Your Little Hoodrat Friend
5.5 gallons
6 lbs 2-Row
3 lbs Red Wheat Malt
2 lbs Rye Malt
.33 lbs CaraWheat
.33 lbs Chocolate Rye
1 oz Sorachi Ace FWH
1 oz Sorachi Ace @5 min.
Wyeast 1007 German Ale (2l Starter)
OG: 1.044
IBU: 41.4
Roggenbier? Fest Wheat?
If it turns out good, I’m hoping to enter it into a contest.
American wheat or rye is where I would put it - 6D.
Thanks!
You’ll get killed in 6D even if the beer tastes good because it will be too dark. If you pull out the chocolate rye then your chances in that category would improve. You might want to try a catch all category. What I would do is brew the stuff and taste it. Once you know what you have then describe it for the judges with the actual taste in mind. Maybe call it a rye alt depending on how it comes out.
Last night after work I was looking at the detailed style guidelines and as it turns out, a dark rye beer was specifically mentioned in the text under the specialty heading, that is where you should enter it. I get to judge beers in a fairly large contest here every year and it never fails that somebody will enter a brew in the wrong category. Even if the beer tastes great, it has no chance if it’s entered into the wrong category and God knows it’s hard enough to do well without giving yourself another hurdle to clear.
Color’s only a couple of points on the score sheet, and I have medaled in that category with a 1.040, 40 IBU, Rye APA that was well above 6 SRM, but it would depend on the judges and the other entries. But yeah, your chances would improve in 6D without the chocolate rye.
Well of course you have a point but it’s been my experience that if the color is way off judges have a tendency to taste what they see to some extent anyway. Also, when you put 1/3 of a pound of chocolate grain into a 5 gallon batch besides the color you are also going to affect the flavor and although I have not specifically used chocolate rye I suspect you are going to get the roast flavors generally associated with chocolate malts (not that there is anything wrong with that by the way). I have seen many a recipe for an English Brown ale for example with less chocolate malt in a 5 gallon batch so yeah, you’ll taste it. Since 6D is the light hybrid category, well you see where I’m going with this. Incidentally, my comments stem from experience entering pretty large contests (>1,200 entries) and I really hate to give points away at all since it’s so difficult to do well when going up against 35 to 45 beers in a category. Naturally, in a smaller contest your chances of placing are much better but at least here in Texas it’s pretty competative, even in the smaller contests (seems like all the really good brewers enter alot all over the state). Anyhow, long story short if you want to enter the beer in 6D, drop the chocolate rye.
[quote=“Barley Water”]…but at least here in Texas it’s pretty competative, even in the smaller contests (seems like all the really good brewers enter alot all over the state). Anyhow, long story short if you want to enter the beer in 6D, drop the chocolate rye.[/quote]Where are you in Texas? Our club (Austin Zealots) had the Lone Star trophy two years in a row, came in second this year - comps here can be brutal, especially the Bluebonnet and Dixie Cup. Ever enter our Inquisition? It’s a fun comp for beer that tastes good, not for conforming to BJCP rules.
Not every beer fits a BJCP style. You have one of them.
I’m a longtime member of North Texas Homebrewers Association, it’s highly possible that we have met at some point. I have quite bit of experience with the Bluebonnet and have entered the Dixie Cup a couple of times, tends to make one humble, don’t you think? I was lucky enough to get my second stein last year at the Bluebonnet and I got a second once at the Dixie but it is extremely difficult. Yeah, you guys have done really well in the Lone Star Circuit, pretty much have spanked us like “red haired step children”. I have started in earnest brewing for the Bluebonnet already, I should have 9-10 entries if God is smiling on me and hopefully some will be decent. I have a solera of Oud Bruin going and I bottled my entries for that a couple of weeks ago, I am praying that the damn bottles don’t explode. I have not yet tried your competition, I should look into that. I will be in your neck of the woods on Thursday to watch the “Horns” hopefully beat TCU, my kid plays in the Longhorn Band.
Isn’t there a catch-all BJCP style for this kind of beer? 20 something I think.
Isn’t there a catch-all BJCP style for this kind of beer? 20 something I think.[/quote]
Category 23 is specialty beers, but you have to have something that really stands out to do well IMO.
Isn’t there a catch-all BJCP style for this kind of beer? 20 something I think.[/quote]
Category 23 is specialty beers, but you have to have something that really stands out to do well IMO.[/quote]
no joke! add a can of sardines, boysenberries, and ferment in a 100 year old bison skull. that would stand a chance in 23. hahaha!
[quote=“Edward Teach”]no joke! add a can of sardines, boysenberries, and ferment in a 100 year old bison skull. that would stand a chance in 23. hahaha![/quote]Add some sriracha and a dead cockroach and I think you have a winner in 23!
[quote=“Barley Water”]I have not yet tried your competition, I should look into that.[/quote]It’s not BJCP or Lone Star Circuit, but you get real people drinking your beer rather than judges stuck on a specific set of parameters. A lot of competition guys hate it, though, since pushing the boundaries of the style doesn’t necessarily help you.
I haven’t looked at the BJCP styles, but I will if it turns out well. Thanks for the guidance. Overnight, that Alt yeast blew up real big and left a small puddle on the top of the bucket (7.8 gallon bucket, 5.25 gallons of beer), so the yeast liked it.
I’ve used the chocolate rye/carawheat combo with a little Caramunich to make a red ale, so I was going for a reddish ale. We’ll see what the yeast does to this, but it might be more “brown with garnet highlights”. Whatever. I realize this might be outside of style guidelines, but I was just thinking that IF I wanted to enter it, where would it go. Might be a lost cause, though. I should likely save my $5 and 2 beers.
