next.

 

[jtd_419]

9.5# 2-row
.5# 120L
.5# Carafa 3
.5# Cara-pils
2# rye

2oz belma at 60
1 oz of Belma/cascade at 15
1 oz of belma/cascade at 10
1 oz of belma/cascade at 5
.5 oz belma/cascade at flameout

mashed 4.06 gal at 152 f
fly sparged to reach 6.5 gal

I used a 6th generation of washed US-05 and all the water was hauled out of a creek in my turkey hunting spot.

OG was 1.066 and I got a brewhouse eff. of 73%

I think I'll add carafa and 120 to my next grain order.... where you have hops listed as belma/cascade how did you do those additions

 

[Terek]

I think I'll add carafa and 120 to my next grain order.... where you have hops listed as belma/cascade how did you do those additions

I got lazy typers syndrome, the bill is split between the two. so one oz of belma/cascade is .5 oz of each added at same time.

 

[sfgoat]

Now for cmoewes' porter.

Aroma: definitely malty on the nose. I 'm getting a lot of caramel and chocolate aroma that smells amazing.

Appearance: clear with a tan head that lingered and laced the glass. A very attractive beer.

Flavor: very malty with lots of caramel. The chocolate is suttle as it should be imho. Very smooth drinking porter. Very little hop flavor or aroma . But the slight bitterness is there.
Mouthfeel: creamy and smooth is the only way I can describe this.

Overall. Very good, well balanced porter. I could easily drink this over and over again and I tend to stray from porters because most over do it on the chocolate malts but yours was delicious and the flavors lingered on the tongue. I tip my imaginary hat to you for a porter that I can enjoy.

 

[Terek]

I think I'll add carafa and 120 to my next grain order.... where you have hops listed as belma/cascade how did you do those additions

I used the carafa mainly for color. I threw in the cara pils on a past clone of this because I just had em laying around. loved the effect on the head so much I continue to do it. one of those last minute "screw it, why not" moments that was well worth it