 kepano (239), Meudon, France
Mar 13, 2008
I’ve had bad luck with Saisons thus far, perhaps it isn’t the style for me. Dupont gave it a shot before, without success. Was it the smoky bar? My inexperience? I owed it to myself to give one of Belgium’s traditions another chance. After all, Belgian styles have never betrayed me, why should they start? Still, that impossibly dry mouthfeel and caustic carbonation didn’t sit right last time around. Nonsense! Here comes the pour. Les Voeux could hardly have started more beautifully. Golden as a mirabelle, its dense orange fog is set aglow by the light behind it. Pillowy, the dazzling white fluff laces lazily across the glass. A subtle aroma arises, light but fruity, and spicy too. Peach, apricot, nutmeg and some grain successively appear. The penetrating fragrance of Charentais melon plays jubilantly off of estery hints of bubble gum, banana and pineapple. Orange peel, clove and imperceptible coriander zest the concoction. In the background, a definite chalkiness and slightly sweet hint of funk are the hallmarks of authenticity. With renewed ambition, I take a confident sip. Funky – surprising and different – a dry cheesiness like a nutty Parmesan. Buttery hazelnut flavor is apparent throughout. The fruit is more subdued than I expected but despite copious alcohol none appears on the tongue. The frothy carbonation is pleasant, allowing for the sweetness of bubble gum and pineapple to really boogie. Finishing dry, a funky grainy thyme flavor leads to a somewhat salty aftertaste hinting at apricot. I am positively dying for a morsel of Parmigiano Reggiano, that addition alone would propel me to heaven. I’m glad I followed my instincts, Dupont has crafted a wonderful brew. (14/04/2007)
dmac (1423), Toms River, New Jersey, USA
Nov 9, 2009 750 ml bottle from Jonathan Ron. Poured a cloudy honey golden brown body sitting underneath one of the most impressive heads I’ve seen in a long time. The head was a large fluffy bright white that left giant dollops of marshmellow sized lace on the side of my Hennepin glass that would drop into the body as I rotated my glass after each sip. The aroma had lots of pepper, flowers and bread about it with some underlying honey and citrus fruits. Medium bodied with small bubbly champagne like carbonation and a finsih that is so dry it actually dried out the top half of my throat. Flavors of dried out flowers, bread, pepper, thym and citrus. Nice but I think I prefer the regular ole Saison Dupont more.
Agaguk (119), Gatineau, Quebec, Canada
Nov 1, 2009 Orange golden appearance with a minimum off white head. Aroma: sour gum, mango, apple cider, orangerasberries, thym and lime. Flavor: salty ginger ale, white pepper, thym, ginfer bread and coriander. Palate: medium body, lively carbonation, oily with a dry chalky finish.
Slokop (91), Tilburg, Netherlands
Nov 1, 2009 375 ml 9,5 % t.h.t. (guaranteed maximal containable quality date) 08/2011. Drank it young, she was beautiful with a white perky top. A sort of fine old geuze without the time spent. It can well be kept but why should you. Its fine right now. Also the bottle is uneasy kept in the fridge. Is this where saison and young gueuze (lambic) meet? An alltogether fine beer with perfect presence and flavor. Have yourself the depot to end it with.
sound67 (160), Offenbach, Germany
Nov 1, 2009 75cl corked and wired bottle, label different from the one pictured (it’s green, like the bottle). Pours a beautiful hazy orange witgh a big, soapy white head with normal retention and decent lacing. Aroma, likewise, is of orange, with some spicy herbs, yeast and an alcoholic note on top. Active carbonation, thick, tickly but smooth mouth feel. Complex taste of orange and other sweet orchard fruit, some coriander and a dry, hoppy finish. Sour-bitter after taste. Sweet notes in the beer throughout, but it’s not a sweetish brew. Refreshing sour notes also present all along the way. Excellent bottle-conditioned strong Belgian blonde, supremely well balanced and not too boozy despite the whopping 9.5 % abv. Dangerously sessionable, and agreeably complex without being oppressively sweet.
floydian1 (258), FNQ, Australia
Oct 30, 2009 Corked and wired 750ml bottle. Pours hazy pale orange with a huge dense rocky and lasting white head that provides excellent lacing. Nose is bready malts, light lemony citrus, subtle honey and earthy spicy hops. The taste is very restrained sweet grainy malts with a wonderful peppery spicy dry hop finish. Faint vanilla in there as well. It has a thick chewy mouthfeel with the ABV only apparent at the very end. Excellent, complex, classy and refreshing. Right up there with the very best.
Allen (1289), Switzerland
Oct 28, 2009 Bottled 75cl. Beautiful appearance: Rich head, good lacework, great color. Complex aroma of yeast, clove, white bread, melon, coriander, apricot, peach and a huge amount of pear. Spicy yeasty taste. Practically no acidity. Some alcohol showing up on the swallow. Sweetish. A lot of cloves apparent. Reminiscence of cloves and pear in the finish. A very good beer.
KyotoLefty (1371), Kyoto, Japan
Oct 25, 2009 75 cl bottle.
Cloudy golden color with an amber tint. Nose: fruit and herbs. Citrus is big. Pears. Very dry. Big carbonation, with big, biscuity pilsner malt, flavors of yeast, a bit of alcohol, citrus peel, apple, pear and maybe plum. Thin body and extremely dry. Very impressive and original but not as likeable as their Moinette or Saison. Good understated hops. Great and technically perfect, but too dry and lacks the kindness of their other beers.
ROGUE (627), Newark, Delaware, USA
Oct 15, 2009 750ml bottle. Pours an opaque hay colored body with a massive white head. Solid retention and beautiful sheet lacing. Aroma is initially a bit earthy, grassy, some barnyard funk, as well as a zesty fruit character. Tastes of sweet yeasty malt up front with hints of lemon, vanilla, and wet hay. Good carbonation and nice refreshing bite.
|
View Statistics
