Mandarina

A bit ago, I was doing some research into Huell Melon hops, and I ran across a description of Mandarina Bavaria hops, and is often the case, decided that I need to try them out.  Yes, I have a problem.  A daughter of Cascade hops, this variant is described as having orange, tangerine, and citrus aromas.  After trying a beer with Melon hops, this one should be very interesting.

Apparently, Hermitage Brewing has a single hop IPA based on the Mandarina Bavaria hops, and it sounds like it's something worth trying.  Like many single hop beers, this one should give you something of an idea of what the hops are like, and the affect they can have on a beer.

I'll see how this one turns out, and in the future I'll try some variations, such as using Safbrew T-58 yeast instead of the US-05.  Additions I've considered include blood orange (juice and zest), and tangerine.

Brew Day: 2 Dec 2015

Partial Mash:
8 oz Gambrinus Honey Malt
8 oz 2-Row malt
1 oz Carapils

*I prepared the partial mash using my usual process.

Boil (60 min):
1 lb Pilsen DME
7 g Warrior hops (@ 60 min)

Yeast: Safale US-05

Hops:
Mandarina Bavaria, AA: 7.4%
14 g Mandarina (@ 10 min)
14 g Mandarina (@ flameout)

Addendum, 12 Dec: Dry hopped today

Dry hop: 14 g Mandarina

Addendum, 18 Dec: Bottled with 1 oz table sugar, dissolved in 1/2 cup of boiling water.

Addendum, 2 Feb: I came back to this one and noticed that I didn't have any tasting notes...for shame!  This brew had a LOT of hops, and what I found is that drinking the beer right at two weeks after bottling isn't the best idea.  I mean, it's good to try it, but don't be surprised if there's a hoppy bitterness present.  Better to give it more time.  I had one of these this past weekend, and I have to say that after letting it sit longer, I was very impressed with the flavor.  Now, I'm biased, and I knew that the hops were Mandarina, but I definitely got the impression of a flavor tangerines; not sweet, like mandarin oranges, but the bitterness had evened out a bit and I was getting an orange-citrusy flavor.  It was very good, and definitely something I'd brew again.

Addendum, 5 Apr: I had the beer that I "bottled" in a soda bottle, and I have to say, it was pretty awesome.  Great carbonation and lacing, really good flavor.  The bitterness normally associated with an IPA wasn't there, likely due to the simple passage of time.  Even so, it was still a very good beer.

Addendum, 23 May: This evening I'm trying Stone Brewing Pale Ale, which I picked up this afternoon.  I decided to try it because the bottle mentions Mandarina Bavaria hops (the online description include Magnum and Herkules, as well).  There's a stamp on the bottle that says it was bottled on 5 Dec 2015, and is best "enjoyed" by 4 Mar 2016 (so I'm 2 1/2 months passed that).  It's not bad...it has a bit more zip to it than my brew, but it's not bad.  It's a bit more malty than something I'd like on a warm day, after mowing the yard or being out all day riding and grooming the horses, but it's not bad.