Harpoon Leviathan Saison Royale

Brewed by Harpoon Brewery
Style: Saison
Boston, Massachusetts USA

Serve in Tulip

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12oz from Winooski. Hazy gold pour covered by a lasting, generous and tight white foam. Simple breadsy, sourdouh yeastiness is not as convincing as in the great Saisons, but the spiciness is impressively integrated. Obvious white pepper is a fine match and there are others in there that I can’t put my finger on, but are never obtrusive. In mouth, its carbonation is relatively smooth, tight smallish bubbles gently biting the tongue and enhancing the dryness. I lean towards the larger-bubbled examples, but it’s suitable enough here. There is something to be said there: while not extremely attenuated, this remains ’almost’ dry, especially for a 9% beer. That’s another thing, it never feels 9%, it is actually quite drinkable. As it warms, a certain alcoholic warmth gets felt in the aftertaste, but it remains most diplomatic. In the meantime, its gentle spicy, grassy, earthy hops provide a gentle, most appropriate bitterness. Not a show-stopper, but this is a well-crafted strong wannabe saison from an American brewery. Basically, increase yeast complexity, bring it ample airy carbonation and attenuate it 10% more and you’d be convincing indeed. That it came from Harpoon is excellent news.

Lemon rosemary some lysol a little banana and estert fruit. White pepper and alcohol too. Pours bright orange yellow hazy huge rush of head settles to a nice cap of foam. Lemon orange roasmary grass white pepper cleaning product. Flavor is actually pretty good sans cleaning product. Definite noticeable alcohol. If this were toned down it would work for me. Nice dry finish. Not overly sweet or estery. Not bad just super fucking strong.

From notes. First reviewed 9/6/2011. Poured from a 12 oz. bottle into a tulip. Lots of small yeast particles float around in this glowing golden beer. A monster creamy sea foam cap rushes up to the top of the tulip and fades very slowly. Nice lacing sticks all the way down the glass. Fairly sweet for a saison. Spicy, with a strong clove presence to go along with coriander and white pepper and some nice green apple, cherry, and white grape aromas as well. Some crackery malt kind of contrasts with the sweet green apple, unripe cherries, and white grape flavors. A blast of spicy yeast yields an overly intense clove and coriander flavor, and the finish has a light, dry white grape flavor and a light herbal finish. Especially for a saison, the body is quite full. The carbonation is creamy and smooth. The start of the sip is sweet, but it dries out just a bit by the end, although it stays sweet. A light sour salivating sensation comes in at the end. The sweetness is a bit overpowering, and this is not really a style I feel needs to be imperial. It was an interesting beer to try though.

Draft at Blind Tiger NY. Pours a goden amber in color with a pure white head. Notes of Cereal grains, light fruit maltiness, lightly hopped, touch of an herbal note (from the rosemary no doubt). Semi clean finish, although the spices stay on the tongue.

Presentation: It was poured from a brown 12oz bottle into a tulip glass. Appearance: It has a hazy golden blonde body with yeast sediment floating around inside and on top of a tall frothy head. This thick head has a just off white color and a very slow fade. It hangs on well, keeping a small cap till the last sip. It also leaves some spotty lace patterns on the glass. Smell: The aroma is full of lovely herbal hops and spicy notes wrapped around bready yeast. Taste/Palate: It has mellow malty and yeasty character with a touch of pepper and ginger like spice notes. This slowly giving way to pleasant herbal hop notes that move across the tongue and brings a good balance of bitterness, spice and dryness to the finish. The palate is lively and easy drinking. Notes: From the appearance to palate it all feels very well made. Overall I enjoyed it very much!!!

A - Pours a clear bright golden-yellow color with lots of visible carbonation and a finger and a half of frothy white head. The head fades really slowly down to a ring around the glass leaving behind lots of white lace on the sides of the glass. S - Aroma is a blend of sweet malts and some Belgian yeast. There is also some light lemon peel aroma and some spices beneath. T - Starts off with some light sweet malts and yeast with some lemon in the background. Through the middle some more yeast flavors come through alongside some spices (coriander). The finish is a blend of some malts, some yeast, and the spices that linger nicely. M - Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Does not feel heavy at all without feeling watery. The finish is nice and just a touch dry. D - Very drinkable. The 9% abv is not really noticeable. The flavors are nice and well balanced. Maybe not a true Belgian Saison, but a very nice American take on it.

Reviewed from notes. Thanks to Drew and Jen for this. Served in a tulip glass. Pours a light golden-yellow color with a white, fizzy head that persists for a medium length of time before falling and leaving a touch of lacing here and there. The nose is quite spicy with some clove, pepper, and strong yeast. The taste is overspiced with a big of Belgian yeast character coming in. Feel and drinkability are also plagued by the spicy character of the brew. Not a big fan of this. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 11-13-2010

Bottle. Pours a hazy golden yellow with a large creamy white head. Big musky aromas with wheat, a faint touch of cat pee, and some sweet mentholic fruit. Medium bodied, with some big lively carbonation at first, but it dies off quickly. Spicy and vibrant with some nice musk notes and a good amount of wheat. Finishes up with lingering musk, a bit of citrus, and more peppery yeast. Nicely done.

12oz bottle from the Sahara Mart in Bloomington, IN. Pours a hazy, orange-golden colored body with a big, dense and frothy, two-finger width head that dissipates slowly and leaves a moderate lacing. Aroma is grainy and spicy with a moderate sweetness. Yeasty, peppery, zesty lemons and some grass, coriander, a light floral, and some wheat. Flavor is tough to put down at times. Lots of spices with a bit too much coriander and pepper. Yeasty with some more zesty lemons, florals, grass, and an odd sweeter and grainy wheat. Finishes a bit boozy and dry, jumbled, and overly spicy with a light-moderate, grassy, yeasty bitterness. Lengthy aftertaste following a medium body and fairly lively carbonation. Overall, not really the best saison out there. Overly spicy, a bit boozy, and a somewhat odd grainy, wheaty sweetness.

Bouteille de 12 oz achetée chez Beverage Warehouse (Winooski, VT). Arôme: Légère odeur d’épices et de fruité. Apparence: La couleur est blonde-dorée avec une moyenne densité de bulle. Présence d’un large col mousseux et d’une fine dentelle sur le verre. Saveur: Gôut d’agrumes avec une pointe de gingembre. Durée moyenne de l’arrière goût. Palette: Le corps est moyen avec une texture légèrement huileuse. Moyenne effervescence en bouche. Arrière goût fruité. (Rating #3378)

Gold dwith small white head and a lot of floaties. Mile bretty aroma. Flavor is smooth, bretty, with citrus and a lot of spices. Nice overall