My first ever post on this blog was for a Mosaic and Belgian pils SMASH beer that I also added brun leger candi sugar to (read more here). The brewday was one of the tougher ones I've had. I'm happy to report it was more than worth it.
This beer is pretty much exactly what I expected. Mosaic is an awesome hop. At one point I had this beer side-by-side with its inspiration, Lone Pint's Yellow Rose. It's not a clone - on mine the color is much darker, the malt more present (from the sugar..), and the body slightly more full - but that hop has such a unique flavor that any Mosaic SMASH is going to taste very similar so long as you add sufficient late and/or dry additions.
As I mentioned towards the end of my mango berliner post, I was able to get this beer into a competition, a first for me. Essentially, I went by my home-brew supply shop and saw they were having a SMASH competition. I asked if they minded me entering a beer that also had sugar. They didn't, so I did. As I review this beer, I'll post my comments then follow with the judge's comments and scores. For what it's worth, the sample judged was the very end of the 1st keg (and was probably warm and slightly under carbed by the time they had it). I was only able to get about half a growler before it kicked. Luckily that was enough.
This beer is pretty much exactly what I expected. Mosaic is an awesome hop. At one point I had this beer side-by-side with its inspiration, Lone Pint's Yellow Rose. It's not a clone - on mine the color is much darker, the malt more present (from the sugar..), and the body slightly more full - but that hop has such a unique flavor that any Mosaic SMASH is going to taste very similar so long as you add sufficient late and/or dry additions.
As I mentioned towards the end of my mango berliner post, I was able to get this beer into a competition, a first for me. Essentially, I went by my home-brew supply shop and saw they were having a SMASH competition. I asked if they minded me entering a beer that also had sugar. They didn't, so I did. As I review this beer, I'll post my comments then follow with the judge's comments and scores. For what it's worth, the sample judged was the very end of the 1st keg (and was probably warm and slightly under carbed by the time they had it). I was only able to get about half a growler before it kicked. Luckily that was enough.
Appearance
light amber color - about 6 SRM. Solid clarity (by the end of the keg at least). Foamy white head that holds reasonably well and leaves a light lacing.
1) pale, good clarity - 2
2) Light copper, slight haze, white foam, ok retention - 3
3) fairly brite, beautiful amber colour - 3
Aroma
loads of fruit: orange, grapefruit, peach, pear, melon, plumb. Caramel and toffy malt aroma in the background.
1) pungent (good way). fruity (tropical) - 10
2) Fruity citrus tropical hops, light graham cracker - 9
3) Very, very fruity! - 8
Flavor
IPA through and through. For the first several days on tap it had a rough bitterness that was intolerable** (I thew out a few pints). Luckily this eventually faded and the mellowed beer is delicious and balanced though clearly hop forward. Solid backbone of bready, caramel, english maltiness (I guess the brun leger worked) supports the fruitiness of the hops. Similar to the nose, loads of fruit come at you - grapefruit, peach, pear, and melon lead the way with darker stone fruit and pine playing second fiddle. Alcohol is noticeable.
**I think you can split the blame 50/50 on mosaic being a rough bittering hop and the process of dry hoping with pellet hops - even if I fine with gelatin there are always tiny hop particles swimming in the first ~gallon whenever I dry hop with pellets. Eventually I'll either have to start dry hopping with whole leaf, or get a filter setup. While the particles were eventually all pulled out and the beer cleared, drastically reducing the roughness of the beer, Mosaic is still a hop I'll avoid using for bittering in the future as it was a bit catty, even after mellowing for several weeks in the keg.
1) sweettart candy; tropical mango/pineapple hop juice. funky mid palate taste - maybe not the best hop for bittering - 17
2) Bright hop bitterness and flavor upfront. Lingering hop flavor that is slightly off - 14
3) Brite and playful beer, something funky in mid-taste (maybe hop?) - 14
Mouthfeel
Medium-light body, a bit creamy. Some nice warmth from the alcohol. Finish was cloying at the start of the keg, but towards the end it had is a smooth bitterness on the back of your tongue that reminds me of a manhattan made with a heavy hand of orange bitters.
1) slightly under carb'd. hop sticky/juicy - 4
2) light body, good carb, nice creaminess - 4
3) light to medium body, good carbonation - 4
Overall
Delicious beer. 10 gallons was a good call as this is a beer I (and everyone else that comes over) continue to go back for. However, mosaic has a strong personality and I think we'll need some time apart for a while after this. I'll certainly make this again keeping everything the exact same except I'll bitter with warrior or magnum hops, and dry hop with whole leaf (if they'll fit in the fermenter). I might also try to pick out another hop to pair with the mosaic for late and dry additions, but this one came out so well that kind of experiment will probably be at least two re-brews down the line.
1) Aggressively hopped with late additions to provide a very hop-forward profile. Mid to late bitterness has a funky flavor potentially associated with using particular hop to bitter. Not my favorite hop but good one for aroma and flavor - 8
2) Nice nose and flavor. The lingering hop character was only negative. This can be corrected with different bittering hop if not a SMASH beer. - 7
3) Good malt-hop balance (my opinion). Interesting hop. Good, hoppy aroma. - 7
Total Score
41, 37, 36 = 38 / 50
Overall, these judges were kind as this was a home-brew club meeting and they were not out to crush people's dreams. I also cheated a bit by adding the sugar. That said, I'd like to believe these scores are not overly inflated. The feedback was consistent and in line with my own thoughts, so if nothing else I feel more confident in judging my own beer. Guess I'll have to enter a few more competitions to test that out even further!
light amber color - about 6 SRM. Solid clarity (by the end of the keg at least). Foamy white head that holds reasonably well and leaves a light lacing.
1) pale, good clarity - 2
2) Light copper, slight haze, white foam, ok retention - 3
3) fairly brite, beautiful amber colour - 3
Aroma
loads of fruit: orange, grapefruit, peach, pear, melon, plumb. Caramel and toffy malt aroma in the background.
1) pungent (good way). fruity (tropical) - 10
2) Fruity citrus tropical hops, light graham cracker - 9
3) Very, very fruity! - 8
Flavor
IPA through and through. For the first several days on tap it had a rough bitterness that was intolerable** (I thew out a few pints). Luckily this eventually faded and the mellowed beer is delicious and balanced though clearly hop forward. Solid backbone of bready, caramel, english maltiness (I guess the brun leger worked) supports the fruitiness of the hops. Similar to the nose, loads of fruit come at you - grapefruit, peach, pear, and melon lead the way with darker stone fruit and pine playing second fiddle. Alcohol is noticeable.
**I think you can split the blame 50/50 on mosaic being a rough bittering hop and the process of dry hoping with pellet hops - even if I fine with gelatin there are always tiny hop particles swimming in the first ~gallon whenever I dry hop with pellets. Eventually I'll either have to start dry hopping with whole leaf, or get a filter setup. While the particles were eventually all pulled out and the beer cleared, drastically reducing the roughness of the beer, Mosaic is still a hop I'll avoid using for bittering in the future as it was a bit catty, even after mellowing for several weeks in the keg.
1) sweettart candy; tropical mango/pineapple hop juice. funky mid palate taste - maybe not the best hop for bittering - 17
2) Bright hop bitterness and flavor upfront. Lingering hop flavor that is slightly off - 14
3) Brite and playful beer, something funky in mid-taste (maybe hop?) - 14
Mouthfeel
Medium-light body, a bit creamy. Some nice warmth from the alcohol. Finish was cloying at the start of the keg, but towards the end it had is a smooth bitterness on the back of your tongue that reminds me of a manhattan made with a heavy hand of orange bitters.
1) slightly under carb'd. hop sticky/juicy - 4
2) light body, good carb, nice creaminess - 4
3) light to medium body, good carbonation - 4
Overall
Delicious beer. 10 gallons was a good call as this is a beer I (and everyone else that comes over) continue to go back for. However, mosaic has a strong personality and I think we'll need some time apart for a while after this. I'll certainly make this again keeping everything the exact same except I'll bitter with warrior or magnum hops, and dry hop with whole leaf (if they'll fit in the fermenter). I might also try to pick out another hop to pair with the mosaic for late and dry additions, but this one came out so well that kind of experiment will probably be at least two re-brews down the line.
1) Aggressively hopped with late additions to provide a very hop-forward profile. Mid to late bitterness has a funky flavor potentially associated with using particular hop to bitter. Not my favorite hop but good one for aroma and flavor - 8
2) Nice nose and flavor. The lingering hop character was only negative. This can be corrected with different bittering hop if not a SMASH beer. - 7
3) Good malt-hop balance (my opinion). Interesting hop. Good, hoppy aroma. - 7
Total Score
41, 37, 36 = 38 / 50
Overall, these judges were kind as this was a home-brew club meeting and they were not out to crush people's dreams. I also cheated a bit by adding the sugar. That said, I'd like to believe these scores are not overly inflated. The feedback was consistent and in line with my own thoughts, so if nothing else I feel more confident in judging my own beer. Guess I'll have to enter a few more competitions to test that out even further!