Topic
#tasting-notes
72 posts tagged with this topic. RSS feed.
- news
White Peak Wire Works Bourbon Barrell
yes, I’m back! It’s been a very ‘special’ couple of years… war, hostages, more war, government trying to kill Israeli democracy, etc. I took a […]
by Gal Granov1 viewuncategorizedcask-strengthtasting-noteswhite-peak-wire-works - news
Refresh Your Palate With a Glass of Smith-Madrone Riesling
During the crush of holidays that begin at Halloween and rush toward a celebration of the New Year, it can be a challenge to find time slow down and enjoy the season. A simple meal with a refreshing glass of wine on a quiet evening at home can be the perfect antidote to all that rushing around. Not that we […] The post Refresh Your Palate With a Glass of Smith-Madrone Riesling appeared first on Pull That Cork .
by Nancy (CSW)5 viewstasting-notesnapa-valleyrieslingspring-mountain-district-ava - news
Brew Day and Tasting Notes: Long Leash/North Shore Brewers 2025 Q3 British Brown Ale
When British Brown Ale was drawn as the style for our club's quarterly style and in-club competition, this was an opportunity for another Hombrew Con 2022 rebrew. Whereas Maximillian Lager was brewed for the Muntons booth in the exhibition hall, Long Leash was brewed for my seminar on English Ales . Long Leash was one of four batches I brewed for my talk. A new recipe at the time, I developed it to demonstrate my beliefs in recipe development for English ales. A well-crafted English ale should be a base-malt driven beer. Even my English Porter recipe is 87% base malt. To test my theory I took the porter recipe, replacde the Chocolate Malt with Brown Malt, replaced Wheat Malt with Crystal malt, and replaced the small amount of Extra Dark Crystal in the porter with Chocolate Malt in the brown ale. For the seminar I brewed four, three gallon batches which was not nearly enough beer. Most attendees were lucky to be able to taste two out of the four. I barely had a chance to taste any
by noreply@blogger.com (Jason Chalifour)5 viewsall-grainbrew-dayenglish-brown-aletasting-notes - news
What Are You Getting?
Learning How to Accurately Identify and Describe Aromas in Wine For many new tasters, learning to identify aromas in wine can feel like a mysterious,… Read more The post What Are You Getting? appeared first on Vinum 55 .
by Kim Allison5 viewstasting-notesuncategorizedwine-educationvinum-55wine-descriptorswine-tasting - news
October Wine Club Tasting Notes
<h1> CLASSIC CLUB </h1> <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://uncorkedwineshops.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Van-Ardi-Red-Classic-R1.webp" alt="Van Ardi Red Classic R1" itemprop="image" height="248" width="84" title="Van Ardi Red
by Tasting List Changer4 viewstasting-noteshermosa-beachjeff-bonafedelos-angelesmanhattan-beachredondo-beach - news
Old Friends: Boddingtons Pub Ale
I am starting to think that my eldest brother has an awful lot to answer for, and not just the horse racing I mentioned in the last post. Fun fact, when my younger brother and I were around 11/12 years old, the eldest, then about 19 I think, came home to stay for a while, and so naturally he taught us how to read the form for the horse racing. We loved having our big brother at home, he was our hero and we thought him the very epitome of cool, every Saturday morning we would head up to the local shop, at the time we lived in a place called Sebastopol, not in Crimea, but just outside Cwmbran in Wales, and buy the paper. We would then sit and go through the races for that day, and my brother would give us both a quid to put on any horse we wanted, when the National came round he bumped it to a fiver. It was he that told us to always keep an eye out for a horse that has come fourth in both its previous outings, the frequency with which they win is interesting. Anyway, said brother,
by noreply@blogger.com (Alistair Reece)4 viewsboddingtonsold-friendstasting-noteswafflings - news
Tasting Notes: Maximilian Lager
I was weirdly excited to brew this recipe when I wrote the original brew day post as a stand-alone. I was able to taste the first batch of this recipe at Homebrew Con, but that is not the same thing as being able to enjoy a full pour. Needless to say, I couldn't conduct a side-by-side of that batch either. This time I gave the beer a name. I bought the tins of extract during a Black Friday sale last fall. When I purchased lager yeast for my recent Pale Kellerbier, it only made sense to re-pitch it for a batch that was already in the pipeline. The batch did get three weeks to ferment extra cold, before going into a keg for lagering. When I tasted the beer at that time, I picked up some diacetyl. I let the keg warm up to cellar temperature and sit for a week as a crude diacetyl rest. Then the keg lagered all summer until there was space in my keezer to put it on tap. For my commercial side-by-side, I saw Notch had their excellent Vienna Lager on tap at their Salem brewe
by noreply@blogger.com (Jason Chalifour)4 viewsextracttasting-notesvienna-lager - news
Old Friends: Leffe Blonde
Dipping into some of the dimmest and most distant of crevices in my drinking memories today for this resurrection of my Old Friends series. Back in the days when I was a college student in Birmingham, I got the train from New Street early one Saturday morning to go to Esher in Surrey. The main purpose for the trip was to spend the day at the Sandown races with my eldest brother, who lived down that way back then. Having spent the day frittering money away on thoroughbreds of varying uselessness, we headed into central London for dinner at a non-descript curry house, non-descript in the sense that I don't have the foggiest as to what I ate, but weirdly 2 beers are lodged in my memory, the Żywiec I was drinking and the Leffe Blonde that was my brother's choice that night. Being a good younger brother, by 8 years, I was suitably in awe of his sophistication and worldly wiseness, and so at some point back in Brum I made a point of trying Leffe, in the comfort of the All Bar One. Given that
by noreply@blogger.com (Alistair Reece)4 viewsabbey-aleleffe-blondeold-friendstasting-noteswafflings - news
September Wine Club Tasting Notes
<h1>CLASSIC CLUB</h1> <p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" title="MaquisValdueza_LosPajaros" src="https://uncorkedwineshops.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/MaquisValdueza_LosPajaros.png" alt="MaquisValdueza_LosPajaros" width="241" height="800"> <st
by uncorked-admin4 viewstasting-notes - news
Tasting Notes: North Shore Brewers 2025 Q2 Kellerbier
As much as I prefer the written word, the digital world is moving more toward video all the time. Over the years I have very lightly dabbled in video production. I have no patience for video editing. With that in mind, I went on Facebook Live on Big Brew Day thinking that might be an easier pivot to video when I brewed this batch. The tl;dw about the brew is I designed a Helles-recipe that borrowed slightly from my cream ale recipe, the beer got two weeks in primary fermentation before being racked to a keg for keg-conditioning and lagering. I was happy to pick up a fresh crowler of Notch Zwickel directly from the brewery for my side-by-side. Aroma Homebrew: Doughy bread, low floral hop, very clean Zwickel: Slightly hoppier - rustic, almost metallic Appearance Homebrew: Gold, hint of haze. Thin, foamy white head a little disappointing. Probably not enough pressure in keg, it poured a little slow off the tap Zwickel: Color the same, clearer, h
by noreply@blogger.com (Jason Chalifour)5 viewskellerbiertasting-notes - news
August Wine Club Tasting Notes
<h1>CLASSIC CLUB</h1> <p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" title="Westerly_Fletchers_Merlot" src="https://uncorkedwineshops.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Westerly_Fletchers_Merlot.png" alt="Westerly_Fletchers_Merlot" width="241" height="800"> <st
by uncorked-admin4 viewstasting-notes - news
Muha Meds: They Caught My Attention
Muha Meds Brain Freeze: My first impressions after cracking open the jar. Freshly snipped peppermint in the nose. Venice Beach house floors when just grinded- fresh herbs directly up front with driblets of rosemary, thyme, catnip, whew, there’s that baby skunk lurking outside. Peach pits… schnapps? Lineage per Weedmaps: iced ‘n’ baked x Do-si-delirium. Nose: […]
by Warren_Bobrow4 viewsskunk-magazinetasting-notescannabiscannabis-cocktailsmuha-medswarren-bobrow - news
Does craft lager need to exist? Tasting notes: a macro versus micro taste test
Forgive the clickbait title, of course it does. Some of my favorite craft beers and breweries are lagers or lager-focused. What I am asking specifically is does craft American lager need to exist? Pedantically speaking, I am referring to styles 1A American Light Lager and 1B American Lager in the BCJP style-Guidelines. More and more craft brewers are making American-style lager. It used to be that craft beer was positioned as an alternative to bland, yellow beer. Other than responding to consumer tastes, what does craft American-style lager have to offer? Are craft brewers making better lagers than the largest lager brewers in the world? If so, is the quality difference significant enough to justify a higher price? Let’s put it to the test. I had been thinking about this for awhile when I purchased the beers for this tasting. After I purchased the beers, but before I conducted the tasting, Tree House attempted to answer this very question on their YouTube channel. Nate’s co
by noreply@blogger.com (Jason Chalifour)4 viewscommentarycommercial-brewingtasting-notes - news
Brew Day and Tasting Notes: Summer Somewhere 2025 White Ale
Discontinued beers can be a funny thing. Sometimes they are romanticized by many. Sometimes they are remembered by a few. One beer a lot of friends my age miss that is otherwise forgotten about is Samuel Adams White Ale. Consider Sam makes numerous Belgian witbiers, I never understood why their original White Ale was discontinued and never brought back. Then after doing some research I found out that White Ale used TEN different spices and botanicals: orange and lemon peel, dried plum, grains of paradise, coriander, anise, hibiscus, rose hips, tamarind, and vanilla. That probably explains it then. With two other light, summer beers on, this would be the 2025 vintage of Summer Somewhere. I got the idea to clone White Ale when the beer was mentioned on a group text. I went as far as to offer to brew a 10-gallon batch and bottle condition half to share. I haven't had White Ale since at least 2010. I remember the beer tasting like Sam Summer , but with added orange and coriander. That was
by noreply@blogger.com (Jason Chalifour)5 viewsbrew-daytasting-noteswitbier - news
Brew Day and Tasting Notes: Crackerjack Cream Ale
After my recent batch of Spring Training Stout , here I'm brewing another one of my house recipes I haven't written about in ten years . Look at those beautiful corn flakes. Like Spring Training Stout, Crackerjack Cream Ale is one of those beers I ask myself why I don't brew more often. Bearing that thought in mind, this still was not a brew I had penciled in for the summer this year. I brewed this for two reasons. Firstly, I committed to making a ten gallon batch and needed to propagate a specific yeast strain. I figured that strain would work really well in this beer. Secondly, my friends from Maine Malt House launched a direct-to-consumer website for homebrewers. Their craft malt is will be perfect in this recipe. Looking at the 2015 post, I have streamlined the recipe for Crackerjack Cream Ale to a point where I have the grist memorized: 70% North American 2-row malt, 25% Flaked Maize, 5% Caramalt. Initially the recipe had light caramel malt to give it a sweet note; you know,
by noreply@blogger.com (Jason Chalifour)5 viewsall-grainbrew-daycream-aletasting-notes - news
April Wine Club Tasting Notes
<h1>CLASSIC CLUB</h1> <p><img decoding="async" src="https://uncorkedwineshops.com/wp-content/plugins/bb-plugin/img/pixel.png" alt=""> <strong>Red 1</strong><strong> – </strong><strong>2020 Cellars 33 Halcon Vineyard Grenache, Yorkville Highlands, Cal
by uncorked-admin4 viewstasting-notes - news
Brew Day & Tasting Notes North Shore Brewers 2025 Q1 Australian Sparkling Ale
When Australian Sparkling Ale was the style pulled at random for my club, the North Shore Brewers first in-club competition of the year, the reaction was “huh?” and “what?”. That is because nobody had ever tasted or brewed an Australian Sparkling Ale. That’s is partially true. I brewed an extract kit from Northern Brewer back in 2015. While my initial tasting notes were positive, I recall not finishing the batch and dumping some of the bottles. The recipe kit has since been discontinued. The Pride of Ringwood hops used in the kit and by Cooper’s Sparkling Ale are also no longer available from any homebrew retailer in the US at least that I could find. Back to the drawing board it was. During January’s virtual club meeting we were chatting with Charlie Cummings, Head Brewer at Remnant Brewing. Charlie raised a fair point, is a style with one main example really a style? For Australian Sparkling Ale, the example is Coopers Australian Ale. I had that beer one time at a b
by noreply@blogger.com (Jason Chalifour)6 viewsaustralian-sparkling-alebrew-dayextractnorth-shore-brewerstasting-notes - news
Brew Day & Tasting Notes: Spring Training Stout (Irish Extra Stout)
"I am so happy" is what I texted a friend on brew day as I brewed this batch. I also unintentionally sent the same message on a group text as I tasted the beer a week after kegging when the carbonation was perfect. Hello, friend. Back when Jennie was still involved in brewing, she enjoyed coming up with beer names as much if not more than brewing or recipe development. In those early days the plan was to come up with seasonal beers like we were Sam Adams. An Irish Stout that would be ready for St. Patrick's Day named Spring Training Stout was just too perfect. Of those early seasonal brews, this is the only one that has stuck. The first batch of Spring Training Stout was brewed back in 2013. This would have been about six months after I started brewing. I still didn't know what I didn't know. Lets take a look at that first recipe: Recipe Specifications -------------------------- Boil Size: 5.71 gal Post Boil Volume: 5.21 gal Batch Size (fermenter): 5.00 gal Bottling V
by noreply@blogger.com (Jason Chalifour)5 viewsall-grainbrew-dayirish-extra-stouttasting-notes - news
SNA vs TOSNA: A Comparitive Guide to Nutrient Addition Methods in Meadmaking
Discover the key differences between SNA (Staggered Nutrient Additions) and TOSNA (Tailored Organic Staggered Nutrient Additions) in meadmaking. This comprehensive guide explores traditional and organic nutrient management methods, helping both novice and experienced meadmakers choose the right appr
by Matthew Chrispen4 viewsbrewer-s-notesmeadmeasurementprocesstasting-notesyeast - news
12x12 Review: Great Lakes Eliot Ness
Beers included: Eliot Ness Purchased: 15 March 2025 Purchase Price: $17.99 Initial Impression: When I first started really getting into craft beer one of the things people would get excited about was when a brewery started distributing in their state. This was before there was a taproom on every street corner and almost all packaged craft beer was bought at a store. Then by the late 2010s as the growth in craft beer began to slow, a regional brewery entering a new state became a red flag. Dumping liquid in a new market could provide a sugar high for a brand struggling for growth. Two large out-of-state breweries I worked with sent beer to Massachusetts; both have since been sold or merged. In that context, it was interesting to me to see Great Lakes Brewing on store shelves late last year. I almost pulled the trigger on Great Lakes Christmas Ale when I saw it late last year. For March I picked up Eliot Ness Amber Lager. Founded in 1988, Great Lakes is a Mi
by noreply@blogger.com (Jason Chalifour)4 views12x12international-amber-lagertasting-notes - news
Redbreast 25 yo 1997 The Whisky Exchange 2024, Cream sherry butt
So a cream sherry cask?!! Not very popular for aging Irish whiskey, is it? I did some reading about cream sherry, as I was not […]
by Gal Granov3 viewsirishredbreastsherrycream-sherrysherry-casktasting-notes - news
Ledaig 17 yo 2006 TWE ‘Seasons – Autumn’ 2023
The first of The Seasons: Autumn trio released by TWE, to welcome the fall. let’s dive in Ledaig 17 yo 2006 ,55,4%, The Whisky Exchange […]
by Gal Granov2 viewsledaigtasting-notestwe - news
Caol Ila 2008 , 15 year old – Whisky Show 2024
With all that’s going on locally, I find it harder to find the muse for writing tasting notes, but let’s try a few new drams […]
by Gal Granov2 viewscaol-ilaislaypeatedtasting-notestwecask-strength - news
Improving your BJCP Tasting Exam Scores
Suggestions for improving your BJCP Tasting Exam scores.
by Matthew Chrispen4 viewsjudgingscore-sheetstasting-notes