October Competition - Dark Beers

[Dode]

I thought it was November now?

 

[Oneiroi]

I thought it was November now?

Yeah, ideally I'd have done the judging last weekend in the first weekend of November, life keeps intruding!


First 5 tasted tonight and have to say I'm really impressed! First time I've tried any one elses beer and have to admit it's left me inspired if not a bit jealous.

Hope you revived mine, Two 330 btls no label!
It’s a stout at 7.8abv if you could put it in a fridge as soon as possible as the last one I opened from the shed was a bit lively!!

Opened one without connecting it to this message, made an almighty mess Got about 200ml into the glass though and very tasty, will do the proper scoring and judging on the second bottle sunday once it's had a good few days to settle!

 

[jceg316]

Did mine arrive in time?

 

[jceg316]

I thought it was November now?

Here is November's competition https://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/threads/november-competition-freestyle.79212/ the judge is an awesome guy who really knows a lot about beer. There's also a prize for the winner.

 

[Oneiroi]

Did mine arrive in time?

I am supping on your Tiramisu stout right now, lovely!

 

[Oneiroi]

I'm afraid I was defeated over the weekend and only managed to taste 8/12. I'll hopefully taste the last few tonight by and have scores/winners to report tomorrow, followed by full feedback in the next few days as I type up my notes.

Thanks for being patient, and the excellent beer!

 

[Braindead]

No worries, 12 bottles of imperial stout would take some doing

 

[Braindead]

Still no results yet??

 

[Oneiroi]

First of all, thanks to everyone who submitted an entry this month. There were 12 bottles total and I've greatly enjoyed working my way through them, each and every one was a tasty beer. This is actually the first time I've tried others homebrew and am currently very impressed and a little bit jealous

Having never judged before I've realised that it's harder than I thought, I've tried to be consistent and follow BJCP guide I found but inevitably there is some subjective variance.

The scores at the top ended up ridiculously close and as they were scored on separate days I didn't realise how close until I went back to rank them tonight. They were all fantastic beers that would be hard to choose between so really is the thinnest of margins.

Without further rambling...the winner is.......@BeerCat Whisky Barrel Imperial Stout scoring 41/50

Second place goes to @Zephyr259 for his Old Ale scoring 40.5/50

Third place goes to @Braindead 's Maple Glazed Macaroon Imperial Stout scoring 40/50

I've sent out feedback by PM for 8/12 beers. StrangeSteve, JFB, MMMBeer & Mitchmalt, sorry I couldn't get yours out tonight but it's got a bit late already and I didnt want to keep the results waiting any longer, I'll try get them out tomorrow lunch, otherwise tomorrow evening for sure.

Thanks again for everyone who entered, it's been a great experience, and I look forward to signing up for a month next year already!

I'll leave it up to individuals whether they wish to post the feedback/scoring from their PMs on the thread here

 

[itry]

I must admit im very pleased. Sounds like ive gone in on a hard crowd. My score vs the winning score wasnt miles. If any body is intrested in the recepie just ask. The secret ingrediant was cinnamon. It also had brownsugar caramel and vanilla.

Hi Itry,

Here's my notes from your beer, I'm sending everyone out feedback first and then will post the top 3 scores and winner in the thread. After that if you want to post your feedback I'll leave it up to you :hat:

The label said it was "Ye Old Trouser Spoiler" (great name) but from your message above I'm not sure if that was wrong now? Anyway here are my notes, any questions just ask :)

Aroma: Quite a strong, intriguing aroma, slightly spiced, touch of vanilla, slightly cola-like (I thought it might be the combo of vanilla and caramel aromas)
7/12

Appearance: Black with a dark tan head. Head was slight and dissipated quickly but the carbonation was still visible on the surface.
2/3

Flavour: Strongly spiced with a moderate to high bitterness. My head instantly jumped to Xmas, although frustratingly I couldn't pin down exactly what the taste was. I noted that it tasted more like a spiced xmas ale than a creme brulee (which is probably explained by your message above!). Nice caramel backbone to the spice. There was a touch of sharpness to it at end, that might have been the alchohol.
13/20

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied and the fine carbonation made for a nice mouthfeel, slight alchohol warmth.

3.5/5

Overall: Very interesting beer. As above, it instantly evoked xmas in my mind and felt right for the time of year. I'd be really interested to hear what the spices or adjuncts are in there as the taste was so familiar and I couldn't put my finger on it!
6/10

Total 31.5

Thanks a lot for sending in :)

 

[jceg316]

Thanks for the feedback, and congratulations to @BeerCat @Braindead & @Zephyr259

 

[Zephyr259]

Thanks for all the hard work judging and congrats to BeerCat and Braindead. I've copied my feedback below, entered my old and my bourbon stout both fermented with Voss kveik. No one's got the vanilla from the stout since it was young so I dropped it from the description, but it was picked up here.

Old Ale - 7.9%

Aroma: Dark caramel sweetness with a touch of alchohol. Rich, almost fruity with some treacle.
9/12

Appearance: Deep Brown with a stable fine tan head that laced down the glass
3/3

Flavour: Rich, sweet, dark caramel with a little treacle. There's a nice but subtle plum or stonefruit character mixed in with the caramel and a little bit of spiciness after the initial sweetness. I'm not sure whether these come from the hops or the yeast, but would be interested to hear if you get them too and where you think they're from? Quite a bitter finish helps cut through the sweetness.
16/20

Mouthfeel: Very full bodied beer, with some alcohol warmth, just right for the style.
4.5/5

Overall: A real winter warmer. Rich, full flavoured and dangerously drinkable. I don't know if it's the time of year but this really hit the spot for me, perfect for bonfire night!
8/10

Total 40.5/50

Bourbon Stout - 7.5%

Aroma: Roasty chocolate, Oak and whisky, slight sweetness and an almost coconut aspect. Smells delicious!
9/12

Appearance: Deep black with a small tan head, inviting.
2/3

Flavour: From my limited experience (2-3 commercial) this really captured the classic bourbon barrel taste. Oak, vanilla and that unique whisky element. All against a well balanced, rich, roasted malt background. No real alchohol notes in the taste for the strength.
14/20

Mouthfeel: Alchohol warming but no harshness, medium bodied, which is a little lighter than I expected but it does make it very drinkable.
3/5

Overall: Clean profile that showcases the combo of roasted malts and bourbon barrel flavours. The bourbon barrel flavours do dominate a little bit, which I quite enjoy, but does make it a bit more single focus than it could be. Overall, a very tasty beer.
7/10

Total 35/50

 

[Braindead]

Congrats to Beercat and Zeph

My feedback. Ill take that with the carbonation as I bottled to from my outdoor bar from the corni.

How do you guys carbonate kegs, force carb or sugar?

Maple Glazed Macaroon Imperial Stout

Aroma: Lovely rich aroma with chocolate, toffee, coffee and coconut.
10/12

Appearance: Jet Black with no head
1.5/3

Flavour: Wow! Really complex and changes over time in your mouth. First flavours rich chocolate with vanilla, as that fades you notice the oak and then the maple suddenly seems to appear at the end. The further down the glass I got (maybe as it warmed) the more the coconut started showing through.
17/20

Mouthfeel: Very low carb. Satisfying thick mouthfeel the style of beer, slightly towards syrupy which I think higher carbonation would have negated.
3.5/5

Overall: Exceptional beer, complex flavours are well balanced to the point where you can really pick out each of them. Carbonation only slight downside.
8/10

Total 40/50

 

[Braindead]

Maybe I should start bottle conditioning instead of pulling from the bar lol

 

[BeerCat]

Thanks you @Braindead and congrats to you and @Zephyr259 . And many thanks to @Oneiroi for judging.

That beer was bottle conditioned with sugar, took a while. bit short of 1/2 tsp per 500ml. I have thrown almost all my beer out (the leftovers i couldn't keg) that was stored in the garage over summer but these strong dark beers don't seem to be affected.

This was my feedback

Aroma: Really rich choc & treacle, just what you want from an Imp.
10/12

Appearance: Jet black beer, solid 1 finger dark brown head, beautiful!
3/3

Flavour: Rich, luxurious (yup I actually wrote that in my notes ). Chocolate, roasty malt, coffee and a touch of treacle flavours up front, nice level of sweetness and good moderate bitterness to balance. The whiskey and oak character comes through in the finish once the initial tastes subside and isn't overpowering.
16/20

Mouthfeel: Full bodied but not syrupy as some can get. Alcohol warming but no real taste or heat from. The carbonation was great at first but faded quickly down the glass.
4/5

Overall: Delicious beer & exactly what I want from an Imperial stout. Can't say more than that!
8/10

Total 41/50

 

[RichardM]

Thanks for judging @Oneiroi I must admit I wasn't sure about my entry. I didn't like the first bottle of it that I tried but it has improved with age. Some friends have liked it,. others have not. Anyway, here are @Oneiroi's notes

Raspberry Oatmeal Stout

Aroma: Strong aroma of fresh raspberries with a little bit of chocolate, very inviting!
8/12

Appearence: Very deep brown, not quite to black. Good tan head that lasted a way down the glass.
2.5/3

Flavour: Less of the fresh raspberry than in the aroma (as I guess you'd expect) but it's still very much there. Oats come through with the malt as a nice bready/cereal y base for the beer. The raspberries create a slight tartness to the beer which I enjoyed in itself but maybe conflicts a little with the moderate bitterness.
10/20

Mouthfeel: Good levels of carbonation, light to medium body makes it easy drinking.
3/5

Overall: Nice pint, and something a bit different (never had a raspberry stout before). The lighter body, fresh raspberry aroma and slight tartness actually make it a very refreshing drink, that I think you could have a few of. I was wondering whether it would benefit from having some more of the roasted malt flavours come through, but I'm not actually sure if that would complement the raspberries in the end.

6/10

Total 29.5/50tes.

 

[JFB]

Well done all and thanks for judging @Oneiroi
I’m lucky enough to have a bottle of @Zephyr259 old ale in my fridge, really looking forward to it now

 

[Zephyr259]

Well done all and thanks for judging @Oneiroi
I’m lucky enough to have a bottle of @Zephyr259 old ale in my fridge, really looking forward to it now

Sorry, pretty sure you should have a barleywine (gold cap) and a dubbel (red cap) but arrangements could be made for an old ale.

 

[stigman]

Maybe I should start bottle conditioning instead of pulling from the bar lol

I try and brew more than a keg full and bottle a few, that's what I did with the chilli stout I sent you. I've also noticed you loose a lot of carb when bottling straight from keg. One tip I do have, is chill keg as cold as poss. And put your bottles in the freezer before hand.