Thursday 19 August 2010

New Seasonal - Rood Herfst

Autumn is my favourite season. The madness of summer brewing can be recovered from, the temperature drops so I can stop worrying about my beer sweating in unchilled cellars, this year’s harvest of malt and hops are ready for evaluation and the beaches and roads around the brewery are once again all mine. In the brewery, Autumn started last Tuesday when Kelvin mashed Autumn Red.

It’s the second year that we have brewed Autumn Red, it proved very popular last year. I have no doubt that someone in America has got a full description of exactly what a red ale should be and that he lives with his mum and worries local parents when he sits in the park. Autumn Red is a red ale because it is red in colour and is an Ale. Please don’t judge it according to any preconceptions.

Autumn Red is the love child of one Zak Avery and I and was conceived this time last year. This year’s recipe stays true to the principles of last year’s with a few minor changes made to maintain flavour integrity. She is hopped with Northern Brewer, Bobek and Galena. Malt colour and flavour comes from golden naked oats, roasted barley, rye crystal and aromatic malt.

After a warm open fermentation the beer is then matured in tank with toasted oak chips before cask racking. The oak chips come from Crocadon sawmill in St Mellion courtesy of the Eden Project Green Team. Autumn Red will be hitting the pumps from the start of September.

4 comments:

Beard Beer Blogger said...

What kind of character does Bobek give? I've never used it before. I do agree that a red ale shouldn't be too constrained within guidelines, my reds, are malty and red and that's about it.

Stuart Howe said...

Bobek is my favourite hop. It's similar to Styrians with a fruity, delicately-citrus note. It's very low alpha so you can use lots without filling the palate with bitterness. It's cone is very small, about half the size of mist hops.

Stuart Howe said...

Most hops. Not mist hops. Mist hops have a really tiny cone.

ZakAvery said...

You're too kind, Stuart - I'm sure my only contribution to the recipe was one speciality grain.

Apropos your picture, I'm a big fan of G&G's work. A friend of mine curated their 2007 retrospective at Tate Modern, and I got to meet them beforehand. I excitedly told Leeanne (the missus) about shaking their hands, and her response was "Well, I hope you washed them afterwards".

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