Saison Imperiale

Bottled. Unclear dark golden with an off-white head. The aroma sweet with notes of yeast, over ripe fruits, malt, and spices. The flavor is sweet with notes of over ripe fruits, vegetables, lightly tart and dry finish. More like a imperial Biere de Garde, not that exciting.

Date: 08/17/2007
Mode: Bottle
Source: Tasting, Cellar Party

Appearance: clear dark copper, wispy off white head,
Aroma: sweet fruity aroma with lots of spicy character and a light touch of funk,
Flavor: lots of funky spicy flavor, spicyness is balanced by fruity sweetness, nice balancing bitterness,
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: 03/04/2008
Mode: bottle
Source: brick store

lots more funkiness in the aroma and flavor,

Aroma: 6/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 6/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 12/20
Rating: 3.1/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: *4

Cloudy and amber. Funky nose with deep fruit (apple, pear) and some light clove. There’s also a mac & cheese note in the aroma, which makes no sense at all. Herbal, berryish (blueberry, boysenberry), funky light foot, alcohol, rich caramel, and spice...lots of stuff going on here. For all its complexity, though, it really is not very cohesive.

(750ml bottle) Particulate-filled copper body topped by big beige head that diminishes fairly quickly, leaving nice lacing. Aroma is moderately sweet, bubblegum, some orange, cinnamon, raisin, some alcohol. Taste is moderately sweet, orange, some bubblegum, vanilla, herbal, light cinnamon. Dry alcohol finish. Medium-full body, somewhat sticky.

Bottle. [thank you, after4ever]
Pours dark amber, micro-floaties, small creamy, off-white head. Great lacings. Aroma has notes of cheese, red apples, caramel, some funk; almost like a french cider. Great, super-dry mouthfeel. Flavour has a lot of maltiness, light cellar-notes, red apples. Caramel, oranges, light funk, some brett creeps up. Well, also a little chocolate.

Hazy copper hue is quickly devoid of its little white head. Not very clean in the nose, quite buttery even. Its flavour profile is mostly dominated by strong toastiness where caramel and old apples nuances leave their trace. As it warms, herbal components peak in while pomegranate and oily breadiness are part of an evolution toward a beginning of oxidation. Very sweet palate with plenty of pear candy and loose earthy- biere de garde reminiscent flavours. Biting big bubbles feel a bit aggressive among that rather thin body. Certainly no Saison and not even that good a loose Belgian style ale, so rather disappointing.

Bottle… Lightly hazed, deep amber ale with burnt orange highlights and a small, creamy, off-white head. Decent retention. Biscuity, fruity aroma with a mild spicy phenol. Medium-bodied with gentle carbonation. Well-balanced. The flavor and finish are lightly acidic, bready, a touch funky and dry as a bone. Unfortunately, the flavor falls a bit short of the liquid luxury promised by the nose. Still, a very nice brew.

(Bottle) Pours a deep amber body with an average-sized creamy beige head. Aroma of bread, grapefruit, dark fruits, and bubble gum. Flavor of toasted malt, caramel, and vinous.