Dan Goderham and Stewart Horne on the dark strong. Dan detected strong nettle aromas, Stew thought it was umami/soy sauce. Tasted very nice to me though!
Keith Bailey and Stew Horne on the wit, both noted it was clear (I seem to struggle to even deliberately make cloudy beer), slightly too bitter and too much coriander (I love coriander!!), plus hint of phenolic.
All in all considering I just banged some grain and yeast together in a made up recipe, didn't control temp (noticed the dark strong was up at over 27 degrees for a day or so when I looked at the fermentation profile from my ispindel), bottled it and didn't do any second versions, I think a 30 as my best score is a reasonable effort. I'm also now unsure how much my sense of taste has really recovered after having covid a few times!
Norwich Amateur Brewers - Brew Like a Monk competition.
Re: Norwich Amateur Brewers - Brew Like a Monk competition.
Dan is Head Brewer at Adnams and has an excellent palate, so if he says he detected it, then it was very likely there! He's also a really lovely bloke.
I was just wondering if I judged your beer; I judged half of the Dark Strongs with Andy (Ampersand Head Brewer).
As to your scores, read the feedback and think about what you can incorporate into your next brews to step them up a level and try again.
This is what I've been doing for a few years now and it seems to be working as I've had some good results over the past year or so!
I also would hope you have a local HB club where you're able to take your beers to be tasted by your fellow brewers. I've also found this to be a great way to see what other folks do to produce top class beer. Not to mention a great way to taste a wide variety of brews, many of which you'd rarely see in pubs.
Enjoy!
I was just wondering if I judged your beer; I judged half of the Dark Strongs with Andy (Ampersand Head Brewer).
As to your scores, read the feedback and think about what you can incorporate into your next brews to step them up a level and try again.
This is what I've been doing for a few years now and it seems to be working as I've had some good results over the past year or so!
I also would hope you have a local HB club where you're able to take your beers to be tasted by your fellow brewers. I've also found this to be a great way to see what other folks do to produce top class beer. Not to mention a great way to taste a wide variety of brews, many of which you'd rarely see in pubs.
Enjoy!
Fermenting: nowt
Conditioning: English IPA/Bretted English IPA
Drinking: Sunshine Marmalade, Festbier, Helles Bock, Smokey lagery beer, Irish Export StoutCascade APA (homegrown hops), Orval clone, Impy stout, Duvel clone, Conestoga (American Barley wine)
Planning: Dark Mild, Kozel dark (ish), Simmonds Bitter, Bitter, Citra PA and more!
Conditioning: English IPA/Bretted English IPA
Drinking: Sunshine Marmalade, Festbier, Helles Bock, Smokey lagery beer, Irish Export StoutCascade APA (homegrown hops), Orval clone, Impy stout, Duvel clone, Conestoga (American Barley wine)
Planning: Dark Mild, Kozel dark (ish), Simmonds Bitter, Bitter, Citra PA and more!
Re: Norwich Amateur Brewers - Brew Like a Monk competition.
Yes, feedback on the dark was around yeast health and oxygen pickup. On the wit it suggests temperature control might have been an issue. One mentioned the wit was undercarbonated, but seeing as I had to let all that fizz out so it didn't spurt out of the bottle Formula one driver style when they opened it, I'll take that criticism!
A club would be a good next step, we shall see how things pan out!
A club would be a good next step, we shall see how things pan out!