Iron Brewer Honey Tripel Brewday

In an effort to get more club members brewing, my local homebrew club, DRAFT, stole and re-packaged the Rockit Cup as the club Iron Brewer competition. The Rockit Cup had a three year run, so I can’t really complain. Plus, less to be in charge of, honestly. Anywhoo, I decided on taking a stab at a tripel using honey instead of table sugar to dry out the body. Yes, the late hopping is a bit aggressive, but, well, too bad. Felt like it. Here’s to honey. I’m coming for you, Joe Harrington. 

220. Iron Brewer Honey Tripel

Mash:

10 lbs. Best Malz Pilsen

½ lb. MFB Vienna 

½ lb. MFB Pale

Mash @ 149° F for 90 minutes w/ 3 ½ gallons RO water, 4 g. gypsum, and 3 g. CaCl; collected 2 ¾ gallons @ 1.064

Batch sparge @ 162° F for 20 minutes w/ 4 gallons RO water; collected 4 gallons @ 1.024

Collected 6 ¾ gallons; brought to a boil (90 minutes), & added:
w/60 to go: 1 ¼ oz. Styrian Golding pellet 2.0% AA
¾ oz. Azacca leaf 9.9% AA

w/10 to go: 5 g. Wyeast yeast nutrient

w/0 to go: 2 oz. Azacca leaf 9.9% AA

3 (or so) lbs. Bob Irwin honey
2 g. coriander
1 g. cumin
1 g. grains of paradise 

Let stand for 20 minutes, chilled, & pitched mason jar of Iron Brewer yeast from 218. Iron Brewer Cider

Brewed: 12/27/2015 @ 64° F

Secondary: 1/23/2016 @ 1.008; added 5 g. Wyeast yeast nutrient

Bottle: 4/23/2016 w/ 4 ¾ oz. table sugar

OG: 1.076

FG: 1.000

Tasting Notes: Dry with some earthiness and slight sweetness at bottling. Some alcohol warmth but no heat, even as dry as it is. 

553. Swamp Head Batch 300 Tripel

I warned you. After all, how long did you think I could continue to sit on this liquid gold? While we’re saving the Swamp Head/Cigar City Roosevelt American Barley Wine we also picked up for later (I know—what a tease, right?), this is tonight’s lucky victim. It is not our first beer from Swamp Head Brewing, but it is the first we’ve condescended to write about. How’s that for pompous irreverence?

Batch 300 pours a slightly hazy gold with a profuse white rocky head; the nose is a mix of spicy phenolic yeast and fruit, specifically banana, along with a fair amount of doughy wheat and Belgian candy. Jeff calls it a dull perfume, which I think is an apt description—it is both perfume-y and spritzy in the nose. Flavors start with a slightly spicy wheat and Belgian candy that has a touch of gumminess; at the start, there was a fair amount of bubblegum yeast flavor, but it quickly bled off. The middle is creamy with a slight chewiness, and the finish is dry with a bitter tang. The bright carbonation makes the beer dance on the tongue, and helps foreground the delicate aromatics. At the same time, the creamy, rounded flavors, sit pleasantly on the tongue. The intangibles are off the chart—malt character, yeast character, Belgian character—and all work to delicate and delicious effect. My only real critique is that the body could be a bit drier to better fit classic examples of the style, but it is certainly drier and cleaner than most of the other American tripels we’ve tried. But besides a bit more attenuation, this is a well-made and enjoyable beer—solid within the style, and also elicious in its own right. I knew I should have bought a second bottle so I could have more of it later.

ABV: 7.0%

(12/16/2012)

466. Ommegang Tripel Perfection

It looks like that whole hiding beer in the basement is paying dividends again. This is our latest from Brewery Ommegang. We’ve been sitting on it for a while, although it would appear that we didn’t sit on it quite enough. Alas, alas, with that 20/15 hindsight. Previous exercises in libation consumption include Zuur, Three Philosophers, Hennepin, Bière de Mars, and Witte. Ah, the tasty, tasty solace...

Tripel Perfection, a limited release from Ommegang, pours a hazy golden orange with a spritzy white head that doesn’t have much volume but does have good staying power along with plentiful small white bubbles. The nose consists of juicy fruit esters, spices, and a delicate floral perfume-y character. Elli adds “it also smells like bananas that someone needs to throw away.” Flavors start with light malt and Belgian candy sweetness before moving into a fruity middle that features hints of banana, apple, and apricot. There is also some stickiness in the middle and finish, although as the beer warms, the overly sweet components drop off. The finish is sweet but dry, and there is a slight metallic tinge at the back of the tongue. There is also a touch of alcohol in the finish, both in flavor and in warmth; it . The mouthfeel is sweet, doughy, and sticky—it tastes not quite finished; while the flavors are good, it is still a bit uneven in regards to the malt stickiness and the alcohol warmth. We probably should have waited longer before drinking this—the bottle says best by 2013—but we figured we should give it a run. And, after all, any beer from Ommegang is pretty much worth drinking.

From the bottle: “The tripel is among the most popular of Belgian ales. Brewed with simple ingredients and fierce attention to detail, there is little room for error—but lots of opportunity. Perfection isn’t easily achieved—but once achieved it is always memorable.”

Bottled: 3/15/2010

ABV: 8.9%

Where can I find me some of that Gnomegang?

(3/28/2011)

421. Stone Vertical Epic 10/10/10

The latest monster in the longest running show on Broadway, Vertical Epic 10/10/10 is described on the label as an ale “brewed with Muscat, Gewurztraminer, and Sauvignon Blanc grapes and chamomile.” It would appear that wine is the new beer. Or that beer is the new wine. Something like that. Either way, in regards to the old beer, or, my normative mainstay, we’ve already tried several beers from Stone, including Stone 14 Emperial IPA, Saison du Buff “collabo” with Dogfish Head and Victory, Arrogant Bastard Ale, Pale Ale, Vertical Epic 09.09.09, the Kona Coffee Macadamia Coconut Porter “collabo” with Maui Brewing and Ken Schmidt, and the IRS ’05-’09 vertical tasting.

Pouring a dull but clear golden straw, 10/10/10 has a white fluffy head that maintains some life before the inevitable reduction to a ring around the edge of the glass. The nose is actually a bit bland; I get the Muscat mixed with layers of sweet candy malt, and a bit of young white wine grape mustiness (which, I will note, is vastly different than the grape aroma in a couple of the Bell’s beers—like 25th Anniversary Ale and Christmas Ale—that is more “grape-y,” while this an actual white wine grape-iness), but not much else in the way of distinct malt, grape, or spice aromatics. There is a touch of creaminess to the nose, but also none of the slightly metallic notes that indicate a golden triple. As it warms, some alcohol comes out in the nose, but again, not much else. Flavors start sweet with clear white wine notes—more Gewurztraminer than anything else. The middle dries out, even as there is a backdrop of sweetness across the back of the mouth. There is a bit of sharp brightness in the finish—possibly some tannic bite or possibly some young alcohol flavor, but nothing overly done or out of character. Some alcohol warmth emerges as the beer warms, mostly in the rear of the roof of the mouth and the back of the throat. The mouthfeel is clean, bright, and even. The white wine/golden triple mixture leaves this beer lacking some of the distinctive characteristics of both; while interesting, there is not a lot of complexity at this point. But then again, I’m supposed to be sitting on this for a couple of years before I drink it, right?

I think this is some sort of Hammer reference...

From the bottle: “This ninth edition of our Stone Vertical Ale series takes two interesting left turns. A Belgian-style golden triple is the starting point for this beer, but the first left turn is nearly immediate with the addition of dried chamomile flowers, triticale, and Belgian amber candi sugar. The second and rather unusual left turn takes us half an hour up the road from Stone to Temecula courtesy of the addition of just-pressed Muscat, Gewurztraminer, and Sauvignon Blanc grapes from our friends at South Coast Winery. As the Stone Vertical Epic Ale series has moved through the calendar, we found that the brewing schedule for a 10.10.10 release coincided nicely with the grape harvest, neatly providing an interesting twist in this epic tale.”

ABV: 9.5%
Yeast: Belgian Ardennes
Hops: German Perle

(10/25/2010)

416. New Holland Beerhive Tripel

Another from New Holland’s High Gravity Series, this one with honey and ginger combined with the Belgian Tripel format. This puts our running New Holland total at five: we’ve weighed in on El Mole Ocho, Dragon’s Milk and Golden Cap Saison, plus the magical bonus beer, Envious. Don’t be envious of the bonus beer. We don’t want no hating here.

Beerhive pours a bright, clear, buttery burnished copper with red highlights. The nose is a combination of juiciness and creamy perfuminess with a touch of both honey and ginger in the background. Some light fruitiness emerges with warmth, along with smaller amounts of spiciness, while the head is a creamy tan color. While it reduces to a thin cover, it does lace the glass decently. Flavors start sweet, with candy and honey in the front before moving into slight spiciness in the middle. There is a nice ginger tang in the turn to the finish that merges well with the slight carbonation bite, and the ginger spiciness (as distinct from the spiciness in the middle) lingers lightly on the palate. Beerhive has a medium body with a bright, effervescent mouthfeel; there is a slight alcohol warming in the finish, although it is slightly masked by the ginger spiciness. An interesting beer, but not as nuanced as we would have liked; the nose was more impressive than the flavors in the body, which were a bit flat across the spectrum. The ginger is still the prevalent flavor at this point; while we enjoy ginger (and I especially do), a beer this big needs more complexity—a lot of the Belgian characteristics from the yeast seem to be absent in the body, although somewhat present in the nose. Maybe another year or two would help, but as is it is not super-exciting.

From the bottle: “Little John’s local bees create a wildflower-honey which lends a sweet, earthy complexity to this traditional style beer. A snap of ginger provides a refreshing finish.”

ABV: 8.47%
OG: 19° P

(10/2/2010)

284. Chimay Triple

This is our first Chimay beer for the year, although by no means is it our first Chimay—who hasn’t experimented with those lovely red, blue, and white bottles? I’ll tell you who—people who are scared of a good beer! We had this on tap at the new Side Bar coffee shop/bar—it’s not quite finished yet, but I am sure it will be soon.

Chimay Triple pours a soft hazy caramel with a light white head; the nose is fruity and sweet—mostly of the candy variety of sweetness—along with a good dose of yeast ester aromas (and maybe some phenols as well—I’m still not certain of all the specific distinctions between the two)—let’s just say it’s very Belgian, and leave it at that. The front is a soft, yeasty, and sweet with some light hop bitterness in the middle as well as a bit of bubblegum and clove flavors before ending sweet, bright, and slightly perfume-y and spicy. Chimay Triple is light to medium bodied with medium carbonation that is bright and slightly effervescent. A very good beer across the board—but then again, it is Chimay.

From the Chimay website: “Named Cinq Cents in 75 cl (25.4 fl.oz.) bottles, this beer with its typical golden colour, its slightly hazy appearance and its fine head is especially characterised by its aroma which results from an agreeable combination of fresh hops and yeast. The beer’s flavour, as sensed in the mouth, comes from the smell of hops: above all it is the fruity notes of muscat and raisins that give this beer a particularly attractive aroma. The aroma complements the touch of bitterness. There is no acidity, but an after-bitterness which melts in the mouth. This top fermented Trappist beer, refermented in the bottle, is not pasteurised.”

ABV: 8.0%

(4/10/2010)

199. St. Bernardus Tripel

“Bringing heavenly nectar within reach”

Brouwerij St. Bernardus is located in Watou, Belgium. St. Bernardus Tripel is a Belgian Abbey Ale. It has a candy sweet, grainy, and estery nose; there are hints of banana, light amounts of clove, and some general fruitiness—all in all, a rather bright and fresh smelling beer. It is a golden straw color with a spritzy white head. St. Bernardus Tripel starts sweet but dry on the front—there is sweetness from the malt but also some either yeast ester or phenolic flavors balancing out the sweetness, including some spiciness and light pepperiness—before moving into a fruity and lightly spicy middle. As well, it does slightly undry for a moment in the middle, allowing the sweetness to emerge again and marry well with the banana and citrus flavors. The dryness returns at the end, opening the palate up for the slight bitterness and remaining fruitiness that closes out the beer. St. Bernardus Tripel has a light body and a lively mouthfeel—it has a very effervescent, crisp bite via the carbonation, and a bright presence overall. Elli thinks this is beer is far far far too Belgian for her liking. Which I can understand, but also categorically dismiss. Belgian beers are supposed to be Belgian. And this one is Belgian in all the right ways—it’s not like this is Blue Moon, or anything like that. The lively, refreshing flavors nicely mask the alcohol content—this in no way tastes like an 8.0% ABV beer—and the body is light, crisp, and complex. Yummy.

From the bottle: “Brewery St. Bernardus was founded in 1946 in Watou, Province of West Flanders in Belgium. These exceptional quality ales are brewed by using only the finest malts, local grown hops, yeast and artesian water pumped from a depth of 500 feet. After the brewing process these traditional ales are matured in tanks for three months before being bottle conditioned. The result is a naturally ‘living ale,’ which can be aged for up to 5 years and will satisfy the taste of even the most discriminating connoisseurs.”

From the St. Bernadus website: “This beer, with high fermentation, has a pale amber colour and a flowery, fruity taste with a harmonious balance between sweet and sour (8% alcohol content). This beer has a thick and vivid froth and strikes by its balanced taste with a delicate bitterness.”

ABV: 8.0%

(1/15/2010)

144. Bell’s Sparkling Ale

Bell’s is back; this one was one neither of us had tried before, so we had to give it a run. This is beer number 7 from Bell’s: our list includes Winter Wheat, Christmas Ale, Third Coast Ale, Oberon, Octoberfest, and Two Hearted.

Sparkling Ale is a brilliantly clear yellow gold with a light white head that profusely laces the glass. The nose is grainy and bready along with a good dose of Belgian-style yeast esters, mainly banana and some sourness. Sparkling Ale starts with a small bit of acidity followed by a sweet dry malt and candy sweetness in the front; the middle moves into fruit—including apple, pear, and strawberry-like flavors from brighter fruits—along with some metallic tangs and spicy flavors, and closes with some bitterness mixed with candy sweetness and light alcohol sweetness. Sparkling Ale has a medium body and a dry but sweet mouthfeel mixed with a medium carbonation bite. The body is lightened by the carbonation, although there is a bit of creamy fruitiness as well. A good beer, but not as complex or rich as some Belgian triples. Also, we’re not sure what makes this an American Triple, besides being made in America.

From the bottle: “Fill your glass and toast your friends with this special brew. Our take on a ‘glass of bubbly,’ Sparkling Ale is an American Triple—light in color with a subtle fruit body.”

There is nothing about Sparkling Ale on the Bell’s website.

ABV: 9.0%

Today’s BJCP class focused on answering the Exam Recipe Question. We concentrated on breaking the question into the component parts—giving style parameters, identifying the basic brewing parameters, selecting the proper quantity and style of ingredients, and selecting the proper procedures for the style (mash procedures, for example)—and then how to best calculate grain and hop volumes and types to correspond with the assigned style. We practiced constructing a couple of recipes, and talked about the need to keep the recipe simple—unless you know the ins and outs of a style, extra information will probably bite you in the ass.

Our beer sampling today involved sours and a smoked beer:
17B. Flanders Red Ale: Duchesse de Bourgogne
17C. Flanders Brown Ale (Oud Bruin): Liefman’s Oud Bruin
17D. Lambic: no good examples—the Boon Kriek did double duty
17E. Gueuze: Boon Gueuze
17F. Fruit Lambic: Boon Kriek
22. Smoked: Schlenkerla Marzen Rauchbier

(11/21/2009)

132. Bornem Triple Abbey Ale

Bornem is made by Brouwerij Van Steenberge in Ertvelde, Belgium. Triple Abbey Ale has a sweet candy nose mixed with esters, fruits, and metallic aromas and light port or sherry oxidized fruit hints in the background. Pouring a dusky tan that borders on copper, it has a pillowy white head. And there is no disjunction between the nose and taste—both are very Belgian. The front is sweet and spicy—we would guess mostly from the yeast esters—before moving into some fruitiness in the middle with apple, raisin, and port flavors, and continuing through to a spicy bitter finish. In addition, there is a complex rich malt backbone that runs across the flavor profile—subtle, smooth, and well developed. Triple Abbey Ale is medium to big-bodied with a rich, creamy carbonation and some alcohol warmth. Nonetheless, it is very well balanced for a 9% ABV beer—the warmth remains in the background. Overall, a delicious beer with pleasant complexity; we wonder if the fruitiness and spiciness would continue to develop with age—it does seem like it would age well, and the port and fruit flavors might deepen and oxidize to build upon current malt flavors and already developing dark fruit flavors. The only thing we can add is that this is a Top 10 Best contender.

From the Global Beer Network website (their importer—there’s nothing on the Brouwerij Van Steenberge site): “Golden shining and soft feeling in the mouth - perfectly balanced taste - full body and heart warming, a splendid aroma, tickling in the nose - hoppy dry long finish. Triple means that the brewer adds 3 times the normal amount of malt in the brew kettle, which gives us a rich beer. You can age the Bornem Triple for many years, just like wine.”

ABV: 9.0%

(11/9/2009)