Is the Saison craze out of hand?

[iijakii]

I love sours, but there's only so much $12 beer I'm willing to buy.

 

[m00ps]

whos putting bananas in their soup? I mean if you think about it, IPAs have the most vegetative matter going into them. IMO, thats the closest beer to soup...

 

[iijakii]

whos putting bananas in their soup? I mean if you think about it, IPAs have the most vegetative matter going into them. IMO, thats the closest beer to soup...

Never had a banana/tapioca soup?

 

[rmyurick]

Like any other trend, some will last, hopefully the good ones, and the rest will "self-deport". Had a great saison at JAFB Wooster, in Wooster Ohio--was one of their best beers. But you're right, some of them are clumsy or inappropriately spiced (I'm thinking of Stone's 2014? here, which tasted like it had eucalyptus or something).

 

[m00ps]

Never had a banana/tapioca soup?

No but now I want too....I love those big fish eye tapiocas

 

[m00ps]

Stones saison has got a decent amount of herbs and spices. But their Victory/Stone/Dogfish collaboration has the most herbal character of anything I ve ever tried. Cant dirnk more than one of those. A few breweries are using a restrained hand of white sage or something and it can be very good if done right

 

[socounty]

I think this boils down to the new American idea that anything European or vintage has to be better. We stand around reconfirming the mediocrity for the sake of not being looked down upon by others who are just as confused as to why everyone thinks the basil, sage infused farmhouse aged in Chardonnay barrels is so good. When in reality it's garbage and it's just the trend shadowing the truth. I like saisons, farmhouse, sours of any type or sort. It was more the trendy folks associated with these beers that made them so unappealing besides them being mediocre. I dealt with them through high school and college. I thought beer was going to be the last true haven.

 

[Grannyknot]

I wish my city would join in this saison craze.
Right now we are stuck on the "pale/ipa/brown" craze with the occasional really bad stout.

 

[socounty]

I wish my city would join in this saison craze.
Right now we are stuck on the "pale/ipa/brown" craze with the occasional really bad stout.

Coming to a town near you. This guy.....

 

[Remmy]

I wish my city would join in this saison craze.
Right now we are stuck on the "pale/ipa/brown" craze with the occasional really bad stout.

The "bourbon barrel aged" craze is still alive and well, unfortunately. That's the worst of the worst.

 

[Malty_Dog]

The beauty of being a homebrewer: you create whatever craze you want

 

[Grannyknot]

The "bourbon barrel aged" craze is still alive and well, unfortunately. That's the worst of the worst.

Knoxville is about 10 years behind the rest of the beer world.
I assume we'll find out about barrel aging at some point. We just now got introduced to those mobile canning lines that produce really oxidized beer in trendy packaging.

 

[iijakii]

The "bourbon barrel aged" craze is still alive and well, unfortunately. That's the worst of the worst.

You dont like $15 beers that all taste the same?

 

[Remmy]

You dont like $15 beers that all taste the same?

That and the fact that people will take days off of work to try and acquire said beers...and wait outside, in line with their infants in sub-32F temperatures. And talk about beer the entire time while in line.

And then immediately "cellar" said beer(s).

 

[MaddBaggins]

The beauty of being a homebrewer: you create whatever craze you want

I have an ESB, Quad and 3 sours in fermenters right now. Crazy!

 

[MaddBaggins]

That and the fact that people will take days off of work to try and acquire said beers...and wait outside, in line with their infants in sub-32F temperatures. And talk about beer the entire time while in line.

And then immediately "cellar" said beer(s).

Yeah, I don't get that whole deal. If I see something good when I'm in the store, I'll get it. Otherwise, meh.

 

[socounty]

That and the fact that people will take days off of work to try and acquire said beers...and wait outside, in line with their infants in sub-32F temperatures. And talk about beer the entire time while in line.

And then immediately "cellar" said beer(s).

I sell for a distributor that has some of these said beers in the line up. It's unbelievable the lengths I've seen someone go through to get there hands on the "limited release" beers.

 

[griffi]

Saisons are gross. Along with most belgians and wheat beers. Pepper, banana, clove? WTF. This isn't soup, get out of my beer.

Disagree with your characterization of most belgians(beers I assume) as gross, but this post certainly hit my funny bone!

 

[clone63]

There are no 'crazes' in Ontario. The LCBO stocks within it's shelf space (few) and you can get the odd item direct from a local brewery. Almost all non-macro beers are pale/light/golden/lager something, maybe amber... The odd stout, wheat, belgian, a few IPA's and saisons only in summer, basically. Pretty much it. Not really sure if Canadian micros are that boring or afraid to put out a product that may not sell well.

 

[DoctorDuvel]

have you ever tried St. Feuillien Saison?

It doesn't ring a bell, but I'll be on the look-out! What's your take on it?

 

[specharka]

I totally disagree I believe most if not all great breweries focus on a particular style, master it, then move on to something different of course brewing other beer while doing this. I don't mind saison at all I had some pretty phenomenal ones while at the festival. What I don't like is the stigma associated with the style. That very present up nosed turn to people who do not like or understand the beer. It was some what amusing to see all the tart faces walking about. Faces that looked as if they just sucked on a lemon. There were many styles of beer not represented at all. Which is why I made the post in the first place. If I had walked in to the festival and all arrays of beer were represented and some great farmhouse and saisons were represented also, like Jester King for instance then there would have been no observation made. It's hard to get your average beer drinker into craft when the trendy industry acts as if it's to good for the average beer drinker.

I think the perceived stigma here might be your own. It is rather hard for the salesman to peddle his wares if he acts condescending to his clientele.

 

[m00ps]

Just to stoke the fire, please check out these threads I made a few weeks back and fine my "brew & A" article that was posted
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=542346
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=541926

 

[schematix]

Next craft beer style craze: American Light Lager

You heard it here first.

 

[Rcbandl]

Just got back from Shelton bros. craft festival in St Petersburg poured my self a double simcoe clone and began to wonder what I had just taken part of. Honestly I didn't imagine the saison craze had gotten this intense. Every brewery represented it seems had at least one saison barrel aged in something, if not two, if not all of there samples they offered. Of course I'm exaggerating a tad but still it's bewildering to think that the craft industry has become such a fad oriented business.

I am not sure what festival you went to but while there were a decent amount of saisons it wasn't an overwhelming amount unless your lumping all the sours into the saison category. I personally was happy to see a limited amount of IPA's. Besides that, I saw a pretty decent variety.

Here is the list
http://www.sheltonbrothers.com/the-festival-2015-bottle-tap-list/

 

[m00ps]

Next craft beer style craze: American Light Lager

You heard it here first.

Umm excuse me, that's American light ADJUNCT lager

 

[tennesseean_87]

Saisons are gross. Along with most belgians and wheat beers. Pepper, banana, clove? WTF. This isn't soup, get out of my beer.

I hate banana soup.

 

[brewerJase]

There are no 'crazes' in Ontario. The LCBO stocks within it's shelf space (few) and you can get the odd item direct from a local brewery. Almost all non-macro beers are pale/light/golden/lager something, maybe amber... The odd stout, wheat, belgian, a few IPA's and saisons only in summer, basically. Pretty much it. Not really sure if Canadian micros are that boring or afraid to put out a product that may not sell well.

Aahhhhhh living under the iron fist of the LCBO in this province where alcohol sales are controlled more than prescription drugs isn't always fun. The LCBO craft beer shelves seem to be filled with generic contact brewed pale ales and macro owned "micro" brewery beers.

Bellwoods keeps things interesting. But can only pick up at the brewery.

I would love to have a local beer story that sells beer the people want. Not beer that we are told to buy.

 

[beerkench]

Saisons are cheaper to brew so I wonder if these breweries are trying to claw back some of that cash they spent hopping IPA's.


Sent from hell
using Home Brew

 

[Calichusetts]

To each his own. Maybe New England has a more balanced approach but most festivals/bars/stores I go to have a fantastic line up that varies quite a bit. We also have some top notch breweries. In other words, no one complains how many Hill Farmstead saisons are out there, and no one complains how many Trillium or Tree House IPAs there are out there. In fact, I don't see much complaining at all.

Final note: That is what some festivals are about...simply finding out which brewers never to buy and which new ones to seek out.

 

[Bosh]

Don't have much of a temperature control system and Korea gets plenty hot in the summer so I brewed five saisons in a row before it got cool enough to switch to US-05. And damn am I sick of that signature dry ester flavor you get from saisons. Will give away my last bit of my more traditional saison and only keep the black one that has enough roast to drown out the saison taste a bit. I don't think I could stand to even look at one in a bar now.

As for as craft brewery saisons, I think a lot of it is down to how interconnected craft brewing and homebrewing are. Saison being the best high-temp yeast by a mile ensures them a nice big niche among homebrewers and anything that's popular among homebrewers will bleed over into craft brewing. As I don't see homebrewers giving up the yeast that works best in high temps, I don't see saisons going anywhere on the craft brewing side.