Homebrew – January Marzen
My January Marzen that I made back in January is finally coming of age. This beer has a really nice head and a very dark copper color. The color is actually darker than I intended it to be, probably because I didn't pay enough attention to measurements of my dark malts that went into this brew. The flavor is very rich and the combination of dark malt extract with the roasted barley and crystal malt gives this beer a nice caramel flavor with a toasty finish. This beer took a lot longer than I estimated to carbonate, but as you can see in the photo, that finally came around and looks really good. The flavor and body is excellent also, but it will still mature into more than it is right now. I plan to let this beer sit for several more weeks before I try another one, and I hope to save quite a bit of it to drink in October :)
Rogue Ales – Mom Hefeweizen
I was a little concerned that I wasn't going to care much for this hefeweizen after my last experience with New Belgium's Mothership Wit. The spiced hefeweizen is definitely and interesting brew, no matter which brewery it comes from. I wasn't very impressed with the flavor of the Mothership Wit, but upon sampling Rogue's Mom Hefeweizen, I think I might continue to sample spiced wheat beers. The Mom Hefeweizen is spiced with coriander and ginger, and it has a very pleasant taste and feel in my mouth. This hefeweizen also has a slightly higher hop level than most hefeweizens I have tried in the past. Ringing in at 30 IBU, this wheat treat has about twice the level of hops as the average hefeweizen while still maintaining the smooth characteristics of the style. My photograph above doesn't really do justice to the color of the beer because my beer glass only holds 16 ounces and I didn't get down to the bottom of this 22 ounce bottle to get the wheat sediment stirred up before pouring for the photo. This beer is actually slightly cloudy, as it should be.
From the website:
Dedicated to the Mom in each of us. Mom Hefeweizen is a refreshing, unfiltered fusion of wheat and Northwest Harrington malts, coriander, ginger, and Saaz hops in the Belgium style.
This is yet another Rogue Ale that impresses me. I have yet to taste a Rogue that I didn't like. I do have to admit that I haven't ventured into the styles that aren't my favorites yet, but I will eventually.
My beer drinking has been non-existant for the last several weeks due to a difficult school schedule and a couple battles with some brief illnesses. I don't get sick very often, but in the last three weeks, I have suffered through a GI tract infection and a cold, but I think I'm on the up swing again finally...
Apfelwein is Ready
The Apfelwein got bottled this afternoon and I'm having my first sample of it now. HERE is my original post when I started this project. My initial fermentation of this produced a very dry apple wine, or cider if you want to call it that, at about 8.6% alcohol by volume. Since this project is primarily for my mom, I knew that the dry factor would not sit well, so I had to sweeten the cider in some way to make it into something she would like. I sweetened it up with some extra corn sugar and some frozen apple juice concentrate. The 'sweetness' is excellent, but it creates a dangerous product here... The alcohol content is still at 7.7% and you can't really taste any alcohol in the drink. You just have to remember that you aren't drinking simple apple juice :)
This stuff is really good, but I plan to continue with some experiments in making it. I'm going to experiment with several types of yeast with different attenuation factors and see what sort of flavors I can come up with using varied yeast strains.
If you are interested in how this is made, check my LOG link on the right side of the page. The complete process is listed...
New Belgium Mothership Wit
After the Fat Tire that I picked up at Gail's Hops & Grapes a while back, I decided to try a couple more New Belgium Brewing beers. The last time I was in Gail's they had a couple more selections from New Belgium so I grabbed both of them.
Tonight, I'm sampling the Mothership Wit. Upon opening the bottle, the traditional "bubble-gum" scent of a wheat beer comes out quite nicely, and the taste of coriander and the aroma of orange peel follow once you take a sip of this beer. From the bottle:
Mothership Wit elevates the zesty Wit or White beers of Belgium with wheat malt, coriander and orange peel spicing - all of which are organically grown. The alluring taste is the result of a gravitational balance of citrus and sour flavors held in suspension by a bright burst of carbonation. "Mothership," long the nickname of New Belgium's brewing facility, has grown to encpmapss the brewery's sustainable approach to doing business. Appropriately, Mothership Wit - A Wit to Make One Wonder.
Serve at 50 degrees
ABV: 4.8%
I'm sure there is a crowd of beer drinkers out there somewhere who are on cloud nine with the ability to purchase organic beer. I hope they like this one, because I'm not much of a fan. I have really enjoyed several wheat beers recently, but I'm finding this one coming up short. I'm not much of a fan of the coriander flavor in this particular beer. Most of the wheat beers I have tried have a banana and clove flavor which is really nice. New Belgium has another wheat beer called Sunshine Wheat that I might try when I get a chance...
Hambleton Ales Nightmare Yorkshire Porter
No... I haven't quit drinking beer, but it sure feels like it this week. I have been a little under the weather lately so I left the beer in the fridge.
On my last trip to Gail's, I picked up a couple more beers to taste, starting with Nick Stafford's Hambleton Ales Nightmare Yorkshire Porter. Upon opening the bottle, I didn't notice any particularly overpowering aromas from this porter, but the flavor is a different story. It has an excellent roasted barley flavor and the hop level in this porter seems to be a tad higher than most, which also draws no complaints from me.
From the bottle:
Legend of the White Horse
Galloping across the Hambleton hills in the Vale of York is a giant White Horse, visible 40 miles away. The mystery of where it cam from, however, does not belong in ancient times.
It was created in 1857 by a grocer, Thomas Taylor who, having made his fortune in London, wanted ot leave his mark on his birthplace. So, with 30 local men and 6 tons of lime, the White Horse was scored by hand into the hard rock of the Hambleton hillside.
At Hambleton Ales, we raise a glass to the inspirational Mr. Taylor whose vision has stood the test of time and whose extravagance enlivens the landscape of Yorkshire to this day. Just like Mr. Taylor, Hambleton Ales leaves a lasting impression.
Home Brewing Notes:
I racked my Orange Blossom Special to the a secondary fermenter yesterday afternoon, and boy... does that stuff smell nice! The Marzen is still sitting in the bottles, and probably will for several more weeks. I tasted it again last week and it's not quite ready yet, so we'll let it sit a little longer...
Great Divide DPA
I recently picked up an assortment pack of beers from Great Divide Brewing Company in Denver, Colorado. The Denver Pale Ale is the first pale ale I have sampled in a long time. Traditionally, I'm not a huge fan of pale ales, but I am forcing myself to include a few in my tasting regimen. Pale ales are quite bitter by nature, and I have to be in just the right mood to really want one in front of me. Those moods don't come as frequently as my interest in the more balanced and malty brews that I have been tasting lately.
From the bottle:
DPA is a world-renowned, classic pale ale with a malty middle and equally hearty complement of hop aroma, flavor and bitterness.
That's pretty generic, but it's all I have to go on at the moment from the brewer. It seems that their website is dysfunctional at the moment and won't let me into their beer selections.
I had this beer in my fridge for a couple hours before I was ready to taste it, and it may have gotten a tad too cold. I had a foam explosion as soon as it hit the glass, and it took me 10 minutes or so just to get it all in the glass. These Great Divide beers are also unfiltered, which means there will be a little sediment from the beer in the bottom of the bottle. When you pour this beer, some of that might find it's way into the glass and make the beer a little cloudy, which is OK. I started sampling while it was really cold and kept working on it all the way through about 65 degrees to find the point where the best hop and malt presence showed up, and it was somewhere between 50 and 55 degrees. The hop bite on this beer slows down as it gets warmer than that.
I tasted my Marzen this evening, and it's coming along nicely. The carbonation level is good and the flavor still needs to mature just a bit longer. I'll be tasting it again next week after it has been in the bottle for four weeks. Traditionally, this style of beer benefits greatly from aging in the bottle. The interesting bit of history about the Marzen is that it is the traditional Oktoberfest beer, but it's brewed in March to give it plenty of time to age properly prior to the drinking in the month of October. The color of the beer is just a bit darker than I had anticipated, but the flavor is on target. My Orange Blossom Special is still fermenting. It's been in the fermenter for a week now and I'll probably let it go for at least another week and possibly two depending on what it looks like next weekend. I'll take a gravity reading next weekend and see where the fermentation is exactly and make a decision from that point. I won't be racking this wheat beer to a secondary. I'll bottle it as soon as the fermentation is finished...
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