TBHC - Hansen Ale Blend Comp - Entry #1 Review Thread

[quirkzoo1]

Hi All,

This is the place for reviews for beer #1

As a reminder this is a hedonistic scoring (how much do you like the beer) we are not judging these beers on how much they are "to style"

50 total points

Aroma/12
Appearance/3
Flavor/20
Mouthfeel/5
Overall Impression/10

 

[SirDickButts]

next up to the bat, entry# 1!

aroma: bready and malt forward, lite caramel, some vanilla and a bit of banana and rum raisin - 6
appearance: bone marrow broth, reminds me of pho...root beer float head - 1.5
flavor: sweet and malty, medium hop bitterness and a bit stale - 10.5
mouthfeel: carb is on point! - 5
overall impression: i think this brew may have fell victim to oxidation - 5

TOTAL - 28

 

[FTowne1]

Aroma: big blast of caramel malts. Mild vanilla and toffee. Not offensive, but I don't think this is what the brewer was shooting for. 5/12

Appearance: perfect head which I anticipated because the cap came off the bottle with a nice pop and hiss. Odd color. Like a hybrid pale ale/barleywine/oud bruin. Murky.
1/3

Flavor: follows suit with the aroma. Caramel, toffee, vanilla, and a hint of hops. Aftertaste carries through with a weak coffee/tea bite. Sounds odd, but I'm kinda enjoying it. Strange beer.
11/20

Mouthfeel: the strongpoint for this beer. Great carbonation. Medium bodied and finishes clean.
4/5

Overall: I'm afraid that this beer got its ass kicked with the hot weather and shipping. I've got a feeling that I'll repeat this sentiment as I write more reviews. Would love to try this beer fresh from the source, minus shipping.
3/10

Total: 24 points

 

[Five28 hz]

Aroma - Very muted rum and vanilla, some marshmallow, wet cardboard and a little alcohol heat. 6/12
Appearance - Murky brown w/ some copper undertones. 2 finger head w/ some lacing. 2/3
Taste - White bread and some lingering sweetness. A little banana and marshmallow, but the taste falls flat almost immediately into a paper finish. 20lb. word is bond. 10/20
Mouthfeel - Very good carb and a fluffy feel. Only issue was the aftertaste lingers on the tongue too long. 4/5
Overall - Like some others have already said, shipping didn't do this beer any favors, would have been a very good beer straight from the source. 6/10

Total - 28/50

 

[Vogt52]

Aroma: floral, herbal, slight citrus, caramel, papery, and some butter - 7

Appearance: Burnt orange, very cloudy, off white head, mild lacing - 2

Flavor: slightly bitter, herbal,caramel, no alcohol heat, buttery, cardboard - 10

Mouthfeel: lightly carbonated, smooth - 3

Overall: The heat of transport definitely claimed a victim. Wish I had it fresh - 5


27/50

 

[Ziggy]

Aroma: mild floral and herbal hop aroma with a touch of citrus but very faint. Getting some pale malts coming through on the nose. Very pleasant, but at the same time I'm getting some cardboard and caramel on the nose, pointing towards some oxidation. It's not too overpowering, but it would have made the beer smell much better without. 6/12

Appearance: Murky dark orange, slight head, little bit of lacing. 2/3

Flavor: At first sip it's mostly caramel and malt, followed by a sweet bitterness and some toffee. Getting a light breadiness and some biscuit. A little bit of that cardboard is coming through but its not overbearing. Flavor is most muted by the caramel and maltiness. I think the hops may have faded on this, and again some oxidation may have affected it as well. 11/20

Mouthfeel: Smooth, good carb, full bodied, nothing wrong here. 5/5

Overall: Not a bad beer. I think it fell victim to some oxidation, and would have of course been much better fresh. I wouldn't mind drinking another though. 5/10

29/50

 

[More Betterness]

Aroma: Butter and caramel, faint tropical fruits and citrus. Definite oxidation.

5/12

Appearance: Hazy orange body with a small head. Minimal lacing but a good looking beer.

2/3

Flavor: More caramel, again oxidation very apparent. Sweet bready note. Shipping definitely crushed this one, know this isn't what was intended.

8/20

Mouthfeel: Smooth, fuller mouthfeel. Low carb, but it fits the body.

2/3

Overall: Same we can't try these beers fresh. Picked out hints of what this beer smelled/tasted like but shipping destroyed it.

5/10

22/50

 

[Beerontwowheels]

Mouthfeel: Smooth, fuller mouthfeel. Low carb, but it fits the body.

2/3

Mouthfeel is on a 5 point scale, not a 3 point scale. This submission needs every point it can get...
















and on a related note...















This beer was mine and clearly didn't survive shipping. That's a shame as it was a great hazy, late hopped beer fresh off the tap. I guess I'm most surprised at all the comments about oxidation. I was very careful in limiting oxygen exposure. I transferred to a purged keg using co2 and filled the bottles with the Blichmann beer gun, laying a blanket of co2 in each bottle before and after filling. Capped on foam and all that biz. Not sure what more I could do in the future to better prevent again oxidation, outside of not shipping during extreme temps.

Grist was pretty simple: 4oz acidulated malt, 8oz c60, 12.4 oz oats, 2lbs white wheat, 9lbs pilsner malt
Hops: 1oz Magnum @ 60, 1oz Mosaic @ 10, 1oz galaxy @ 5, 2oz Mosaic & 1oz galaxy @ whirlpool (25 minutes)

Just figured I'd chime in here despite not all judging being completed. Happy to have participated even if my beer turned to ****.

 

[coldcrash1]

Mouthfeel is on a 5 point scale, not a 3 point scale. This submission needs every point it can get...
















and on a related note...















This beer was mine and clearly didn't survive shipping. That's a shame as it was a great hazy, late hopped beer fresh off the tap. I guess I'm most surprised at all the comments about oxidation. I was very careful in limiting oxygen exposure. I transferred to a purged keg using co2 and filled the bottles with the Blichmann beer gun, laying a blanket of co2 in each bottle before and after filling. Capped on foam and all that biz. Not sure what more I could do in the future to better prevent again oxidation, outside of not shipping during extreme temps.

Grist was pretty simple: 4oz acidulated malt, 8oz c60, 12.4 oz oats, 2lbs white wheat, 9lbs pilsner malt
Hops: 1oz Magnum @ 60, 1oz Mosaic @ 10, 1oz galaxy @ 5, 2oz Mosaic & 1oz galaxy @ whirlpool (25 minutes)

Just figured I'd chime in here despite not all judging being completed. Happy to have participated even if my beer turned to ****.

I can attest your beer was bangin straight off the tap Matt. Everything I'd want from a juicy hazy hoppy beer.

I was shocked when I saw some of these pictures and was wondering about your o2 control. Definitely some snuck in there at some point. Seeing some of the color variation in these examples, I was thinking it happened at packaging but you used the beer gun. Maybe not a long enough bottle purge?

Anyway, been avoiding chiming in but seriously this beer was a super crusher before it went into bottles

 

[More Betterness]

Mouthfeel is on a 5 point scale, not a 3 point scale. This submission needs every point it can get...
















and on a related note...















This beer was mine and clearly didn't survive shipping. That's a shame as it was a great hazy, late hopped beer fresh off the tap. I guess I'm most surprised at all the comments about oxidation. I was very careful in limiting oxygen exposure. I transferred to a purged keg using co2 and filled the bottles with the Blichmann beer gun, laying a blanket of co2 in each bottle before and after filling. Capped on foam and all that biz. Not sure what more I could do in the future to better prevent again oxidation, outside of not shipping during extreme temps.

Grist was pretty simple: 4oz acidulated malt, 8oz c60, 12.4 oz oats, 2lbs white wheat, 9lbs pilsner malt
Hops: 1oz Magnum @ 60, 1oz Mosaic @ 10, 1oz galaxy @ 5, 2oz Mosaic & 1oz galaxy @ whirlpool (25 minutes)

Just figured I'd chime in here despite not all judging being completed. Happy to have participated even if my beer turned to ****.

Oops! Don't know what happened there! 4/5 for a total of 24/50. Not sure how I transcribed my notes incorrectly?

 

[Beerontwowheels]

I can attest your beer was bangin straight off the tap Matt. Everything I'd want from a juicy hazy hoppy beer.

I was shocked when I saw some of these pictures and was wondering about your o2 control. Definitely some snuck in there at some point. Seeing some of the color variation in these examples, I was thinking it happened at packaging but you used the beer gun. Maybe not a long enough bottle purge?

Anyway, been avoiding chiming in but seriously this beer was a super crusher before it went into bottles

Thanks for weighing in, Shawn. Each bottle got about 5 seconds of gas before filling and then a quick top off as the gun is pulled out of the bottle neck. I doubt many people are doing much more than that. I'll try 10-15 seconds per bottle next time. Not sure at what point it's overkill though...

 

[FTowne1]

Thanks for weighing in, Shawn. Each bottle got about 5 seconds of gas before filling and then a quick top off as the gun is pulled out of the bottle neck. I doubt many people are doing much more than that. I'll try 10-15 seconds per bottle next time. Not sure at what point it's overkill though...

I did WAYYYY less than that.

 

[Beerontwowheels]

I did WAYYYY less than that.

****, I even used the more expensive oxygen barrier caps. Damn it!

 

[FTowne1]

****, I even used the more expensive oxygen barrier caps. Damn it!

I'm expecting a few less than stellar reviews for my entry.

 

[Five28 hz]

Thanks for weighing in, Shawn. Each bottle got about 5 seconds of gas before filling and then a quick top off as the gun is pulled out of the bottle neck. I doubt many people are doing much more than that. I'll try 10-15 seconds per bottle next time. Not sure at what point it's overkill though...

You'll get a good amount of color variation in pics due to lighting conditions, but there was no amount of lighting that would have made my bottle look like the color that More Betterness posted. The sun ****** your entry, there's no doubt about that in my mind. There were a lot of good things going on, but so many of them feel short b/c of the premature staleness that the beer took on during shipping.

 

[PepeSylvia1]

#1

Aroma: Caramel, toffee, maybe butterscotch. Some citrus in there but not upfront. 4/12

Appearance: Nice head after initial pour, faded to what you see in the pic and lingers a bit. Muddy dark orange almost the color of a dirty penny 2/3

Flavor: floral and earthy hop flavor, caramel is there but not as much as I expected from the nose, there is a kinda nice cracker flavor going on. Kind of tastes like an aged east coast ipa. 10/20

Mouthfeel: Med high mouthfeel, nice carb, tingles my tounge. 2/3

Overall: I think the bitterness is spot on and kind of like the bready cracker thing, the caramel was a little off putting. Not sure what caused that. I am going to blame the Heat. Would love to try this fresh. 5/10

23/50

 

[Beerontwowheels]

#1

Aroma: Caramel, toffee, maybe butterscotch. Some citrus in there but not upfront. 4/12

Appearance: Nice head after initial pour, faded to what you see in the pic and lingers a bit. Muddy dark orange almost the color of a dirty penny 2/3

Flavor: floral and earthy hop flavor, caramel is there but not as much as I expected from the nose, there is a kinda nice cracker flavor going on. Kind of tastes like an aged east coast ipa. 10/20

Mouthfeel: Med high mouthfeel, nice carb, tingles my tounge. 2/3

Overall: I think the bitterness is spot on and kind of like the bready cracker thing, the caramel was a little off putting. Not sure what caused that. I am going to blame the Heat. Would love to try this fresh. 5/10

23/50

Mouthfeel is on a 5 point scale. Give me my points, Mike!

 

[PepeSylvia1]

UPDATED *** - I will check my other reviews

Aroma: Caramel, toffee, maybe butterscotch. Some citrus in there but not upfront. 4/12

Appearance: Nice head after initial pour, faded to what you see in the pic and lingers a bit. Muddy dark orange almost the color of a dirty penny 2/3

Flavor: floral and earthy hop flavor, caramel is there but not as much as I expected from the nose, there is a kinda nice cracker flavor going on. Kind of tastes like an aged east coast ipa. 10/20

Mouthfeel: Med high mouthfeel, nice carb, tingles my tongue. 4/5

Overall: I think the bitterness is spot on and kind of like the bready cracker thing, the caramel was a little off putting. Not sure what caused that. I am going to blame the Heat. Would love to try this fresh. 5/10

25/50

 

[coldcrash1]

Appearance: pours a hazy deep amber to light copper with a soft, pillowy white head. 2/3

Aroma: salted caramel, with an underlying hint of citrus. Citrus becomes more prominent as it warms 6/10

Flavor: follows the nose- caramel and citrus; finishes with a grapefruit oil bitterness. Citrus is really coming through on this. 12/20

Mouthfeel: Nice silky mouth filling beer that finishes dry (and a bit minerally). Carbonation is just prickly enough to lighten it up a bit. 4/5

Overall: if I were tasting this beer blind, I may not know what to make of it. There is definitely an assertive citrus character on the nose and palate. Caramel is so pronounced that I might wonder if caramel flavor was added. Mouthfeel is spot on for a NEIPA. Color is a head scratcher.

However I'm not tasting it blind. As mentioned, I know what this beer was before it went into fedex hands. That beer, I would put on a level with the top 3 that I've judged so far. I wish I could score that beer instead. 6/10

Total: 30/50

 

[quirkzoo1]

1/3 - Murky brown, light head that recedes to thin cap
6/12 - Citrusy hops, slightly muddled, oxidation, brown sugar, molasses
10/20 - Similar to the aroma, kinda like a nice pale ale that sat in a hot carbboard box for a week or two, not bad per se but not good either
4/5 - good carb, nice mouthfeel (those aren't good descriptors but I think they reflect that the aspects of the beer not affected by heat/shipping seem to be on point)
5/10 - Alas, seems like this beer really took a beating during shipping, as others have said, wish I could have tasted the fresh version.

26/50

 

[liquiddegenerate]

Aroma - Little citrus, some malt but definitely oxidation as well. 4/12
Appearance - Deep gold with an off white 1/4 inch head 2/3
Flavor - Slight citrus, sweet malt almost iced tea like flavor, touch of cardboard 10/20
Mouthfeel - Smooth, perfect carbonation 5/5
Overall - Shipping took a toll on this entry. With that said it wasn't tough to drink. Made me think of English pale or mild ale. 5/10

Total 26/50

 

[ShawDeuce221]

• Aroma: Sweet maltiness, slightly oxidized hops, caramel (5)
• Appearance: golden/copper red, off white huge head (2)
• Flavor: Not as malty as I was expecting given the aroma, good malt character though. Low to medium-low hop bitterness. Low-very low alcohol heat (11)
• Mouthfeel: Smooth mouthfeel, low carbonation but proper...feels good (4)
• Overall: I think the heat hurt this beer. Not saying that I hate it, just not sure I want another one. (4)
• 26/50

 

[WesM631]

Aroma - Sweet, Caramel, Toffee, Citrus hiding in the background 5/12
Appearance - Hazy Amber or Murky Brown. Nice 2 finger off white head. Particulates floating 1/3
Flavor - Close to the nose. Caramel/Toffee followed by a hint of citrus. 10/20
Mouthfeel - Medium body, appropriate amount of carbonation, Smooth 4/5
Overall Impression - Agree with many of the others. Wish we could of had this fresh and not subject to the harsh shipping conditions. I definitely feel like there is some oxidation present. It's totally drinkable, but just lackluster. 4/10

Total 24/50