Blog Tracker
15-08-2022, 07:14
Visit The Beer Nut site (https://thebeernut.blogspot.com/2022/08/source-mode.html)
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJcqCE2uTGI4-HfHnt0poZJbsXFt2ZsKkdMdr_gjDB3D6R7m0VfZK8U-t9H-rXxT-vNuIoWzf7MaF8i0UyviRo3FfX3LCtvq0Gq0ViypSYX-ns1f_txqKnxEnIlyF__rwql8OLxlwQjZltKhasCCPjgGoVj2y3 2C7SJ74wxNuDHuJyaPVpbas/w139-h200/rascals_pilot_61_basil_raspberry_saison.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJcqCE2uTGI4-HfHnt0poZJbsXFt2ZsKkdMdr_gjDB3D6R7m0VfZK8U-t9H-rXxT-vNuIoWzf7MaF8i0UyviRo3FfX3LCtvq0Gq0ViypSYX-ns1f_txqKnxEnIlyF__rwql8OLxlwQjZltKhasCCPjgGoVj2y3 2C7SJ74wxNuDHuJyaPVpbas/s3255/rascals_pilot_61_basil_raspberry_saison.jpg)I find myself feeling guilty when I don't sufficiently avail of the good beery resources we have in this town. Post-pandemic there aren't as many as there used to be but that's no excuse not to get out and about. So, when a free Thursday evening popped up on my calendar I took myself to Rascals HQ.
They've been busy with their pilot series of brewery-only beers, having reached the lofty heights of Pilot #61, a Basil & Raspberry Saison. I'm sure I've had both in a saison before but not together. There's no reason it won't work. The result is a coppery pink colour and quite strong at 5.8% ABV. Served deliciously cold, that makes it dangerously refreshing and I had to restrain myself on the first few mouthfuls. Interestingly, neither of the added ingredients comes through in an especially novelty way: the base is a real saison; peaches and straw, white pepper and melon. There's a slight fruit-smoothie sweetness in both the aroma and the finish to represent the raspberry, but I think the basil has been subsumed into its general saisonosity. As such, I'm not sure the flavourings added much -- it's a perfectly good dry saison and still would be without them.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQw5XzU4GOE9c_oyeIjQ9ltzSNKHNQL9wOcMXxPmP8eg l7vB-t1GQD6uYEYIBlysatweQ1B5v5XmRi3IDvEgDOKobrUJPEdeN5r wrKREsFMeMGyFdZFK7o0_-006n6eiPsfehBSzCFp4kk6RjbpJ3l2SO3wLgVl7Ut5m4cKYHq3 0WHvXhdtDs/w200-h184/rascals_pilot_58_ipa_v2_pilot_59_ipa_v3.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQw5XzU4GOE9c_oyeIjQ9ltzSNKHNQL9wOcMXxPmP8eg l7vB-t1GQD6uYEYIBlysatweQ1B5v5XmRi3IDvEgDOKobrUJPEdeN5r wrKREsFMeMGyFdZFK7o0_-006n6eiPsfehBSzCFp4kk6RjbpJ3l2SO3wLgVl7Ut5m4cKYHq3 0WHvXhdtDs/s2255/rascals_pilot_58_ipa_v2_pilot_59_ipa_v3.jpg)
Left: v.2, Right: v.3
Some Teutonic hop-tinkering next. Pilots #58 and #59 are respectively tagged as versions 2 and3of the "house IPA", which I assumed means Wunderbar, hopped with Mandarina Bavaria and Hallertau Blanc. A barman telling tales out of school says that Wunderbar is due a recipe change and it may be one of these. First surprise from the new kids is that they're different colours: v.2 a paler shade of amber than v.3.
v.2 is fairly quiet on the aroma but gives out a fabulously fresh and pure mandarin pithiness in the foretaste. It rounds out after a moment into oily orange peel and a hint of cedarwood spicing, before a quick and super-clean finish that's almost lagerlike. And all done with Hüll Melon, we're told.
After that, I found v.3 rather plainer. They've let the Americans into the brewhouse and added Amarillo and Ekuanot to the Mandarina. I think that's a regressive step. There's still a pleasing pith but it's a pinch not a punch. There's something else too, a herbal, medicinal quality that might be eucalyptus on a good day but TCP on a bad one. It didn't sit well with me, and the idea that perfectly-decent Wunderbar may soon be this fills me with dread. It's not a bad beer by any means, but switching back to v.2 was like switching to a high definition picture.
I loved that I, along with every other punter, was able to participate unofficially in this bit of backroom recipe twiddling. This. Is. What. Taprooms. Are. For.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYNi8Dw5wiAWotdIjzG4gJfBi7K8Hg_2Tnl7tdHC3s7U w4Z6w4DuS1Yi9IWaT6dY5RtDTQ7Cnkaya8Qo3AV1FgAyDQJe8i JkSuUweycCjU6wyDAzZVsIf2LqIEidQoplwdBSlA7klpn2uwBI m_nmv1cl3Az56ePmSVdF7N72S0rKAWzayvhUY/w151-h200/rascals_nitro_stout.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYNi8Dw5wiAWotdIjzG4gJfBi7K8Hg_2Tnl7tdHC3s7U w4Z6w4DuS1Yi9IWaT6dY5RtDTQ7Cnkaya8Qo3AV1FgAyDQJe8i JkSuUweycCjU6wyDAzZVsIf2LqIEidQoplwdBSlA7klpn2uwBI m_nmv1cl3Az56ePmSVdF7N72S0rKAWzayvhUY/s2745/rascals_nitro_stout.jpg)Seemingly a core part of the Rascals taproom line-up, but shamefully new to me, is Nitro Stout. The name needs work. It's an orthodox 4.4% ABV, properly black with a cream off-white head, albeit one which didn't dome over the top of the rim. But while the macro nitro stouts are all about that presentation, this one is flavour forward. There's a downright bold kick of high-end milk chocolate in the foretaste, all silky Galaxy bars and Flakes in a canoe under a waterfall (ask your parents). After a second, a balancing dry grass and spinach brings a bit of the old school to it, but the finish and aftertaste is back to chocolate again. Although it's not complex or fancy, I loved the boldness of it, and was reminded a lot of Leann Folláin, if it came in a more sessionable package. This isn't the sort of hopped-up hazed-out yoof-oriented beer that Rascals is built around, and perhaps that's why they haven't dignified it with a name yet, but it's jolly decent and is well able to go toe-to-toe with the Porterhouse/O'Hara's/BRÚ establishment of actually-good Irish stout.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqjMaKNXgKYoPKhwdGAn1PbSWEtxP-dx5ng2oKIKX4G9AQXIXVaYfrycRMUQsf0JqGG82f9w_MyLGYuQ 3didkbt_f-pDsb7X6sNaBXSmXb9A4WRtUh_eU8haT2geGDwin-lg7pdBUhSd3KYp-OWmzvadNqjxjFOcnn72Xybr-UnnPpklkoGX4/w160-h200/rascals_low_rider_micro_ipa.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqjMaKNXgKYoPKhwdGAn1PbSWEtxP-dx5ng2oKIKX4G9AQXIXVaYfrycRMUQsf0JqGG82f9w_MyLGYuQ 3didkbt_f-pDsb7X6sNaBXSmXb9A4WRtUh_eU8haT2geGDwin-lg7pdBUhSd3KYp-OWmzvadNqjxjFOcnn72Xybr-UnnPpklkoGX4/s2820/rascals_low_rider_micro_ipa.jpg)A postscript at home. Low Rider is a micro-IPA, a recent style whose merit I've yet to be fully convinced of. A graduate of the Rascals pilot programme, it's 2.8% ABV yet cost a substantial four euro twenty-five for a can. Yeah, yeah: inflation and that, but still. It had better be good. It's very pale in the glass though smells fresh and full-on, bursting with lime and assorted stonefruit. Clever use of oats boosts the mouthfeel so it doesn't feel any way watery, often a fatal flaw in beers like this. That said, the low strength does mean the flavour is a little muted and lacks a proper big finish. It's good while it lasts, however: west-coast grapefruit bitterness matched against juicier tropical notes. This is micro IPA done very well, though I'm still unconvinced about the price tag. It would be a short session on such spendy fare.
Rascals was stop one on a revisit of Dublin's prolific drink-in breweries. The series will continue shortly.
More... (https://thebeernut.blogspot.com/2022/08/source-mode.html)
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJcqCE2uTGI4-HfHnt0poZJbsXFt2ZsKkdMdr_gjDB3D6R7m0VfZK8U-t9H-rXxT-vNuIoWzf7MaF8i0UyviRo3FfX3LCtvq0Gq0ViypSYX-ns1f_txqKnxEnIlyF__rwql8OLxlwQjZltKhasCCPjgGoVj2y3 2C7SJ74wxNuDHuJyaPVpbas/w139-h200/rascals_pilot_61_basil_raspberry_saison.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJcqCE2uTGI4-HfHnt0poZJbsXFt2ZsKkdMdr_gjDB3D6R7m0VfZK8U-t9H-rXxT-vNuIoWzf7MaF8i0UyviRo3FfX3LCtvq0Gq0ViypSYX-ns1f_txqKnxEnIlyF__rwql8OLxlwQjZltKhasCCPjgGoVj2y3 2C7SJ74wxNuDHuJyaPVpbas/s3255/rascals_pilot_61_basil_raspberry_saison.jpg)I find myself feeling guilty when I don't sufficiently avail of the good beery resources we have in this town. Post-pandemic there aren't as many as there used to be but that's no excuse not to get out and about. So, when a free Thursday evening popped up on my calendar I took myself to Rascals HQ.
They've been busy with their pilot series of brewery-only beers, having reached the lofty heights of Pilot #61, a Basil & Raspberry Saison. I'm sure I've had both in a saison before but not together. There's no reason it won't work. The result is a coppery pink colour and quite strong at 5.8% ABV. Served deliciously cold, that makes it dangerously refreshing and I had to restrain myself on the first few mouthfuls. Interestingly, neither of the added ingredients comes through in an especially novelty way: the base is a real saison; peaches and straw, white pepper and melon. There's a slight fruit-smoothie sweetness in both the aroma and the finish to represent the raspberry, but I think the basil has been subsumed into its general saisonosity. As such, I'm not sure the flavourings added much -- it's a perfectly good dry saison and still would be without them.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQw5XzU4GOE9c_oyeIjQ9ltzSNKHNQL9wOcMXxPmP8eg l7vB-t1GQD6uYEYIBlysatweQ1B5v5XmRi3IDvEgDOKobrUJPEdeN5r wrKREsFMeMGyFdZFK7o0_-006n6eiPsfehBSzCFp4kk6RjbpJ3l2SO3wLgVl7Ut5m4cKYHq3 0WHvXhdtDs/w200-h184/rascals_pilot_58_ipa_v2_pilot_59_ipa_v3.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQw5XzU4GOE9c_oyeIjQ9ltzSNKHNQL9wOcMXxPmP8eg l7vB-t1GQD6uYEYIBlysatweQ1B5v5XmRi3IDvEgDOKobrUJPEdeN5r wrKREsFMeMGyFdZFK7o0_-006n6eiPsfehBSzCFp4kk6RjbpJ3l2SO3wLgVl7Ut5m4cKYHq3 0WHvXhdtDs/s2255/rascals_pilot_58_ipa_v2_pilot_59_ipa_v3.jpg)
Left: v.2, Right: v.3
Some Teutonic hop-tinkering next. Pilots #58 and #59 are respectively tagged as versions 2 and3of the "house IPA", which I assumed means Wunderbar, hopped with Mandarina Bavaria and Hallertau Blanc. A barman telling tales out of school says that Wunderbar is due a recipe change and it may be one of these. First surprise from the new kids is that they're different colours: v.2 a paler shade of amber than v.3.
v.2 is fairly quiet on the aroma but gives out a fabulously fresh and pure mandarin pithiness in the foretaste. It rounds out after a moment into oily orange peel and a hint of cedarwood spicing, before a quick and super-clean finish that's almost lagerlike. And all done with Hüll Melon, we're told.
After that, I found v.3 rather plainer. They've let the Americans into the brewhouse and added Amarillo and Ekuanot to the Mandarina. I think that's a regressive step. There's still a pleasing pith but it's a pinch not a punch. There's something else too, a herbal, medicinal quality that might be eucalyptus on a good day but TCP on a bad one. It didn't sit well with me, and the idea that perfectly-decent Wunderbar may soon be this fills me with dread. It's not a bad beer by any means, but switching back to v.2 was like switching to a high definition picture.
I loved that I, along with every other punter, was able to participate unofficially in this bit of backroom recipe twiddling. This. Is. What. Taprooms. Are. For.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYNi8Dw5wiAWotdIjzG4gJfBi7K8Hg_2Tnl7tdHC3s7U w4Z6w4DuS1Yi9IWaT6dY5RtDTQ7Cnkaya8Qo3AV1FgAyDQJe8i JkSuUweycCjU6wyDAzZVsIf2LqIEidQoplwdBSlA7klpn2uwBI m_nmv1cl3Az56ePmSVdF7N72S0rKAWzayvhUY/w151-h200/rascals_nitro_stout.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYNi8Dw5wiAWotdIjzG4gJfBi7K8Hg_2Tnl7tdHC3s7U w4Z6w4DuS1Yi9IWaT6dY5RtDTQ7Cnkaya8Qo3AV1FgAyDQJe8i JkSuUweycCjU6wyDAzZVsIf2LqIEidQoplwdBSlA7klpn2uwBI m_nmv1cl3Az56ePmSVdF7N72S0rKAWzayvhUY/s2745/rascals_nitro_stout.jpg)Seemingly a core part of the Rascals taproom line-up, but shamefully new to me, is Nitro Stout. The name needs work. It's an orthodox 4.4% ABV, properly black with a cream off-white head, albeit one which didn't dome over the top of the rim. But while the macro nitro stouts are all about that presentation, this one is flavour forward. There's a downright bold kick of high-end milk chocolate in the foretaste, all silky Galaxy bars and Flakes in a canoe under a waterfall (ask your parents). After a second, a balancing dry grass and spinach brings a bit of the old school to it, but the finish and aftertaste is back to chocolate again. Although it's not complex or fancy, I loved the boldness of it, and was reminded a lot of Leann Folláin, if it came in a more sessionable package. This isn't the sort of hopped-up hazed-out yoof-oriented beer that Rascals is built around, and perhaps that's why they haven't dignified it with a name yet, but it's jolly decent and is well able to go toe-to-toe with the Porterhouse/O'Hara's/BRÚ establishment of actually-good Irish stout.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqjMaKNXgKYoPKhwdGAn1PbSWEtxP-dx5ng2oKIKX4G9AQXIXVaYfrycRMUQsf0JqGG82f9w_MyLGYuQ 3didkbt_f-pDsb7X6sNaBXSmXb9A4WRtUh_eU8haT2geGDwin-lg7pdBUhSd3KYp-OWmzvadNqjxjFOcnn72Xybr-UnnPpklkoGX4/w160-h200/rascals_low_rider_micro_ipa.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqjMaKNXgKYoPKhwdGAn1PbSWEtxP-dx5ng2oKIKX4G9AQXIXVaYfrycRMUQsf0JqGG82f9w_MyLGYuQ 3didkbt_f-pDsb7X6sNaBXSmXb9A4WRtUh_eU8haT2geGDwin-lg7pdBUhSd3KYp-OWmzvadNqjxjFOcnn72Xybr-UnnPpklkoGX4/s2820/rascals_low_rider_micro_ipa.jpg)A postscript at home. Low Rider is a micro-IPA, a recent style whose merit I've yet to be fully convinced of. A graduate of the Rascals pilot programme, it's 2.8% ABV yet cost a substantial four euro twenty-five for a can. Yeah, yeah: inflation and that, but still. It had better be good. It's very pale in the glass though smells fresh and full-on, bursting with lime and assorted stonefruit. Clever use of oats boosts the mouthfeel so it doesn't feel any way watery, often a fatal flaw in beers like this. That said, the low strength does mean the flavour is a little muted and lacks a proper big finish. It's good while it lasts, however: west-coast grapefruit bitterness matched against juicier tropical notes. This is micro IPA done very well, though I'm still unconvinced about the price tag. It would be a short session on such spendy fare.
Rascals was stop one on a revisit of Dublin's prolific drink-in breweries. The series will continue shortly.
More... (https://thebeernut.blogspot.com/2022/08/source-mode.html)