Clone Wars: Hallertau Deception (ie number 4) 17th May 2014

[Barbara Joppa]

And what a great beer to try and clone! This has always been my favorite of the main four beers at Hallertau. Now we all get a chance to make it!

http://www.hallertau.co.nz/craft-beer/our-first-four/

Typically a schwartzbier is a lager. But from what I hear, Steve brews this as an ale. Either way, this is your challenge to decide.The website describes is as such:
This number is not what he seems.
A bit of a trickster really. Smooth.
Firm. Dark. Light. Bitter. Sweet.
Coffee. Intricate. Chocolate.
Subterfuge. You’ve been warned. 

As usual, we will meet up at Hallertau on Saturday, 17th May. Judging starts at 3PM. 

[paul m]

may give this a crack... does anyone know where to buy a bottle of this (other than at Hallertau) either central auckland or northland?

subterfuge!!! i had to google waht that was- its not the underside of a plane then!
definition on google search was: "deceit used in order to achieve one's goal."
As far as swarzbiers go... is this one a classic as per the BJCP style guidelines?

[paul m]

http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/hallertau-deception/59455/
here it is on rate beer

[Barbara Joppa]

Just a reminder that this is coming up quick. 

Let me know if you have an entry. 

[Dunc]

Yep. I'm in. Bruce has one too.

[Adam Sparks]

I don't have an entry but feel the need to come and talk some smack for an afternoon. Happy to have a crack at judging if you need extra help Barbs?

[Barbara Joppa]

Thanks Adam. Judging help will be great. Steve has said he will be there so we should have some great feedback
see you there

[Samuel Loader]

I also don't have an entry, but will be coming up to do a meet and greet, so that I can enter in the next one 

[Rhys Williams]

I have an entry too.

Cheers

Rhys

[Dan]

I'm in, for what it's worth :) See y'all there.

[Dan]

Cheers again to Barbara and the judges - a great afternoon of drinking and talking about BEER!

Here's the next style details..... Cheers.

DESCRIPTION

"Leffe Blond is a pale abbey beer, with a full, sunny, golden colour. It has a smooth and full bodied taste and a rich creamy head. Like all the Leffe beers, it is a connoisseur beer that is easy to drink. "

TASTING NOTES

Pours with a rich, clear golden colour and a massive, foamy head. The spicy clove/banana hops hits your nose immediately, but subtly. The taste is reminiscent of the best Belgian white beers, but filtered to a smooth, bubbly gold and not too sweet. An exceptional beer.

BELGIAN ALE

Belgian-style ales seldom fit neatly into classic beer styles, but this category represents those "session" ales (in Belgium this means under 7% abv!) that do not fit other categories. Colour ranges from golden to deep amber, with the occasional example coming in darker. Body tends to be light to medium, with a wide range of hop and malt levels. Yeastiness and acidity may also be present.

[Barbara Joppa]

Thanks Dan, for posting the next style. 

Thanks again to everyone who came out and also to our judges - Steve, Albrecht, and Adam. Our winner was Mike who scored a bronze! I would do a cool graph of the scores, but I forgot to write them all down before I handed out the judging sheets. 

Cheers 

[Barry]

Nice work Mike, very tricky beer to nail. A bronze is a damn fine effort.