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Three beers I know nothing about.


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#21 Big Nake

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Posted 24 April 2015 - 02:36 PM

I was just thinking about this thread and my trip last month to Arizona and how I failed to connect the two. I drank a lot of local product when I was out there and I ran into a lot of what I might call "American Pub Ale" but a description more apt for these beers would be a malt-forward ale that had a vague description like "8th Street Ale" or "Buffalo Breath Amber" or whatever. At the Cubs park, I got a can of a local ale that I assumed would be a hop bomb but it was almost like MLPA. At our hotel they had a bunch of taps of local products, one of which was a kolsch (which they just called a blonde ale) but there were 2 others that were the same... a malt-forward ale with some color to it. I went out for dinner and ended up with another example from a local brewery that was not an IPA or other hop-heavy beer. I also stopped at a quickie mart and picked up a sixer for the room which came from Four Peaks Brewing Co. (I know because one of the caps is sitting next to me on my desk) and it was the same way. All of these were probably between 5% and 6%, between 7 and 10 SRM and maybe just 20-25 IBUs and all of them were very good. I was a little surprised I found that much lower-hopped ale without even trying.

#22 neddles

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Posted 25 April 2015 - 07:19 AM

I was just thinking about this thread and my trip last month to Arizona and how I failed to connect the two. I drank a lot of local product when I was out there and I ran into a lot of what I might call "American Pub Ale" but a description more apt for these beers would be a malt-forward ale that had a vague description like "8th Street Ale" or "Buffalo Breath Amber" or whatever. At the Cubs park, I got a can of a local ale that I assumed would be a hop bomb but it was almost like MLPA. At our hotel they had a bunch of taps of local products, one of which was a kolsch (which they just called a blonde ale) but there were 2 others that were the same... a malt-forward ale with some color to it. I went out for dinner and ended up with another example from a local brewery that was not an IPA or other hop-heavy beer. I also stopped at a quickie mart and picked up a sixer for the room which came from Four Peaks Brewing Co. (I know because one of the caps is sitting next to me on my desk) and it was the same way. All of these were probably between 5% and 6%, between 7 and 10 SRM and maybe just 20-25 IBUs and all of them were very good. I was a little surprised I found that much lower-hopped ale without even trying.

That seems about what I would call a pub ale. I remember seeing a lot more beers like that in the 90's when the first wave of microbreweries/brew-pubs were popping up.



#23 Brauer

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Posted 05 June 2015 - 06:29 PM

I had a excellent Kellerbier today at the Cambridge Brewing Company. Here's their description:

THE ZWICKEL

Unfiltered Lager Beer

Zwickel beer is an effervescent Bavarian lager, whose name stems from the valve (“Zwickel” in German) mounted at the outside of a cask or tank. This valve allows the brewer to take samples for assessing the brew’s progress during fermentation. Zwickelbier originated in the small artisanal and home breweries of Franconia.

Zwickelbier is unfiltered and unpasteurized, and the maturation casks (or modern tanks) are bunged or capped (“gespundet” in German) just before the end of fermentation. This furthers the dissolution of carbon dioxide gas in the brew and as a result, Zwickelbier builds up effervescence and has a nice creamy head when poured into a glass. Zwickelbier tends to be served as soon as it is finished fermenting, though we have lagered ours for an additional two weeks (still shorter than our traditional four week aging time for most of our lager beers).

The Zwickel pours an intentionally hazy golden color, with thick head and considerable lacing. Crafted from Weyermann Pils and CaraHell malts, it is hopped with German Saphir hops which offer a touch of fruitiness atop the traditional Germanic spicy hop profile. With yeast in suspension this beer presents with a medium body but very dry and thirst quenching finish. Well-balanced between maltiness and hops, this beer seems to disappear quickly from our “sampling glasses.” We hope you enjoy!

Facts: OG 1.048, FG 1.008



#24 neddles

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Posted 05 June 2015 - 11:03 PM

Sounds tasty. Are there certain lager yeasts better suited for this? The few lagers I have made were not particularly tasty at the end of fermentation the way some ales are.

#25 Brauer

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Posted 06 June 2015 - 04:47 AM

This just went on tap a couple days ago, so it is quite fresh. I wouldn't call it impeccably clean, but the subtle yeast flavors were very pleasant. Also, none of them were intrusive enough to interfere with the rich malt and hop flavor. I had a half day, yesterday, so I couldn't resist having 2 with lunch. I could have sat there all afternoon drinking that beer. I may have to go back for another, today.

Sounds tasty. Are there certain lager yeasts better suited for this? The few lagers I have made were not particularly tasty at the end of fermentation the way some ales are.

I would think so, but fermentation technique plays a part in that, too. Warm maturation might alleviate some of those issues, but I wouldn't think you'd want a yeast that produces much late sulfur, if you are capping the fermentation. I should have asked what their fermentation profile is like, as I was sitting 3 feet from the brewer, but I didn't want to bother him while he had his lunch.

 

I think they use the Augustiner yeast, which is hard to come by. I'm not sure which yeasts would be problematic (2278 & 2308, maybe, and 2112?), but I think WLP830/Wy1224 would be a good choice, as it always seems done at the end of fermentation. WLP833 has never required extended lagering for me, either.



#26 neddles

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Posted 06 June 2015 - 05:07 AM

This just went on tap a couple days ago, so it is quite fresh. I wouldn't call it impeccably clean, but the subtle yeast flavors were very pleasant. Also, none of them were intrusive enough to interfere with the rich malt and hop flavor. I had a half day, yesterday, so I couldn't resist having 2 with lunch. I could have sat there all afternoon drinking that beer. I may have to go back for another, today.

I would think so, but fermentation technique plays a part in that, too. Warm maturation might alleviate some of those issues, but I wouldn't think you'd want a yeast that produces much late sulfur, if you are capping the fermentation. I should have asked what their fermentation profile is like, as I was sitting 3 feet from the brewer, but I didn't want to bother him while he had his lunch.

 

I think they use the Augustiner yeast, which is hard to come by. I'm not sure which yeasts would be problematic (2278 & 2308, maybe, and 2112?), but I think WLP830/Wy1224 would be a good choice, as it always seems done at the end of fermentation. WLP833 has never required extended lagering for me, either.

2308 is the one I am thinking of.



#27 Big Nake

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Posted 06 June 2015 - 06:24 AM

The very first beer I had when I went to Europe was a Zwickl in a biergarten in Vienna. I think it was made by Stiegl and it was very similar to how Brauer described this beer. Slightly hazy, a thick, dense head and spritzy with carbonation. Not as clean as a standard, filtered gold beer but delicious. Surprisingly, we did not see much of this style for the rest of the trip. Also, MtnBrewer got his hands on some of the Augustiner Lager yeast from the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs and he sent me a blob of it. I don't know how this yeast exchange works but I thought they had a website which possibly means that the yeast could be ordered through them. I made a pale beer like a helles with it and it's a very nice yeast... but I would attempt to make something like this (zwickl) or the Augustiner Dunkel if I ever had that yeast in my possession again. Cheers.

Edited by Village Taphouse, 06 June 2015 - 06:25 AM.



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