From the Cellar:* Smuttynose Farmhouse Ale

After absolutely adoring this one on tap last summer, I went out and bought several bottles (for a reasonable price as Smutty tends to be). Unfortunately, the bottled product did notmatch what was on tap. It had an overpowering fruity sweet - syrup that stuck out. Things have changed.

It certainly looks the part of a saison, orange-straw under a big white cap of foam. The aroma got lotsa fruit: bosch pear, a hint of peach, and fragrant apples (Macoun or Roxbury Russett). Like a farmstand in late August. There's also a straw and earthy smell, presumably hops, that hints at balance. The sweetness has left, thankfully, leaving a refreshing dryness along with all that fruit. Moreish. Indeed I will buy more next summer and not open any for at least six months.



*A box in the back of the pantry

Tasting: Tweaked Saison

It's always fun to split a batch at some point in the brewing process then compare the final results. In the case of this beer I split the Tweaked Saison at bottling. Half plain and half with 1.5 gallons of some low gravity beer that has been aging, getting funky and sour.

Plain
Pours a very light copper with big, slightly off-white foam. The beer is almost as clear as if I had proper wort chiller. Aroma from the yeast is melons and clove that mingle with the oranges and grass of noble hops. The mouthfeel is soft with a very fine carbonation. Appropriately thing for a beer that is somewhere between a Saison and a Belgian pale ale. The taste is a lovely balance of sweet malt, fruity yeast, and refined bitterness, which lingers unobtrusively. I do prefer the saison made with Dupont yeast but wouldn't mind this beer any time.




Funky
The bugs from the funky brew seems to have done some work and created higher carbonation. That extra CO2 caused the yeast to get stirred up when opened and poured so it ended up cloudy in the glass. Not a problem for me though. The fine hop aroma plays second fiddle to the funk. Yogurt and tropical fruit, mango mostly. There is also the smell and taste of Flemish sour beers that I'm not sure what to call it. There is certainly a slight acetic component, albeit subdued, thankfully. The taste lacks the hops bitterness from the plain portion. Replaced by bit of tartness that doesn't overpower allows for savoring of the fruitiness and funk from each part of the blend. This turned out about as good as I could have hoped for.

Saison, Tweaked

I made a few tweaks to my saison recipe to investigate how they will affect the beer. The main change was using De Dolle yeast in place of Dupont yeast. Both produce a lovely beer but there I have no way of getting the Dupont yeast warm enough to finish in the dead of winter. I also plan on blending at least some of this batch with a low gravity sour to make it a bit ghoulish. The other minor changes were the addition of a rest at 136 F and adding a third of the hops as a First Wort addition.


















Fermentation started explosively, blowing the lid off the fermentor twice within 12 hours of pitching.

Tasting: Belgian Chocolate

The brown liquid out of the bottle
finds itself much darker in a monk's goblet
and pushes up a toffee foam,
invites a whiff.
cocoa
figs
plums
and pepper.

A sip through the lips,
plums and blackberries
play on the tongue.
Dry and bitter,
the soft brew slides down
into a happy belly.

On Pumpkin Beer

A few days ago I made a comment on Appellation Beer about horrid pumpkin beer. It spurred a few replies spanning a wide spectrum of sanity and coherence. I feel that I need to expand on my little rant and defend my detest of gourdy libations.

First up is Lauren Buzzeo's reply to criticism of her list that sparked Stan's post and subsequent debate. I enjoyed her reply and she certainly showed some journalistic professionalism, even suggesting a survey of brewers about pumpkin beer. In light of other replies, I am content to agree to disagree.

The other comments in response to mine were somewhat bewildering. I was accused of short-sightedness. My comment was misinterpreted as railing against adjuncts. I WILL NOT BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY... damnit.

This might be fine if bitter or pils were the subject. But the subject is a group of beers of which every one I've tasted (unfortunately too many) has been obnoxiously spiced mix with stomach churning aroma, taste and body. Every time I give another one a chance I'm reminded of Lewis Black's rant on candy corn, its even seasonally appropriate. As that rotten liquid runs over the back of my mouth... SONUFABITCH! I've never seen anyone want a second serving of pumpkin beer. Even the people who do like it struggle to put away a full pint.

It is true that pumpkin beer has been made for centuries. But those colonial brewers were not using pumpkins to add flavor. They were short on barley and were looking for other things to make booze. They also fermented parsnips and wood shavings. Maybe some "innovative" brewer should concoct parnsip and wood shaving ale fermented in a pumpkin. It will be great!

It seems I'm rambling so I will head toward some final grandiose point. I'm not too concerned about the comments in response to mine in particular. But seems people find a problem with not liking, even hating, something. The defenders of pumpkin beer are reminiscent of Mac fanboys, though not quite as ravenous.... yet. So I will just say all pumpkin beers are disgusting and I don't care who knows it or what they think about it. Actually, I hope my local brewers get the message.

Tasting: Double Stout

I have been hotly anticipating this stout. As I had mentioned before, I have yet to brew a stout I was happy with. A new water profile after moving and a new recipe gave me hope that this would turn out well...


Pours the way an ideal stout should like used motor oil under a thick tan cap. Sticking my nose in the glass reveals many layers of roasted malt, from dark toast, chocolate and coffee to a bit of peaty smoke. The taste is more roast malt and bitterness. The hint of smoke is not the smooth campfire smoke of rauchbier, rather the peat and salt of scotch. But that is just a background note in the full on dark chocolate and toast that is the main flavor. Ultimately the body is not so heavy as to prevent repeated sipping. Finally I've brewed the stout I imagined.

Belgian Chocolate

I took advantage of the day off from class to brew and bottle some deliciousness. Out of the fermentor was the Double Stout, finishing at an adequate 1.012 and 8.1% ABV with wonderful smoky and roasted flavors. Into the fermentor was a Belgian-inspired brew with cocoa powder (fka Dubbel Chocolate). I changed the recipe from last to tone down the chocolate and up the fuitiness. Also no oak this year. I plan to add some frozen blackberries and plums in secondary to accentuate the fruit. Details below.