The Saison Thread

[Gus13]

Tots agree. Picked up a bottle for thr first time at a large chain grocery in 2017 while on vacation in Hilton Head. Bar none best grocery stored bottle ever purchased. Mind blown, and triple-so as I just wanted a servicable beer. Didn’t expect world class.

Went back next day and got a case. Easy decision.

Though, green bottle and associated light struck hop decomp has turned some off of the bottles I brought back. More for me i guess. Makes me happy. This beer nails it, so much so I restocked in 2018. Other BFS beers have been good, but none the equal of Brand New Eyes, IMO.

And that price... in the $9 range (!) in South Carolina, which makes for a killer value.

I can't wait to stock back up this weekend. I'm hoping some bottles are around GA. I bought 6 of these in late 2016 and this was the last bottle. It didn't have any light struck character to it until the last glass when I was out back in the sun. I try to store all mine in the dark to prevent as much as I can. I do like a light bit of light struck character. Nothing like a Heineken character but just a light touch adds some complexity.

$9-10 for a bottle like this is such an amazing deal! haha

 

[JCastle1]

This beer is so killer. Definitely my favorite BFS I've had and one of my favorite beers overall. Has that lemon lime character I love in a brett Saison.

Had one of their beers at CBC a couple weeks ago. Don't remember what it was but it was tasty, I'll have to keep my eye on them.

 

[Gus13]

Had one of their beers at CBC a couple weeks ago. Don't remember what it was but it was tasty, I'll have to keep my eye on them.

Definitely should. I was at Funk Fest last year and had this beer. I didn't catch the name of it at first. I walked off and as soon as I took a sip, I turned around and went back to the table. I had to know the name of it haha.

 

[ASUBeer]

Birds Fly South is a local shelfie for me in case anyone wants some. Brand New Eyes is great. I also love their Paper Airplanes (Brett Pale Ale), Rustic Sunday (Rye Saison) Rumblefish (tropical saison).

 

[leftoverburrito]

Upright Single Cask Vert

Just perfect tartness in this. Even more lime forward than the standard offering. And a nice amount of funk as it warmed.

 

[JCastle1]

Rumblefish (tropical saison).

 

[Gus13]

Birds Fly South is a local shelfie for me in case anyone wants some. Brand New Eyes is great. I also love their Paper Airplanes (Brett Pale Ale), Rustic Sunday (Rye Saison) Rumblefish (tropical saison).

Rustic Sunday was so freaking good. Rumblefish was nice as well but I liked Rustic Sunday a little better and Brand New Eyes is a top 10 for me I think. I haven't had Paper Airplanes. If I don't find any this week in GA I may hit you up!

 

[ChaQuiseman]

Birds Fly South is a local shelfie for me in case anyone wants some. Brand New Eyes is great. I also love their Paper Airplanes (Brett Pale Ale), Rustic Sunday (Rye Saison) Rumblefish (tropical saison).

I've mostly sworn off trading, but I may have to take you up on this offer. Let me know if there's anything chicago-centric that piques your interest.

 

[More Betterness]

Upright Single Cask Vert

Just perfect tartness in this. Even more lime forward than the standard offering. And a nice amount of funk as it warmed.

Managed to snag two bottles when I was up there a few weeks ago, excited to crack one!

 

[BeerandNoise]

So, I search the forum to see if any topis had discussed St. Somewhere Brewing in Tarpon Springs, FL. Everything said so far seemed to be negative, when was the last time people had this and what were they drinking? I grabbed a bottle of the Saint Athene this week that wound up being a 2015, and it was quite good- not mind blowing but was intrigued to try more. Would love some thoughts from those who have had more- and know if they were drinking the bottles new.

 

[TripleSixHoppia]

So, I search the forum to see if any topis had discussed St. Somewhere Brewing in Tarpon Springs, FL. Everything said so far seemed to be negative, when was the last time people had this and what were they drinking? I grabbed a bottle of the Saint Athene this week that wound up being a 2015, and it was quite good- not mind blowing but was intrigued to try more. Would love some thoughts from those who have had more- and know if they were drinking the bottles new.

People forget that Bob Sylvester is an OG in the saison and wild beer game. All his beers are pretty great, just make sure to chill them down for a few days or they'll gush on you.

 

[Thorpe]

So, I search the forum to see if any topis had discussed St. Somewhere Brewing in Tarpon Springs, FL. Everything said so far seemed to be negative, when was the last time people had this and what were they drinking? I grabbed a bottle of the Saint Athene this week that wound up being a 2015, and it was quite good- not mind blowing but was intrigued to try more. Would love some thoughts from those who have had more- and know if they were drinking the bottles new.

Fraternité is one of my all-time favorites. Brewed at Saint Somewhere in collaboration with Blaugies, De La Senne, and Thiriez.

 

[JCastle1]

So, I search the forum to see if any topis had discussed St. Somewhere Brewing in Tarpon Springs, FL. Everything said so far seemed to be negative, when was the last time people had this and what were they drinking? I grabbed a bottle of the Saint Athene this week that wound up being a 2015, and it was quite good- not mind blowing but was intrigued to try more. Would love some thoughts from those who have had more- and know if they were drinking the bottles new.

I've only had one of their beers (Bon Hiver) but it was great. Really unique and weird in a good way.

 

[BeerandNoise]

 

[Gus13]

This was incredible. Only knock is it could actually use a bit more carbonation. I poured this with vigor to generate this head but it was gone shortly after and the body of the beer could use a little more carbonation. Other than that it was almost like white wine. Pear, a bit of lemon/lime, generic citrus, touch of spice and light on the bitterness. I am glad I grabbed a few bottles.

Blackberry Farm / Stillwater - Sensibility

 

[jbeezification1]

This was incredible. Only knock is it could actually use a bit more carbonation. I poured this with vigor to generate this head but it was gone shortly after and the body of the beer could use a little more carbonation. Other than that it was almost like white wine. Pear, a bit of lemon/lime, generic citrus, touch of spice and light on the bitterness. I am glad I grabbed a few bottles.

Blackberry Farm / Stillwater - Sensibility

Pitch some of those bugs sitting behind it and then re-cork.

 

[Gus13]

Pitch some of those bugs sitting behind it and then re-cork.

Those will soon be swimming in wort for sure!

 

[fbslim201]

Red wine barrel aged saison from South Dakota. It’s delicious, you really must try it.

See, it’s a poorly made wine joke. Must is what you have after crushing wine grapes

 

[Gus13]

This is listed as a Saison/Farmhouse on BA so I'm posting it just because I want to get it out there!

I saw this and kind of freaked out. It combines two things I really love. Then I calmed myself and said, just wait to see if it's good.

This is a "Farmhouse" Lager. It is clean, crisp, and refreshing. Little bit of crackery malt and touch of spice maybe from the rye. It has an awesome body and really nice level of carbonation.

Being what it is, I would say it's close to a BdG but really reminds me of a Kellerbier.

I've got to find more.

Secrets And Lovers | Blackberry Farm Brewery & Burial Beer Co.

 

[fbslim201]

Forgot about these guys. They have a great peppercorn saison too. Refreshing with some nice funk. Thanks rpbuckeye !

 

[Gus13]

Popped this to commemorate joining ASS again this year.

Beautiful beer. Great high carbonation. Earthy, mineral, lightly tart and oaky on the nose. Flavor is lightly acidic, earthy hay, bit of citrus and funk with a super dry finish. Great stuff.

American Solera - Terroir Study

 

[holldy01]

No pic cause lazy, but started getting into the Thorpe created beverages. Had a Lemon Guava Saison Avec and both myself and my friend I opened it with were blown away. Just a prefect beer and I say that with some irony since I generally do not like a ton of citrus notes in any beer but that just worked so well, clean, bright, mild funk and just the faintest hint of lemon ptih/zest. I would drink gallons of that beer if I had access to it. Pumped to get into some more offerings. As I said yesterday Mike, amazing beer dude, cheers!

Had this today. Great beer. Got a lot of lemon upfront. Super bright but not acidic tart and it mellowed nicely, had a pleasant buttery round finish. It is a perfect daytime beer

 

[PHBoiler]

I honestly just wanted a low ABV beer from the fridge to finish the night while I was still trying to get **** done. I was in no way prepared for this 2-3 year old Mystic Table Beer to be ******* awesome. We're now closing in on 15 minutes since opening and the bubbles are lively as hell. It's everything. Dry. Grassy. Hint of fruit. Bretty. Quenching. Superb. Mind=blown.

 

[ASUBeer]

Thanks to ChaQuiseman for the hook up. This is my first Afterthought saison. Saison Auran brewed with rose hips and citrus.

Thorpe - wow. This might be the perfect saison. I love the balance between the classic saison DuPont type of crisp/clean flavor paired with the oak barrel and mixed? Fermentation light tartness. Carbonation is spot on without being crazy bubbly. A little botanical wave followed by a nice light citrus finish.

If you ever start a membership, please let me know. This is perfect.

 

[Gus13]

Really nice beer. Light gold, decent head that did eventually dissipate completely, and great carbonation. Lightly spicy with a touch of fruity brett character. Extremely dry. Just a little too thin to be top notch example for me but I did enjoy it.

Jackie O's - Off the Beaten Path 1

 

[Gus13]

Pours light gold with a stark white head that dissipates pretty quickly. On the nose you get a bit of pear and white wine with a touch of tartness. A bit of grain and a light spicy yeast character come through as well. As with most of their beers in the style, this one is extremely dry. Refreshing and easy to drink. Flavor has more of a lemon character with notes of the pear and white wine qualities.

I have the same head retention qualities in some of my beers. I try to combat it with higher carbonation levels and even then it doesn't always work out. I think the oak and the brett have a negative impact on head retention sometimes that you just can't get around.

Killer stuff either way.

Holy Mountain - The Goat

 

[Thorpe]

Thanks to ChaQuiseman for the hook up. This is my first Afterthought saison. Saison Auran brewed with rose hips and citrus.

Thorpe - wow. This might be the perfect saison. I love the balance between the classic saison DuPont type of crisp/clean flavor paired with the oak barrel and mixed? Fermentation light tartness. Carbonation is spot on without being crazy bubbly. A little botanical wave followed by a nice light citrus finish.

If you ever start a membership, please let me know. This is perfect.

Thanks! That's one of my personal favorites. If you're interested in the membership, shoot an email to [email protected]. We're currently doing renewals and pulling some people from the original wait list, but can at least have your name added for next round if it fills up this time.

Either way, I'm quite confident that ChaQuiseman will have access to Afterthought bottles.

 

[ASUBeer]

Thanks! That's one of my personal favorites. If you're interested in the membership, shoot an email to [email protected]. We're currently doing renewals and pulling some people from the original wait list, but can at least have your name added for next round if it fills up this time.

Either way, I'm quite confident that ChaQuiseman will have access to Afterthought bottles.

Done and done.

 

[Tlo4sho]

I have the same head retention qualities in some of my beers. I try to combat it with higher carbonation levels and even then it doesn't always work out. I think the oak and the brett have a negative impact on head retention sometimes that you just can't get around.

Not that I brew, but I've always wanted to know more about head retention and how come some breweries seem to be better than others with it. I presume it's a desirable characteristic, to have the head stick around for aromas sake (or some other reason I'm too noobish to know?)? I notice that pretty much every HF (sour or hoppy) & TH beer I've had has incredible head retention and just looks beautiful. While others are hit or miss.

 

[JCastle1]

Not that I brew, but I've always wanted to know more about head retention and how come some breweries seem to be better than others with it. I presume it's a desirable characteristic, to have the head stick around for aromas sake (or some other reason I'm too noobish to know?)? I notice that pretty much every HF (sour or hoppy) & TH beer I've had has incredible head retention and just looks beautiful. While others are hit or miss.

I've gotten much better head retention since I started adding zinc. Also the pH of the mash and sparge will affect foam stability.