Thiriez Frères de la Bière (Xxtra)

Brewed by Brasserie Thiriez
Style: Saison
Esquelbecq, France

Pours a murky dark golden yellow with ripe banana hues and a frothy, pillowy two finger head with excellent retention that only slowly fades into a lasting cap. Chunks of soapy lacing are left behind. Earthy slight funky aroma with a lot of piny hop notes as well as some subtle oak. There is also a good bit of bready yeast and light crisp estery fruit notes, mostly apple and pear. While there is a noticeable hop presence, it was much less prominent than I expected or hoped for. A lot more of the traditional saison aromas come through after the initial earthy hops. Very carbonated heavy mouthfeel. This beer is a lot fuller than I was expecting with a nice creamy body after an initial hop blast and heavy dose of carbonation. Some nice earthy bread notes come through midpalate along with some earthy funk and estery fruit notes. As mentioned above, there is a pretty prominent hop presence up front that is very earthy and dry with a strong pine character. This is followed by bready yeast and crisp citrus and light fruit notes. Lots of orange peel and lemon zest as well as hints of apple, pear and banana. Not very spicy or peppery and only slightly earthy but the high carbonation level hurts it’s drinkability. Interesting hybrid of a dry hopped beer and a saison that I enjoyed trying but probably wouldn’t seek out again.

bottle, golden yellow with tall white foam, yeasty, grainy, citrus aroma, flavors of grain, bread, lemon and spice

Bottle… Clear yellow ale with a large, creamy, white head. Great retention. Spicy phenols and hops in the bouquet – honeysuckle nectar, clove and pepper layered upon sweet, pale malts. Light to medium-bodied with modest carbonation. Spicy – clove mostly – bitter flavor. Grassy, bitter, dry finish. Not really my thing.

Bottle at Ebenezer’s. Pours a nice hazy gold with a fluffy white head. Nose noticeably funky and strong aromatic hops of the continental variety. Beer is very dry, quite bitter and clean. Light yeast notes of white pepper and spice come through. Fine saison and super flavorful.

Bottle shared at a BA meeting. Hazy golden color with a nice white head. Aroma of barnyard funk, pale malt, and some hops. Flavor more of the same, funk fairly mild, with grassy/citrus hops and a little pepper. Medium-bodied and fairly dry. Solid overall.

bottle poured a slightly hazy dark golden color with a thin frothy white head. aroma has straw, pale malt, dusty hops, and sweetness. flavor has lots of hay, grass, mild hop bitterness, caramel, and pale malt. i am impressed at how flavorful this is for a 4.5% beer. it is nicely crafted with a sorta old world thing for me.

Draft. A hazy golden beer with a lazing white head. The aroma has notes of straw, hay and a touch of malt. The flavor is sweet with strong notes of hay and a bit of sulphur. I had it presented as an IPA, which I don’t think it is.