Colorado bottle exchange

[LlewellynBrewHaus]

Vacation in "Rado is always nice, except for the extra work required to replenish the bank account upon returning :cry:
But aside from that I'm super excited to have gotten the opportunity to meet up Nosybear and his wife for a pleasant time at Dry Dock Brewing-talking shop and process with others within our hobby is never dull and sharing some of each other's creations was a bonus.
First up for sampling, from the Applied Zymurgy Brewery, is the "Students Guinness Style". It is of course very well made ,with good roast character, clean fermentation and proper "Guinnessy finish" I'm pretty sure I would consume this by the liter if I had it on tap. If I had one criticism it would only be that- even with a fairly strong pour the head dissipated quickly
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[Nosybear]

I've been extremely busy and have to admit, haven't given LBS's brew the attention it deserves. Will do so this week - it will be cold and settled by then!

Agreed on the head for my Guinness clone: Its head does tend to fade quickly. I don't really know why - need to go back and review my brewing notes but there was no protein rest or any other thing I can think of at this time.

When you come back through Colo, let me know and I'll provide some of the Saison you were asking for. cheers!

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

if its a real Guinness clone its not suppose to have very much head

 

[Nosybear]

It would likely have more head if I could put it on nitro. Haven't figured out how to bottle condition that....

I have LBS's "Valhalla" in front of me. It's an Imperial Stout, very big at 13.25%. Nose: surprisingly little alcohol, good caramel, some toast and dried fruit notes to the nose. Color is dark walnut brown, slight head, also not so very persistent. A very thick, nearly oily body, kind of a slick mouthfeel hinting at some diacetyl which does not detract from the beer. The flavor is initially a chocolate covered espresso bean, blending into warming alcohol, the vanilla then makes more of a milk chocolate out of it, finishes long, spicy from the high alcohol. No noticeable hop character but there's enough there to balance out the sweetness. All in all, a very good beer! I'm not normally a fan of a monster beer but a snifter of this on a cold apres-ski day, I could get into that.... Very nicely done! Sorry for the lack of a picture but low light is not cooperating with my tablet.

 

[LlewellynBrewHaus]

It would likely have more head if I could put it on nitro. Haven't figured out how to bottle condition that....

I have LBS's "Valhalla" in front of me. It's an Imperial Stout, very big at 13.25%. Nose: surprisingly little alcohol, good caramel, some toast and dried fruit notes to the nose. Color is dark walnut brown, slight head, also not so very persistent. A very thick, nearly oily body, kind of a slick mouthfeel hinting at some diacetyl which does not detract from the beer. The flavor is initially a chocolate covered espresso bean, blending into warming alcohol, the vanilla then makes more of a milk chocolate out of it, finishes long, spicy from the high alcohol. No noticeable hop character but there's enough there to balance out the sweetness. All in all, a very good beer! I'm not normally a fan of a monster beer but a snifter of this on a cold apres-ski day, I could get into that.... Very nicely done! Sorry for the lack of a picture but low light is not cooperating with my tablet.

Thanks for the feedback Nosy !
1. Did you like the coffee selection? and was it to much?
2. Could you pick out the blueberry notes from it?
3. Level of vanilla IYO more/less/just right

super hot humid day in IA so I'm enjoying a cool bottle of Kentucky common as I read your review. Wow is my first impression on the KC . Definitely not a style I have been exposed to but I think i have heard a brewcast on it before. [I'm no BJC judge :0 ] The common has a very smooth nutty, toasty, and rich flavor and an almost tart/dry/lingering finish. Haven't quite decided if the perceived bitterness is completely coming through from the hops or a combo from the darker malts. Not is not to say that the beer is unbalanced...it is. Clean ferment and excellent clarity, I will add this to the list of beers to brew myself. but it will have to wait in line- Marzen "O-Fest" is up next as a great trial for my new DIY temp control project. More than a little anxious too start lagering
Prost

 

[Nosybear]

Answers: I loved the coffee flavor (chocolate-covered espresso bean). I'm assuming the fruit notes - you mention blueberry - were from the coffee: Freshly roasted coffee tastes little like Starbucks! I got the vanilla just about just right, it complemented the cocoa flavor very nicely. As I mentioned, I'm normally not a fan of big beers but this one was very well crafted, tasty and I could see a snifter or two of it this winter apres-ski. My only complaint, and as I mentioned, it's a very minor, would be the touch of slickness in the mouthfeel hinting at some diacetyl. The flavor doesn't detract from the beer in its current state, in fact, given the combination of flavors in it, a touch of butterscotch might be contributing a very nice flavor. The problem will come later, if the diacetyl oxidizes. That's when you start getting rancid butter or buttermilk notes that are out of place in a beer.

The KY Common IS bitter, I intentionally balanced it a bit that way. You may be picking up the Cluster hop flavor - it's pronounced. The beer is ultimately very close in style to a Dusseldorfer Altbier, although made with American six-row barley and Cluster hops. Given that Louisville in the 1890's was one of the country's largest cities, German brewers settling there would have known from the water that something they knew, an Altbier, would be possible. They then made two beers: Pilsner, using the expensive two-row and imported German hops, and Ky Common, using cheaper Six-Row, Cluster hops and adjuncts for the "common man". Key was still keeping it drinkable on a hot Kentucky summer day. I've "gentrified" the Common by taking the sugars out and using two-row instead of six-row. Mentions of souring were absurd: The brewing practice in Louisville at the time was equal to just about everywhere else and if there was souring, the beer was soured in trade. Thoughts of a modified whiskey mash are also not quite rational: Whiskey mashes make terrible beer! No, my hypothesis is the Germans brewing in Louisville just made an Altbier out of the material at hand, and it became a Kentucky Common.