American Amber Ale 16th April 2011 @ The Malthouse

[Mike Neilson]

Looking @ the 16th of April for the Next WBC American Amber Ale, I will be there will you?

[Dave W]

Yep that works well for me. :o)

[Matthew]

Count me in. Usual 1pm kick off?

[Mike Neilson]

4pm is the start with no end time.

[Llew Bardecki]

I'm in.

Mine's done fermenting and ready to be bottled this weekend :)

[Steve Baker]

Mine is on the lees.

[Bambule]

I'll have one, I won't be able to make it though. But I'll make sure the beer gets there.  More of an IPA, but it is an amber IPA.

[Matthew]

Game on, Kids! Looking forward to this one, I've missed the last couple of comps.

[Mike Neilson]

Dont for get kids we are on for tomoroww!! Judging starts @ 4pm sharp, sounds like there is a bit of competion out there!! So it will be a bit of a battle!! Bring it on!!

[Steve Baker]

I did a wee experiment today to see where the infection was coming from for my WBC entry. I'd never smelt anything like my bottle when it came back from the judging table but "chicken poo" as Steph described it was pretty close. I've been drinking straight from the keg and was pretty happy with it. I bottled from the keg about 3 hours before judging

 

Contenders for the cause were:

- infected keg, but presents more after being warmed & with some oxygen exposure.

- dirty picnic tap or bottling tube

- dirty bottle, I had to scrounge an old swap-a-crate bottle which hasn't been used for years. I just cleaned it with dish washing liquid and a bottle brush that didn't reach the bottom (!). Looked and smelt clean but who knows.

 

So, for my experiment I did the following:

1) poured half a glass from picnic tab

2) poured half a glass from picnic tab+bottling tube

3) gave the tap a full disassemble & clean then poured another half glass

 

All glasses were covered and left for a few hours at room temp.

 

2) developed a wine-gum/lolly aroma but not sure whether that would be infection or extra oxygen from the splashier pour.

1) may have started to get a bit funky compared to 3) but there wasn't a huge difference.

 

I think the bottle is the most likely culprit, and if anything it has shown me how quickly an infection can assert itself. I also discovered for the first time that I could fully disassemble the flexi valve/trigger part of the picnic tap so this was the first time it has ever been cleaned. The spring (non contact) side of the valve was smelling off.

 

Time to buy some 500ml plastic bottles, cheaper than getting full flagons from Regionals.