CS8 - Belgian Styley Ale

[Andrew]

So my contribution is a Belgian Style ale bottled on 18/4 and is about 6%. I'd give this at least 6 weeks before you give it a go and make sure the bottle has firmed up nicely to carb the beer. I've a couple left at home and thay seem to be carbing up fine.

Recipe is:

Maris Otter     38ppg, 4°L	5.2 kilograms     86.6%
Dry Sugar - Cane     42ppg, °L	0.6 kilograms     10.0%
Abbey malt     37ppg, 5°L	0.12 kilograms     2.0%
CaraMunich     34ppg, 50°L	0.08 kilograms     1.4%

Pacific Jade hops     13.3%, Pellet	20 grams 75 minutes (+-8)
Saaz hops     5%, Pellet	50 grams 10 minutes (+57)

Goldings (Styrian) hops     5%, Pellet

60 grams - Dry Hop     Fermented with S-33

[Martin Bridges]

I'd pulled this out of the fridge and opened it before I looked it up and spotted the "at least 6 weeks" comment. Seemed carbed enough, anyway.

Pours a hazy gold. I didn't pick up much in terms of spicy clovey Belgian notes in the aroma, more malt-driven. Likewise the flavour is not so Belgian, other than a nice pear-drops dryness to it. A good fruity malty character . Ends dry but has a nice mouthfeel. Hints of orangey citrus to it. Nice stuff, thanks.

[John H]

Me too - I got a slight Belgiumy flavour - but more pear than spicy/clovey. Nice drop - very drinkable!!!

I was quite keen to see how this one turned out as it was the only Belgian using S33. What temp was this fermented at?

Has anyone had any success with S-33 as opposed to the flash liquid strains?

[Adrian Tayler]

I just cracked the lid on this one.. I get Banana on the nose which is nice , not much head but thats clearly my fault.. I just couldnt wait...

A nice well balanced flavor profile, a crispt and clearly defined beer.. I love it..

As per my previous post on begian beers, I am an amature to this style so not sure how it fits in with tradition... but either way, I would be proud of this one..

Thanks for sharing.

[Matt Smith]

This is a nice clean beer with a subtle complexity that benefited alot from warming up in the glass. Poured with no head and very little carbonation. As per other comments I got lots of pear in the aroma and in the mouth, also a little orange marmalade. Malt flavor was subtle but not lacking. I think the dryness would be complimented by a little more carbonation, which would also bring out that nice pear aroma a little more. Overall I found this to be a really nice, well fermented crisp and refreshing beer. Thanks !

[Tilt]

Another one of the Belgian lineup for the swap and I've been waiting patiently.  The bottle's been firm for a while now so I figured now's the time.  Having read the other reviews I let it warm a bit to try and get the most of the flavour this one has to offer.

A lightly hazy brown gold with no head to speak of, I can smell malt and a touch of alcohol with no spice or clove.  I don't get much fruit - maybe some apricot but nothing stands out for me.  On first tasting I get more of the malt sweetness and smooth alcohol flavours with a background of pear as others have noted without any phenols to mix it up.  The finish is dry and balanced bitter.  To me this beer tastes more British than Belgish, but a nice one nonetheless.  Thanks for sharing.

[Stu H]

This poured quite hazy for me, despite it being in my fridge for weeks now. Yellowy gold colour, with a very prominent white head, that is hanging around for a good while. I get a little spice in the nose, and some "yeasty" aromas (naff sounding I know, but I've no idea how else to describe it.

For me it tastes quite malt forward, and not yeast dominated at all like some belgians (i.e. mine!). It's quite dry and with the high carbonation (is that like 3.5 volumes or something?) it's actually quite spritzy.

Looking back at your recipe I'm surprised there isn't more hop character in this beer, what do you reckon?

Yum though, thanks!

[Dan]

I lost my notes on this one too sorry!

From what I remember it was a nice sessionable drop. Not big on esters or spice but definitely tasted "belgian".

I had it in the fridge for about 4 weeks before I drank it - but it didn't help clear it up. Not that I mind a hazy beer!

Overall I liked this beer. Cheers for sharing!

[Richard Jack]

So, I decided to let anything with "Belgian" in the name chill for 6 months or so in the fridge.

Mate, hope you've still got a couple of these. It's tasting good.  Carb is low. No head, pours a slightly hazy gold. light raisins, mandarin, toffee with a touch of something spicy on the nose that I can't quite ID - not pepper or cloves. Quite a sweet finish, malty side of balanced. I'd echo the comments about Belgian-ness, but the beer is delicious.

Good thing I've got another glass to go...

[Andrew]

I'll have to go and raid the fridge, I'd honestly forgot about this a long time ago, Cheers for the feedback.