One of my favorite beers is Anchor Steam beer. After my first glass I was not exactly sure what caused me to fall in love with it? Given some time a few qualities stood out. First, I enjoyed the piny hop character which was different than beers I had sampled in the past. Second, was the unique way this beer is fermented. It utilizes a lager yeast stain that is fermented at low end of ale temperatures. For me this provide the best of both worlds in that I could enjoy the fruity notes of ales, while getting the clarity and clean smooth flavors of a lager. Lastly, I thought this was the most well-balanced with a great malty body and hop presence.Last Spring I wanted to enter the Sam Adam's Longshot competition so I began thinking of a beer style that would be fun to make. I was drawn to the Amber Hybrid category that California Common beers fall under. I took my time on this beer in order to produce the best product I could. I sanitized like no one's business, took great care at every step, and the end result was the best beer I've brewed thus far. Below are my ingredients.
3.3 lbs Briess golden light LME
3.3 lbs Briess sparkling amber LME
.5 lb Crystal malt (40L)
.5 lb Vienna malt (10L)
1.5 oz Norther Brewer leaf hops (bittering)
.5 oz Willamette leaf hops (finishing)
San Francisco lager yeast (WLP810)
It tasted great and pretty damn close to the original if I don't say so myself. While the hop notes did mellow over time, lagering the bottles in my fridge helped to produce a clean, crisp beer. After all, home brewing is about your tastes and got close to what I was wanting to produce.
Going into the competition I had very low expectation as a newbie brewer. Upon receiving my feedback in the mail I was pleasantly surprised. I was given a 35.5 out of 50 and during the judging it went into a second heat. Not what I expected, but it certainly felt good after tending to each detail meticulously. Among the comments received in critique were: "well balanced, could use more carb, finishing hops lacking, low aromatic hops, clean, low esters, light toasty malt aroma, slight creaminess, could use more malt and hops, and attractive beer." The feedback was free and really helpful for growing as a home brewer. Yes, it hurt the pride a little, but in the end humility and a teachable attitude are key.
The average grade from the two judges came out a C- which I'll gladly take. Personally, I gave this a solid B, but I'm bias and have much to learn about this style. Looking forward to brewing this again.
On the Anchor Steam...
ReplyDeleteI think you're take on the beer is interesting and like many that try the beer at first. I'm still not a big fan of Anchor Steam, but it is indeed growing on me regardless.
My brother however has fallen in love with the beer right off the bat, from the very first pint on draft. I'm still trying to figure out the hype though it's not all that bad really.
However I did not know about the way the beer was made in what really is a rather non traditional method for the type of beer it is. Very interesting!
Ilya