Goose Island Pepe Nero

Brewed by Goose Island Beer Company (AB-InBev)
Style: Saison
Chicago, Illinois USA

Serve in Tulip

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Bottle thanks to CanIHave4Beers. Pours dark brown, nearly black, with a thinnish beige head. Light showing through the edges. Nose shows the spice of the rye, roasted malts, interesting Belgian yeast, and chocolate. Similar taste. A bit thin. Interesting, but not blowing me away.

Appearance: Pepe Nero pours a nice brownish hue from the bottle. As it fills the glass, I caught a powerful red bursting through. A woody color comes forth when held to the light. There’s a strong, noticeable carbonation in the glass. The strong finger head is composed of very large bubbles. The froth takes it’s time dissipating. Smell: There’s a tartness up front, as with any saison. A vinegar flavor stands with the tartness but quickly leads into a fruity, almost strawberry aroma. A tinge of yogurt comes back, but only lightly. As the smells culminate, I catch caramel and roasty smokiness. Mouthfeel: Very light but large on the tongue. The beer stays together on the tongue, as if held together with a thickness on the interior. It closes incredibly smooth. Taste: The first taste I find is a (surprisingly) light tart sourness. It’s understated and really lets everything else shine while letting you know that this is still a Belgian. The pepper starts to blossom on the back two thirds of the tongue and is just spicy enough to be noticeable. Everything here blends well but starts to crowd the palate after a few sips. As the beer closes I start to notice a sweet pineapple or orange taste. That tangy citrus gets abruptly pushed though into a caramel flavor, closed by roasty malt. Overall: Goose Island makes some great Belgian beers and this is no exception. There were a few points where I felt this brew got a little "busy" and started to take away from the enjoyment. There’s a lot of flavor here and it’s hard to get you tongue into every nook and cranny. Still, this is more proof that the ladies and gents from Chicago are still putting out some good beer.

Bottle. Almost clear, really deep brown/black liquid with a red hue and huge light tan head. Aroma is quite spicy with notes of white pepper, cloves, smoke, ash, roasted malt, noble/earthy hops and dark fruits. The combination of the spicy notes from the Saison yeast and the peppery rye works well together. Taste is quite dry and light bitter with some light roasted notes, yeasty esters and fresh hops. A bit bland actually. Medium bodied with medium to high carbonation, which works well in this type of beer. Quite interesting take on a Saison but I find it a bit boring.

Pours black with off white head and lots of sediment. Aromas are yeast, funk, some smoke. Nice mouthfeel. Dark dried fruit flavours combined with dark roasted malts, some smoky peppers as well. Nice beer.

Bottld. Pours a deep brown with a medium sized tan head. Fair lacing. Nose of roasted malts, spices and notes of yeast. Sweet flavor with roasted malts, chocolate and spicy notes. Medium bodied, creamy texture and soft carbonation. More dry in the finish and with a pepper and tiny malt bitterness. A nice brew indeed.

Bomber. Sweet lactose aroma much like a milk stout. Mostly opaque, brown body with red hues when held to light. Large, lasting tan head. I had tried tia once before and my recollection of it was pepper-forward. Served a little warmer this time and the pepper isn’t as evident, although there is a zing at the back of the tongue. Malty, and heavily carbonated. Good but not as memorable as I remember. I have the rest of the bottle chilling to see if it improves a little chilled.

2011 Bomber Poured into a Brugse Zot glass. Two thick fingers of tan head. Dark brown, almost black color. Ripe fruit on the nose; almost overripe peach or nectarine. Balanced taste at first, moves to malty in the middle to end. There is something spicy at the very end, probably the peppercorns. But they come across very subtle. Starts soft on the mouth, moves to crisp and bubbly at the end. Overall good to go. Nothing weird, just a great drinking beer.

Bottle. Spicy, barnyard yeast, malt and fruit aroma. Dark brown with a moderate tan head. Roasty wheat, slightly funky yeast, spice, dark fruit, grass flavor. Light spritzy body. Very nice.

Had this before, but tried again at a World Wines and Liquor tasting. Pours dark reddish brown, into a plastic 4 0z. cup. medium carbonated head. Aroma is rich with spices, pepper, belgian yeast, dark fruit. Taste is fairly sweet up front with loads of pepper present. Some bitterness. Fairly quick finish. Light to medium body with some carbonation. Nice, simple but solid brew.

we lost contact .. . a dark saison, had 2 before and wasn’t impressed but this is G.I so i wanna try it .. . pours a deep tan brown .. light head .. light to medium foam .. . grain, sand, chip bark, and light burnt yeast .. . muddled and silly - this doesn’t fit .. . . i would have grabbed as many pancakes as i could hold and run!

2011 bottle at home. Pours dark brown with fizzy tan head that doesn’t hang around. On the nose its black pepper spice and toffee malt. Sweet up front with chocolate malt and a hint of vegetal horseraddish. A long sweet and spicy finish.