Joutsan Sahti

Plastic canister@St. Urho’s
Dark nut brown color, no head. Glueish, herbal and smokey aroma. Quite different than other sahtis. Sticky sweetness, very juniperry, some herbs. Flat mouthfeel. Dangerous sahti, hides alcohol very well.

Draught (Gallows Bird, Espoo - Kekri 2007)
Wow - as soon as it comes anywhere near your nose - a punch of sweet fruity sahtiness. Doubled when it hits your tongue. But not your usual sahti, this is sharp and direct to your taste centres. Beautiful sweet but without any stickiness. One of the best sahtis ever tasted.
Rerate: (7-4-8-4-16=3.9)
Jug (Gallows Bird, Espoo, Kekri 2008)
Fried breakfast aroma - a touch of bacon and fried eggs, some baked beans too. Tons of esters, not just fruity ones. The baked beans come through in the taste too, with fried bread on the side. Slightly waxy palate, but also quite thin. Not stodgy like some can be. As it warms, it becomes sweeter and softer, and the sticky hop flowers are coming out more. Quite crisp and fresh. Drier than before.

Wow! Strong clove and banana aroma. Quite red for a sahti. In the flavour, which is great, a little bit of sourness, and a lot of fruit. Great!

(Sampled from a plastic canister; BB 17/07/07; ABV 7%; Thanks Paavo!) Traditional Finnish sahti from Joutsa. Aroma of banana, juniper and malt. Dark brown orange colour, murky and no head (couple of large bubbles). Sweet, banana, juniper and yeasty flavour. Flat carbonated (as is typical for sahtis), medium-bodied and slightly sticky palate with a hint of alcohol. This is the second time I find Joutsan Sahti tasting a little bit raw! Maybe this is like it’s supposed to be? 05/07/07 (original rating was 5/3/5/4/12)

Light brown-red color, no head. Fruity banana, mildly alcoholic and juniper aroma. Cloudy appearance. Medium to full bodied. Strong banana and juniper flavor, some yeast in aftertaste. Nice sahti!

(From a plastic tank) Dark orange color with small, big-bubbled head. Quite mild, sweetish and wheaty banana aroma. Medium-bodied, sweetish and mildly yeasty flavor with hints of alcohol. Medium-bodied, slicky and slightly rough palate with almost no carbonation. Quite light and easily drinkable sahti, but nothing special.

The sample I had was probably a bit too old. There was some acidity in th enose as well as estery fruitiness. Malty, but extremely drinkable, and not at all sweet.

Wow. Sublimely worked balance of malt and juniper. Absurdly drinkable for its size. More flavourful and less cloying than other commercial examples, this is a true taste of brewing history.