TCB wetpack- classic oak ale

lethaldog · Post by **lethaldog** » Monday Jul 24, 2006 11:57 am

Just wondering if anyone has brewed this one as i have just ordered it on mail order and was interested to hear what it is like and if anyone had any hints or tips.
also ordered an xtract lager and a wals pilsner due to the high praise given for these products in here so any feedback on these 2 as well

Cheers!!

The Carbonator · Post by **The Carbonator** » Monday Jul 24, 2006 1:03 pm

Of course, use a quality ale yeast.

And Rack it if possible - theres oak chips and hop pellets floating in there.

lethaldog · Post by **lethaldog** » Monday Jul 24, 2006 1:06 pm

Have u brewed this one carbo?

Nice to hear from u on this one as u were the one who inspired me to try them out although most said to try the pilsner or lager (wet pack), thought i would try this one as it sounded very different from what i have brewed in the past.

The Carbonator · Post by **The Carbonator** » Tuesday Jul 25, 2006 12:45 pm

Yeah mate.
Its great.

I reckon its better than the Pilsner Wetpak.... Just.
( that could be the yeast tho. I used saflager with the pils, Cal Ale on the oak. )

I do think it takes a bit longer than most to mature. Mine is just becoming nicely rounded off, after 7 weeks in the bottle.

Also, try the AmericanAle Wetpack.

Its just as good. mmmmmmmmmmmmm

lethaldog · Post by **lethaldog** » Tuesday Jul 25, 2006 3:01 pm

Fantasic so i wont be dissapointed then and as far as time goes i usually leave my brews for around 3 months so it should be delish by then, in any case i will certainly let you know what i think of it as soon as it is done.
Just 1 more thing when brewing the wals pilsner would you brew it with just 1 kg ldme or use more with it and the extract lager, should that one be left alone or do you add more to it..

Beerdrinker32 · Wednesday Jul 26, 2006 12:16 am

if its any help the XTRACT pilsner was so bitter at 2weeks i had to wash it down with a stock homebrew! now at nearly a month it has mellowed alot. would most definately not add any bittering hops

The Carbonator · Post by **The Carbonator** » Tuesday Aug 01, 2006 12:48 pm

I'll second that.
It is bitter.
I woulnt add any hops.

As for the wals pils, 1kg DME is just fine.

lethaldog · Post by **lethaldog** » Tuesday Aug 01, 2006 1:07 pm

Thanks fellas

My order should be arriving today ( i hope ) so i cant wait to try them out, I also got myself some liquid yeast which is preparing at the moment, will post some tasting notes when done and let you all know how i went. Thanks again for all your advice it was most helpful

Wassa · Post by **Wassa** » Tuesday Aug 01, 2006 4:03 pm

I am a bit of a hop head but with the Wals Pilsener I would brew it with 1kg of LDME and 15gm of Saaz, either dry hopped or as a teabag.

With the Xtract Lager I am putting it down just as I sampled it at TCB Drummoyne, with 12gm Hallertau dry hopped and a Saaz tea bag. The only difference to TCB's brew is I am making it with a liquid Bavarian Lager yeast.

lethaldog · Post by **lethaldog** » Tuesday Aug 01, 2006 6:00 pm

Wassa wrote:I am a bit of a hop head but with the Wals Pilsener I would brew it with 1kg of LDME and 15gm of Saaz, either dry hopped or as a teabag.

With the Xtract Lager I am putting it down just as I sampled it at TCB Drummoyne, with 12gm Hallertau dry hopped and a Saaz tea bag. The only difference to TCB's brew is I am making it with a liquid Bavarian Lager yeast.

When u say a saaz teabag is this during making, soaked in hot water and then add the solution or is it dry hopped as well.

lethaldog · Post by **lethaldog** » Thursday Aug 10, 2006 3:10 pm

Well the classic oak is in the fermenter and i gotta say it looks and smells like nothing i have ever brewed, its the first wetpack ive done ( although i think ill be doin many more) and it was quite an experience, certainly adds a bit more to the brewing experience than the average kit, any way will rack in about 4 days ( its been in for 2 ) and bottle after another two weeks, cant wait to try it, will keep you posted.

lethaldog · Post by **lethaldog** » Monday Aug 14, 2006 11:46 am

Racked the classic oak today and it looks and smells great, one note for anyone doing this one, it was a fair bit of effort racking as the hops and oak chips in the fermenter can tend to be a pain and can block the fermenter tap, the way i remedied this was to stand next to it and hit the tap lightly with a screwdriver handle ( was what i had at my disposal) or you could use anything with a bit of weight. all that aside im pretty happy with it and would recommend it so far, have not tasted yet though so will let you know

Sathias · Post by **Sathias** » Monday Aug 14, 2006 4:53 pm

I bottled my Oak Ale yesterday

I don't rack so i strained out the hops before adding it to the fermenter, and I steeped the oak chips seperately from the wort. Hopefully it doesn't change the taste too much.

lethaldog · Post by **lethaldog** » Friday Aug 18, 2006 2:50 pm

Sathias wrote:I bottled my Oak Ale yesterday I don't rack so i strained out the hops before adding it to the fermenter, and I steeped the oak chips seperately from the wort. Hopefully it doesn't change the taste too much.

Did you put the oak chips in the fermenter after steeping? I think you will find that the oak chips would add there flavour over a week or so and not just through steeping, this may change the taste but overall its from TCB so however it turns out you know its gonna be good

Sathias · Post by **Sathias** » Friday Aug 18, 2006 3:21 pm

Yeah I did it that way so I could add the chips to the fermenter but strain the hops out. The oak chips didn't get in the way of bottling at all.

lethaldog · Post by **lethaldog** » Friday Aug 18, 2006 4:32 pm

Sathias wrote:Yeah I did it that way so I could add the chips to the fermenter but strain the hops out. The oak chips didn't get in the way of bottling at all.

Thought so , that probably would have been a better way to do it, but i figured if i was supposed to strain it out they would have said so, saying that i think i would strain next time

lethaldog · Post by **lethaldog** » Monday Aug 21, 2006 8:24 pm

bottled this one bout 2 days ago, got a bit impatient seeing as i was going to cold condition it but didnt, anyway it looked, smelt and tasted great, was a little bit smoky but as ive heard that mellows out over time, will try one in a few weeks to see how its goin

lethaldog · Post by **lethaldog** » Tuesday Sep 12, 2006 10:08 pm

Well could not wait any longer to try it and after just over 3 weeks in the bottle it is superb, a little smoky but great none the less, will deffinately get some more of these, i can see this one getting alot better with some more ageing but it will be hard to make it last long enough to age it at all

Sathias · Post by **Sathias** » Wednesday Sep 13, 2006 10:34 am

Yeah I know what you mean... mine has been in the bottle for 4 weeks now and 2/3 of it is gone

Lucky my American Ale is almost ready

OldBugman · Post by **OldBugman** » Wednesday Sep 13, 2006 10:58 am

Wassa wrote:I am a bit of a hop head but with the Wals Pilsener I would brew it with 1kg of LDME and 15gm of Saaz, either dry hopped or as a teabag.

With the Xtract Lager I am putting it down just as I sampled it at TCB Drummoyne, with 12gm Hallertau dry hopped and a Saaz tea bag. The only difference to TCB's brew is I am making it with a liquid Bavarian Lager yeast.

I too sampled this one and picked up the ingredients to make it. Though I'm just using the saf that came with it.