Old Tasting Notes #4

Old tastings notes from January 9, 2010 - look, I just made it to 2010!!

Rêve de Wallonia

• clear light copper with huge 3” eggy white head
• musky, floral nose with fruit, lemons and a yeasty bite to it
• drinks smooth with a raw earthy, lemony tone to it
• creamy mouthfeel with nice, dry spice in the finish
• lots of yeasty texture this time and husky flavors and very dry finish
• raw lemons and sugary
• much drier than I remember and more fruity too
  

Heavy Things

• clear light brown with thin white head
• plenty of carbonation
• caramel, apples dry malts and brown sugar
• seems like slight oxidation to me even though quite young
• green apples too that seem a little off to me (old malt?)
• dates and nuts with a very slight fruity twang
• texture is thin with raw malts, sugar and caramel
• will have to revisit soon as it seems slightly off
• brewed with old malts that sat in my apartment for 4+ months
  

Old Tasting Notes #3

Old tasting notes from November 30, 2009:

Saison de Deux Médecine

• slightly over-carbonated with slow gush if not poured quickly
• muddy yellow with fizzt white head
• mainly yarrow with some sweetness of honey, dry malt and a touch of ginger/orange peel; really nice nose overall
• not overly earthy, but plenty of yarrow
• more sweetness could help here I think against the yarrow
• not much spice, but get some ginger
• yeast flavors are not present, which is a disappointment
• maybe a less “neutral” Belgian yeast next time?
• maybe the yarrow trumps the yeast?
• not exactly what I was going for, but far from the disaster I had feared at times
  

The Curtain Wit

• clear, light orange with bubbly white head to the edges
• ginger, coriander, oranges and a husky sweetness
• thin texture and fruity mouthfeel
• very balanced and drinkable
• a little bready too with lemons and grass
• nice, sticky fruity texture
  

Rêve de Wallonia

• light orange with slight haze; pale gold against the light; white head to the edges
• husky nose with lemons and faint spice
• drinks quite dry and a little flavorless at first
• mild yeasty texture with dry spice, some sweet malt and sugar
• lots of body and sweetness
• certainly not the typical saison that I was going for (Dupont)
• yeast notes are mild and finish is not as dry
• husky is an overall characteristic that I think is from the fermentation struggles and some of the specialty malts
• I want more grassy notes
• Two Medicine is a much more cohesive and rounded beer to me
  

Heavy Things

• nicely carbonated with thin tan head and ruby red color
• nutty caramel, fruity sweet aromas
• not as rich or meaty or sweet as I’d like
• thin body with sweet, dry malt; some candy flavors with dried fruit and brown sugar
• need more body for sure (as with all my beers)
• maybe too fruity and would like some slight smoke
• has a “cheap” candy sweetness to it

Bottle Time - Heavy Things & Wallonia

Heavy Things - bottled on October 24, 2009

• 1.028 ~ 7.6% ABV with 67.5% attenuation
• clear, light brown
• candy rich, malty with a sticky woody note to it
• sweet caramel with dark fruits and quite nice overall
  

Rêve de Wallonia - bottled on October 25, 2009

• 1.010 ~ 8.4% ABV with 86.5% attenuation
• in the end the attenuation is quite good, but had hoped for lower (and drier)
• dense dark orange
• fruity and quite sweet
• thicker texture and mouthfeel than anticipated
• nose has a husky zing to it with tropical fruits and lots of dry spice

Batch No. 16 - Heavy Things

Heavy Things

Brewed - July 18, 2009

Style - Scotch Ale
Source - Northern Brewer kit

Best Commercial Example (IMO): Alesmith Wee Heavy

Ingredients:

• 12.0 lbs. Gold LME
• 0.5 lbs. Simpsons Crystal
• 0.375 lbs. Dingemans Biscuit
• 0.125 lbs. Simpsons Roasted Barley
• 1.0 oz. Brewer's Gold (60)
• Wyeast #1728 Scottish Ale
  

OG - 1.086
Primary - 7 days
Secondary - 91 days

Bottled - October 24, 2009

FG - 1.028
Attenuation - 67.5%
ABV - 7.6%

Notes:
- extract was almost 4 months old: better to brew than throw away!!
- used yeast starter for the first time; activity w/in 5 hours and full blow krausen w/in 12
- I was a little rusty w/ some big spills near the end
- so hot!! ran out of ice and cooling the last 10 degrees took a while