Xmas Swap Review Thread

[IainM]

2nd beer tonight, a delightful saison. Recommended to chill to drink.

A lively light effervescent beer, perfect for a summers afternoon, post surf. Head was energetic but not problematic!

Aroma
Fruity hops (got grapefruit) and a lovely cidery apple note.


Flavour
Lovely light malt flavour, not sweet but not too dry. Some slight hop bitterness but doesnt linger but just dries out and makes you want another mouthful. Nice bit of spice as a saison should but doesnt get overly complex.

Mouthfeel
Doesnt feel watery on the mouth which is good for a light beer. Lovely fine bubbles.

All in all i could drink pint after pint of this very happily. This one disappeared very quickly and i was quite disappointed i couldnt enjoy another.

Thanks, very much appreciated

That was mine. Glad you liked it.

 

[chub1]

So I finally managed to drink my secret santa swap. I was sent a rye apa 5%.

I was very keen to try this as I have never drunk a rye beer before. I'm just going to say that this beer was lovely. Whoever brewed this done a great job. I've never reviewed a beer before so here's what I managed to write down whilst supping away.

There was a good hiss upon opening

It was very lively and poured beautifully clear, a deep red/amber colour, with a thick head on which lasted to the bottom.

There was a nice citrus aroma and a small hint of phenolic/peppery Belgian smell.

Taste: a good balance between the bitterness and the malt, just how I like it. It had a good mouthfeel partly due to the high carbonation but also I'm guessing from the malts. I was surprised that the hops didn't jump out and whack me as I was expecting, they were much more subtle which was actually quite refreshing. The hop flavour was that of an apa, citrusy. Then it rounded of with the malty/phenolic/slightly peppery flavour which kind of left a warmth in the mouth. I would have to guess that this beer has been conditioned in the bottle a while, the flavours were all very rounded, either that or I'm used to tasting my crappy extract brews.

All in all 10/10, wish I had a few more, and I also wish I could brew a beer that good.

Thanks santa!

I will own up to that one:lol:. Thanks for the kind words,yup,been bottled for a while now so guess some of the hop flavour has diminished!.

 

[Jakeyboi]

I will own up to that one:lol:. Thanks for the kind words,yup,been bottled for a while now so guess some of the hop flavour has diminished!.

Thanks chub, I'm curious as to what yeast and Hops you used in that brew? I'm keen to pinpoint that phenolic flavour I described as I had that in a couple of my brews but far to strong and made them undrinkable. I presume it's the yeast, and was it intentional?

Jake

 

[chub1]

Thanks chub, I'm curious as to what yeast and Hops you used in that brew? I'm keen to pinpoint that phenolic flavour I described as I had that in a couple of my brews but far to strong and made them undrinkable. I presume it's the yeast, and was it intentional?

Jake

Jake,not intentional,it was a second pop at a brew with some Rye in it,so all accidental:lol:
It was a partial mash-
6 litre batch,60 min boil,5 litre mash at 67c x 60 mins,3.5 litre dunk sparge at 72c for 10 mins.
200 grams irish pale malt
200 grams irish lager malt
50 grams munich malt
15 grams choc malt
85 grams wheat malt
200 grams rye malt
454 grams h and b liquid extract at start of boil
6 grams challenger pellets 60 min
5 grams citra "" 15 min
5 gram amarllo and 5 gram citra pellets at turn off
6 grams amarillo and 8 grams citra dry hop 5 days.
1/2 pack cml us-pale yeast re hydrated
topped up with 700 ml water to get to 6 litres so a little under expected og of 5.3%

 

[dan125]

Had my 2nd swap last night - the Barley Wine. As it was a strong one I shared it with the father outlaw.
It poured brilliantly clear with hardly any cabonation.
It had a rich aroma that I'm struggling to describe, but the flavour was strong, nutty and a bit wine like.
This was a very full bodied sipping beer with a nice sweet finish. Perfect for a cold winter's evening.
Totally different to my normal tipples and great to try, thanks. :thumb:

 

[Ajhutch]

Had my 2nd swap last night - the Barley Wine. As it was a strong one I shared it with the father outlaw.
It poured brilliantly clear with hardly any cabonation.
It had a rich aroma that I'm struggling to describe, but the flavour was strong, nutty and a bit wine like.
This was a very full bodied sipping beer with a nice sweet finish. Perfect for a cold winter's evening.
Totally different to my normal tipples and great to try, thanks. :thumb:

That was mine. Not sure why it had no carbonation, that definitely wasn't intended! I noticed it had a low fill when I got it out but it was the last bottle as I'd had one the week before. That had carbonation so I don't know if the low fill or a leaking cap was to blame. It was a partial mash with Munich, victory malt and crystals with pale LME.


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[Oneflewover]

A Biere de Garde sent very kindly by Strange-steve when santa forgot me. A style I am completely unfamiliar with, so a beer I was really looking forward to sampling.

Aroma
Malty, a bit of fruit, some sweetness (honey?). My sister (who does not drink beer) said "malty and sweet, smells delicious!".

Appearance
A fluffy white head that lasted well. A very inviting amber colour. Slightly hazy, perhaps due to limited time to settle.

Flavour
Delicious. Very malty, a little sweetness well balanced by a refreshing bitterness and crispness. Lovely breadiness. A dry and very moreish finish. Carbonation really is beautiful, moussey in character. I can taste the yeast, but can't adequately describe it I'm afraid dye to my inexperience.

Overall impression
Puts me in mind of a 'Champagne' of beers. I am used to quaffing ale, but it was so enjoyable savouring this beer. Top job Steve, a seriously good beer; subtle, balanced and elegant. Thanks again for sending my way:thumb:

 

[strange-steve]

A Biere de Garde sent very kindly by Strange-steve when santa forgot me. A style I am completely unfamiliar with, so a beer I was really looking forward to sampling.

Thanks mate, glad you liked it. Actually you're not the first to mention a hint of honey, though I'm not really sure where that comes from.

 

[Kman]

View attachment IMG_1805.JPG Just cracked open mine, came with a lovely note, no carbonation issues.
It’s an American brown ale
Full extract kit.
Pored with a nice head, aroma is nice. Very malt forward beer with a nice hop bitterness on the back end, slight stone fruitiness coming through. Great job whoever brewed this.


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[JFB]

Great thread! Gutted I missed out on this one(been so busy recently).

 

[Oneflewover]

Thanks mate, glad you liked it. Actually you're not the first to mention a hint of honey, though I'm not really sure where that comes from.

It truly is a very good beer. The honey, could it be from the yeast?

Not brewed any higher abv beers yet. May well have to give it a whirl, would be lovely to have a few beers to be savoured in stock!

 

[Jakeyboi]

View attachment 11609 Just cracked open mine, came with a lovely note, no carbonation issues.
It’s an American brown ale
Full extract kit.
Pored with a nice head, aroma is nice. Very malt forward beer with a nice hop bitterness on the back end, slight stone fruitiness coming through. Great job whoever brewed this.


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Thanks kman. That one was mine. Glad it carbed up ok.

 

[Dexter101]

My final beer from the swap, a doppelbock by the name of Crack the Skye.

I had never had this style before and as i am not a huge fan of sweet drinks i was somewhat apprehensive however it was a real treat to have on new years eve.

Although sweet, the depth of flavour balanced out with just a hint of hops made it very drinkable.

Very well brewed. For a beer over 11% to get no harsh alcohol flavour was very impressive. I even let the wife try it and she really enjoyed it too.

You really got a variety of flavours from the malt, a nice mid section with caramel flavours and with a good carbonatiom level which kind of cleansed the palate. I will be adding this as one to brew in the future. Thank you for sharing such a wonderful beer

 

[strange-steve]

My final beer from the swap, a doppelbock by the name of Crack the Skye.

I had never had this style before and as i am not a huge fan of sweet drinks i was somewhat apprehensive however it was a real treat to have on new years eve.

Although sweet, the depth of flavour balanced out with just a hint of hops made it very drinkable.

Very well brewed. For a beer over 11% to get no harsh alcohol flavour was very impressive. I even let the wife try it and she really enjoyed it too.

You really got a variety of flavours from the malt, a nice mid section with caramel flavours and with a good carbonatiom level which kind of cleansed the palate. I will be adding this as one to brew in the future. Thank you for sharing such a wonderful beer

Crack the Skye was mine, a freeze concentrated doppelbock (so technically an eisbock). Thanks for the kind review :hat:

 

[pvt_ak]

Cracking Job Steve, and thanks again for organising this.
Roll on next Xmas.


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[Leon103]

Crack the Skye was mine, a freeze concentrated doppelbock (so technically an eisbock). Thanks for the kind review :hat:

Didn't realise you had bottled this yet.

 

[strange-steve]

Didn't realise you had bottled this yet.

Yeah I bottled it about 6 weeks ago so it's still very young. It's drinkable but I've stashed them in the attic for next winter.

 

[sdt7618]

So today I will be trying my last santa swap beer. Going to be my first beer of 2018.

Drunken monk.

Really looking forward to later on to crack it open

 

[dan125]

I don't think the 2nd bottle I sent has been reviewed - was this the one that got lost in the post?
I didn't want to fess up to the 1st one and give the game away for the 2nd before its been drunk.
:

 

[strange-steve]

I don't think the 2nd bottle I sent has been reviewed - was this the one that got lost in the post?
I didn't want to fess up to the 1st one and give the game away for the 2nd before its been drunk.
:

No mate, both your beers were definitely received, but as far as I can tell there are 6 reviews still to come.