Part of the fun of brewing is being experimental. I love being creative and normally feel good about the turn out. Even if they don't turn out great, I can just chalk it up to trying something new and go back to the drawing board. But after the postive reponse from a couple of my beers this winter, I'd have to say I was feeling pretty confident in my abilities. Then, I tried a few challenging things and I'd have to say they knocked me down a bit. Which is probably good in the end. Here's a quick rundown:
Mayabock- ok, so bocks might be hard to make. I might have to try decotion mashes. I might need to let it lager longer. I might have to use a bock yeast instead of Cali 2112 yeast (don't ask me why I did that). All of these things could be a problem. This beer is relatively young in the bottle, but thus far it lacks some of the maltiness I was hoping for. I'm kind of disappointed, but not too much. This is a beer I really need to work at. And there are obviously a lot of variables. Last night when I tried it, it was ok. Not great. And it had similar characteristics to the Yinzer Lager, which tells me I either need to re-evaluate the yeast I'm using, or figure out some things with lagering that I haven't been addressing. I'll give it some more time before I rule it out, but it's not a beer I'm super proud of at this point. Not shit...not great.
Frozen Beard Winter Ale- I already wrote a post about this. I can put the blame on the spruce extract, but while I'm whining...thought I'd include that beer in the list of beers that haven't been great.
El Jefe- Right now, this beer is not great. But again...young. However, what I've tasted thus far has been a thin body, and I don't think that's going to change. I can't get too down on this beer because it could end up being good...it has some good flavors going on...and as I mentioned in a previous post, it was kind of a debacle of a brew day. I think that the timing of the boil and when I added my last addition of dme could be the reason this lacks some body. But we shall see. Again...I'm bitching...so I'll add this to the list.
The Gringo- I have yet to write my reflections on this beer because I'm still formulating my opinion on it. This is my Imperial Mexican Lager. There have been some interesting reactions to it. My initial reaction was "this is amazing" but I was a little drunk when I thought that. My more sober reaction was "what the hell was I thinking" and now I'm somewhere in between. My wife has liked it, my friend Jeff said it was really unique, and "good but not awesome." My friend Brian thought it would be a good summer beer and also "all I can really taste are the hops." I will give this an official review soon, and I'm also sending a bottle to Bob Woodshed. Here's my thoughts this far...there is very little "Mexican lager" to it, but the lagering of it has created a very smooth finish, that lets the hops really reveal themselves. I agree with Brian that the Centenial hops are very present. Like...the beer almost feels like a hop tea. More to come on this.
The solution? I need to get back on the horse so to speak. My wife and daughter are going to Pittsburgh for a week, and I've been holding off brewing anything until that week. I plan on doing several beers then and I'm going back to some recipes I feel confident in. People have been asking for the Bangy Tangy, so I'll be brewing that, and I'm also going to be brewing El Muerto, a beer I've made several times and I think the changes to it will be good. More to come on that later.
Even though I've been bitching and moaning, this has been very therapeutic:) Thanks for reading. Any ideas? On any of it?
Salud!
The Bearded Brewer
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Self Doubt Sets In
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4 comments:
Well getting back in the saddle with something you brew well is a good idea. Enjoy!
I've definitely been there. I brewed a German Strong Ale dry hopped with home grown Cascade. Sounds good eh? Well I was definitely not sure about how it tasted. The Cascade really flew in the face of the Hallertau and the clean German yeast. I was confused. Well, I grew to like it eventually. Recently I just tasted a beer that totally reminded me of it. Stoudt's Big Brother Pils brewed in honor of the late Michael Jackson. It hit me like a ton of bricks. Of course Stoudt's beer is a lot more polished :-)
I guess what I'm saying is that sometimes we focus on things so much we can't see the forest for the trees. Let those beers mature. Brew Bangy Tangy and have some fun!
Thanks Adam...great advice!
B.B., experimentation can be glorious. All you need to do is make adjustments and brew again. When brewing v1.0 you need to keep some beers around where you open 1 every month to see how it ages and when is the best time to drink it. As you know some beers can take a few months or even years to lager correctly. We often mistake 2 weeks in the bottle as sufficient, but we are playing with live organisms and they continuously change.
Keep up the good work, relax and have fun brewing!!!
P.S. Once Bangy Tangy is bottled I would love to make some trades!!!
Don't sweat it too much. My last few brews have had some problems, but I've made at least one improvement in my set up every time. Get your technique down pat, start with a simple recipe, and in no time, you'll be making stuff that you love.
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