Firestone Walker Brewing Co. Wookey Jack

Wookey Jack is Firestone Walker's first attempt at a black IPA.  I've tried several of this style and have only had a couple that I really liked.  I'm hoping that Wookey Jack won't let me down because Firestone Walker makes the best IPAs around.  Here are notes:

Appearance - Opaque black.  Thin tan head that laces beautifully.

Aroma - Resiny grapefruit and pine with some hints of tropical fruit and apricots.  Not much in the way of malt.

Taste - Tons of hoppy grapefruit and pine upfront.  Toasty malt with the slightest touch of roast.  The malt and hops really play well in this beer.  Bitterness is medium-high, very smooth and does not linger.  No off flavors.

Mouthfeel - You definitely get that chewing/slick mouthfeel that rye malt can provide.  The body is medium.  Very palatable.

Overall - I love this beer and it is possibly the best black IPA out there on the market.  Not much roast at all and a ton of hops like you would expect in an IPA.  I love the hop combo used, Amarillo and Citra.  These guys make for an amazing aroma and flavor.  Good job Firestone Walker!

Golden Road Brewing Co. - Surfliner IPA

So I was checking Facebook on my way to the car after work and saw that my local brewpub, Golden Road Brewing Co., was releasing a new IPA this evening and had to stop by for a growler on the way home.  I don't know much about it except that its a big beer, weighing in a 9% ABV.   Here are my notes:

Appearance - Clear golden-amber with a tight off-white head.

Aroma - Piney and fruity hops; fresh oranges, apricot, and mango.  Slight undertone of biscuity malt.

Taste - Wow, very balanced.  First you get hit with a nice punch of fresh citrus and mango that mirrors the aroma.  The hops are then followed by a pleasant fresh biscuity malt backbone with a hint of sweet caramel.  The hops and the malt play off one another very well.  I would say medium bitterness, not overwhelming in any way, just enough to keep it balance.  Not hints of alcohol, very deceptive 9% ABV beer.  No off flavors.

Mouthfeel - Medium-full bodied.  Carbonation is spot on.  Goes down easy!

Overall - What a well balance very drinkable IPA.  I was expecting a huge IIPA with an aroma that slapped you in the face and a bitterness the punched you in the teeth; but I was pleasantly surprised at the balance.  There is no way you can tell this is a 9% ABV beer, it drinks way smooth.  Good job GRB, keep it up!  Time to enjoy the rest of the growler.

Port Brewing Hot Rocks

Hot Rocks is a season release from Port Brewing down in the San Diego area.  This beer follows an old school way of brewing in that they utilize red hot slabs of granite during the boil; a style known as Stein Bier.  This technique creates a unique caramelization that produces smokey, toffee-like caramel flavors.  It is then fermented cool with lager yeast to make a killer smooth dark lager.  Let's get to my notes:

 Appearance - Pours a very dark ruby-brown, sits black in the glass.  Opaque.  Thin brown head that fades to a nice rim of foam.

Aroma - Very malt forward; sweet caramel, fig, raisins, bready, toffee, and hints of coffee.  Not much in the way of hop aroma.  No fruity esters or diacetyl.

Flavor - Just as the aroma, the taste is all malt.  Awesome complexity with lots of dark-burnt caramel, toffee, dark pumpernickel bread, and slight touch of dark dried fruits (prunes, figs).  Slight sweetness but not overpowering or cloying, a nice touch.  I get a slight spicy noble hop flavor that just adds to the depth of the beer.  There is a touch of hop bitterness to balance the malt character, leaving you wanting to take another gulp.

Mouthfeel - A pleasant silky medium body and perfectly carbonated that keeps bringing the glass back to your lips.  Very drinkable.

Overall - A really awesome and interesting lager.  Tons of malt complexity that's not overly sweet and just enough bitterness to balance. It kind of reminds me of a bock but with a much more subdued malt intensity and has a little kick of hops.

Hangar 24 - Essence

Local brew from the neighboring city of Redlands, CA.  This beer is part of Hangar 24's Local Fields Series.  It's a double IPA that features the zest of navel oranges, blood oranges, and grapefruit all grown there in Redlands.  Really cool idea, these fruit should accentuate the citrus qualities of the massive amount of American hops they put in the beer!  Here are my thoughts:


Appearance - Hazy orange.  Nice tight off-white head.

Aroma - Huge grapefruit zest, piney, and hints of bready malt as the beer warms.

Flavor - Wallop of fresh oranges and grapefruit.  I also can pick up that sweet intense blood orange as well.  There's also a nice floral hint once you give your palate a chance mellow after you are blasted with all that citrus zest character.  The malt is very subtle, perfect for an IIPA.  A nice light toastiness to balance the smooth bitterness.  No noticeable alcohol, even though it ranks in at 8.5% ABV.  Very quaffable.

Mouthfeel - Nice medium mouthfeel.  Carbonation is slightly prickly, but really carries the beer across the palate nicely; it accentuates the dryness of this beer.

Overall - I'm really digging this beer.  I like character that adding citrus zest gives this beer.  I love the pungent orange and grapefruit flavor.  It's kind of like the citrus character from hops, but more fresh and clean tasting and it doesn't linger.  The bitterness is there, but not puckering; balances well with the smooth bready malt.  I'd drink many more of these.  I am inspired to add some zest to my next IPA.

Unibroue - Trois Pistoles

Aroma - Complex; bready malt sweetness, hints of pepper, prunes, dried cherries, and a slight touch of fruity esters.

Appearance - Deep, dark brown.  Slightly hazy.  Rocky, tan, creamy head.

Flavor - Dry and slightly sweet bready malt.  Beautiful arrangement of prunes, cherries, raisins, and plums.  Hints of peppery phenols.  Smooth alcohol presence that cuts the sweetness of the malt and accentuates the fruity flavors.  No hop flavors, just a slight bitterness.  Very smooth and harmonious.

Mouthfeel - High carbonation, slight prickle on the tongue.  Several seconds after you take a swig, you feel the alcohol warmth at the back of the palate and down into your gut.

Overall Impression - Very nice Belgian Strong Dark Ale.  Tons of complexity; my palate probably doesn't do it justice.  Lots of dark stone and dried fruits.  Very easy to drink at its 9% ABV, dangerous for sure.

Drake's Alpha Session

Drake's Brewing Alpha Session.  Drake's calls this brew their NorCal Bitter.  Low ABV (3.9%) session beer that is loaded with hops; bittered to 50 IBU with a healthy dose of dry hops.  I was served this beer at my favorite bar in town, Tony's Darts Away, in a classic pint glass.

Appearance - Golden yellow. Thin white head, not much lacing.  Super clear.

Aroma - Absolutely love the smell.  Super dank and piney with hints of grapefruit, mango, and green onion.  Not much in the way of malt aroma, the hops really stick out.

Taste - Explosion of hops. Lots of resiny grapefruit zest. Hints of mango and tropical fruit. Light bready malt profile; slight cracker.  Nice clean fermentation profile.

Mouthfeel - This beer drinks like any superior session beer should; its not watery or thin, just enough there to balance the wallop of hops.  Keeps you coming back for more.  Mouthfeel is light to medium with medium carbonation.

Overall - One of the best beers I have ever had, period.  I'm a fan of the West Coast-style IPAs but I'm not a huge fan of high ABV beer; I enjoy quaffing beers and not a huge fan of getting blasted on my ass after 3 or 4.  This beer satisfies that craving and you can drink them all day long.

Cannibal Red

Time to resurrect this blog back to life with a brew day and some tasting notes.

A few months back I brewed up an IPA.  It was based on a beer I made when I was living back in Ohio.  My brother and I wanted a red colored IPA with a killer hop flavor and aroma to honor a friend's band called Cannibal Red, whom the beer is named after.  The original recipe called for a malt bill that had just a touch of caramel malt to keep the sweetness down and a dash of Rye Malt to add some mouthfeel and a hint of spice to compliment the hops.  Speaking of hops, the original was hop bursted; meaning that I didn't add any hops until 30 minutes into the boil and a shit load at that.  We finished it off with a decent dry hop as well. Oh yes, we used straight Apollo hops as well; I was curious and wanted to see what this newer variety of hops was all about.

So with the background out of the way, let's get to the beer I brewed.  I made a couple of changes to the grains and hops.  This was mainly due to the availability and a bonehead move I made.  First off, I didn't have the time to order up the Apollo hops.   I had to go with what the local homebrew shop had on hand. Hop blends seem like a going trend at the time, so I decided to make my own blend of American mid to high alpha hops that I named Brutality.  The players in the blend were Summit, Centennial, and Columbus; all equal proportions (2 ounces of each in the 7 gallon batch).  My bonehead move was that my original recipe called for some Melanoidin Malt but I grabbed CaraMunich instead.  So I had a little more caramel malt in this version that I planned on.  Here's the recipe:

7 gallons
Efficiency: 80%
60 min boil
OG: 1.056
FG:  1.012
ABV:  6%
52 IBU
11 SRM

Grain Bill:
11.0 lb Cargill 2-Row Pale Malt
1.0 lb Weyermann Rye Malt
1.0 lb Weyermann CaraRed Malt
0.75 lb Weyermann CaraMunich

Mash Profile:
Mashed with 18 qt at 161 ºF, target temperature 150 ºF.
Batch sparged with 22 qt at 180 ºF.
Collected 8 gallons pre-boil.

Hops Bill:
0.50 oz Brutality - 30 min
0.50 oz Brutality - 20 min
1.00 oz Brutality - 10 min
1.50 oz Brutality - 0 min
2.50 oz Brutality - dry hop for 5 days after primary fermentation

Yeast:
1 package Fermentis SalAle S-05

Rehydrated yeast in 1 cup of boiled and cooled water.
Fermented at 66-68 ºF for 10 days.

Additional goodies:
1 tablet Whirlfloc - 10 min
1 package of gelatin

I bloomed the gelatin in a cup of cool water then brought to a near boil.  I dumped this solution in the keg before transferring the finished beer.  This stuff made the beer a brilliantly clear product after two days in the keggerator.

Tasting Notes:
Sorry doing this one from memory and the few notes that I have jotted down.  The beer was a beautiful orangey-brown with ruby highlights when head up to the light.  The aroma was full of orange, resin, pine, slightly fruity, hints of bread and light caramel.  When you first took a swig, a blast of dank citrus smacks your tongue.  Then there are some delicate fruity floral hints once that citrus blast starts to fade.  There is a solid bitterness there that is nicely balanced with a slightly sweet toasted breadiness with a hint of caramel.  The bitterness lingers a bit on the back of the tongue though.