Ever since it opened, Reverie Brewing in Newtown has been good to us. They have hosted meetings, offered to help us buy ingredients, and given us brewing advice. But at the April meeting, they went above and beyond, giving us tastes of out of some of their barrels.
The April meeting was less well-attended than it could have been, but did not lack enthusiasm. David and Andy returned after an absence of several months. (We last saw them at Aspetuck.) Gary from Brew Haven joined us for the first time. We all met up in the taproom for a few beers before moving to the back “party room” for the meeting proper.
(Fun side note: We learned in the tap room that the membership contains two priests. One has to wonder how many homebrew clubs can say this.)
There were wonderful homebrews to judge, but first we tried a couple of terrible ones made by your correspondent. These were part of an experiment at M.A.S.H. where we made many different beers with Lutra Kveik to see how they came out. “Badly” was the consensus. The yeast packets lie. Lutra does not make a clean, crisp pseudo-lager. No more needs to be said about those awful beers; they are going down the drain.
Proper, yummy homebrew followed. We judged a number of them. (Tasting notes below.) And just as we were wrapping up, the Reverie staff arrived and pulled nails from a couple of barrels. Incredible deliciousness flowed. Heartfelt thanks to Reverie for this!
Tasting notes:
- APA, Gary: Piney, resiny, spruce-y. Fresh and inviting. A little sweet malt up front with a firmly bitter finish. Better than the SNPA we judged at Mara’s. Made with Voss Kveik. 9/3/15/5/8 = 40
- Saison, David and Andy: Banana, spice, cola. VERY dry finish. Pierre likes it. Made with Belle Saison yeast and Pacific Jade hops. 8/3/17/4/8 = 40
- Strong Saison, Andy T. Sweet and boozy aroma. Dry finish. A little like apricot brandy. Mara likes it. 1.090 SG, Dupont yeast, 8 weeks at 90F. 7/3/15/5/8 = 38
- American Wild, Pierre: Was supposed to be something else. Pierre pulled the wrong bottles. He, himself, had no idea what we were drinking. It was dark and fruity with TONS of Brett. No score, but kinda tasty.
- Macadamia Hydromel, Paul B (I think. Notes don’t say. But that’s what I remember.) Fruity and floral, smells like a forest after a rain. Fizzy, dry, and scary drinkable. Not bone dry. Shawn’s honey, US-05, and black tea. 7.4%abv. 7/6/20/8 = 41
- Mulberry and Black Currant Wild Ale, Andy T. Woodsy, with lots of berries and tons of Brett. Most members just kinda moaned in pleasure. Buttery mouthfeel with a SUPER dry finish. 2yrs old, fruit added 6mos ago, carbed with black currant juice concentrate. 10/3/18/5/9 = 45