Cabernet Sauvignon Barrel Fermented Saison
Mystic Brewery

Cabernet Sauvignon Barrel Fermented SaisonCabernet Sauvignon Barrel Fermented Saison
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From:
Mystic Brewery
 
Massachusetts, United States
Style:
Saison
ABV:
7%
Score:
88
Avg:
3.96 | pDev: 7.58%
Reviews:
15
Ratings:
31
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jun 13, 2013
Added:
Feb 10, 2012
Wants:
  10
Gots:
  3
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 3.75 by doremite from Vermont

Jun 13, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by Kelp from New Hampshire

May 15, 2013
 
Rated: 4.25 by Lare453 from Florida

Apr 04, 2013
Photo of Gatch
Reviewed by Gatch from Massachusetts

4.22/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
I bought this thinking it was the Sauv Blanc barrel-fermented version. Oh well. But a big, bold red wine in oak barrels used to age something like this style of beer? If they insist...

Batch # 001

A: Beautiful, cloudy, golden-yellow with a seriously huge head. The carbonation builds so quickly but it isn't a gusher. Super bubbly, effervescent head. Sign of a great yeast strain. Big lace and some great retention. How much better can a Saison look?

S: Huge grape and wild fruit. Tart, sour, funk, yeast, barn, fruit, hay, musk, wood.

T: Dry, yeasty fruit with some of the barrel coming through. Some wood and a rich, fruity character that separates this from most traditional Saisons. I'm impressed with the complexity of flavors. I must admit that the beer is more enjoyable at a colder temperature than room but it's still a fine beer when it's warm. It's more tart and has more bite when it's colder. But the intense fruit and yeasty flavors come out more when it's warm.

M: Some of that chalky feel and aftertaste that I get with many beers of this style. Otherwise, the carbonation is on point while also allowing the beer to be very smooth. Very dry.

O: While I wish I could find and drink the Sauv Blanc version of this beer, the Cab Sauv version definitely surprised me and made me happy with my purchase. A seriously good beer that seems to have benefited from the barrel fermentation although I haven't had the original Mystic Saison. I won't hesitate to pick up another aged rendition of this beer if I see it. Mystic is working with a good yeast strain here.
Jan 26, 2013
 
Rated: 4.5 by rowingbrewer from Massachusetts

Jan 18, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by danmcg62 from Massachusetts

Jan 14, 2013
Photo of Phyl21ca
Reviewed by Phyl21ca from Canada (QC)

4.01/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Bottle: Poured a light yellow color ale with a super large foamy head with great retention and some good lacing. Aroma consists of rustic malt with light residual sugar notes and cabernet notes with light tart feels. Taste is also dominated by some tart notes with rustic malt and some vinous notes from the Cabernet barrels. Body is about average with great carbonation and no apparent alcohol. Very well balanced in terms of drinkability and complexity.
Dec 29, 2012
 
Rated: 4.25 by kjkinsey from Texas

Oct 17, 2012
 
Rated: 4.25 by Brew33 from Ohio

Oct 10, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by ComRock12 from Massachusetts

Sep 15, 2012
 
Rated: 4.25 by codasnap52 from Connecticut

Sep 06, 2012
Photo of johnnnniee
Reviewed by johnnnniee from New Hampshire

3.7/5  rDev -6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Pours a mostly clear deep golden color with a huge bubbly white head that slowly fades after sticking some lace to the sides of the glass. When the bottle first popped I was assaulted with lots of wonderful sweet fruity aromas, but as my sample sits those have dissipated. Smells of pear and pepper with a sweet malty backbone and a bready yeasty quasi funk going on. The flavor is sweet and bready with some honey and sweet fruit like maltiness underneath a peppery yeasty bite. There's a slight red wine vinous quality that rounds out the edges nicely. Medium body with a spirited level of carbonation and a sweet bubbly mouthfeel. This is a nice Saison, but I feel that the Cab barrel adds a red wine flavor that doesn't agree with my palette.
Aug 21, 2012
 
Rated: 4.25 by rab53 from Washington

Jul 22, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by bespin15 from Washington

Jun 10, 2012
Photo of andrewinski1
Reviewed by andrewinski1 from New Hampshire

3.8/5  rDev -4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured into a tulip. The color is clear golden. There is a white foamy head, with decent sticky lacing.

The aroma indicates spicy vinous yeast, with some sweet orange.

The taste is dry, with some spicy yeast dominating the flavor. A bit of wood is noted in the finish, with a very slight tartness.

This is medium bodied with nice full carbonation.

This is very good. I will definitely be on the lookout for more Mystic Saisons.
Jun 01, 2012
Photo of Bendurgin
Reviewed by Bendurgin from Maine

3.95/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Poured into a tulip. This one pours a golden yellow with about an inch of fluffy white head. It settles leaving a solid rim of lace.

The aroma has a nice vinous aroma with some hints of tartness in the background. A little bit of grassy hops but this has a nice fruit character to it. The pallet has notes of oak and some vanilla with hints of red berries. A bit of grassy hops and biscuit malts.

The body is light with somewhat excessive carbonation. Overall this one is tasty. Nice one to try. Would love to see more BA saisons in the future.
Jun 01, 2012
Photo of chakadrum
Reviewed by chakadrum from Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
I saw a display of this at Julio's in Westborough, MA and the thing that pulled me in was definitely the barrel-aging.

A foamy head but not pillowy. Not sure if it was my glass, but really no lacing throughout the consumption (ok, a runny lacing).

A little funk on the nose. Definitely not overwhelming. I'd like to think I smelled a hint of oak, but hard to say.

Overall, a very smooth taste. No sour. A good balance of hops and malt and yeast. Yeah, I'd call this quite balanced. Not much funk on the taste.

Good carbonation.

In terms of saison, I think that the barrel-aging actually had a pretty minimal impact on the the beer but despite that, it stood out as a very sold beer for the the style. I'd drink it again in a heartbeat.
May 21, 2012
Photo of MasterSki
Reviewed by MasterSki from Canada (ON)

3.65/5  rDev -7.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Bottle courtesy of Greg (Reagan1984). Served in a BFM chalice.

A - Nice white foam settles to a thick collar, wispy cap, and a few spots of lace. Murky white peach flesh body.

S - Peppery yeast, oak, yeasty bread, mild funk, lemon, some lotion, and perhaps a touch of alcohol presence that seems out-of-place in a 7% beer. Not overtly vinous like The Marquis, which I drank about 30 minutes prior.

T - The taste is again heavy on phenolic yeast and bread flavors, with a fair bit of lemon, and notes of lotion, oak, and mild fruitiness. Not a ton of Cabernet Sauvignon flavor here either.

M - Medium body, grainy, dry, with some oaky tannins, and fairly active carbonation. Alcohol again shows up unexpectedly.

D - I enjoyed it more than the base beer, but it's still a bit rough around the edges. Mildly enjoyable in small doses. Perhaps I'll have better luck with the Sauvignon Blanc version.
Apr 23, 2012
 
Rated: 3.75 by wethorseblanket from California

Apr 22, 2012
Photo of drabmuh
Reviewed by drabmuh from Maryland

3.95/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Thanks Thorpe,

Beer is golden / amber and clear with a white head of small and large bubbles, some lacing, moderate carbonation.

Aroma is mostly wine, sweet grapes and a little yeast.

The wine character covers up or makes absent almost everything I disliked about the base beer and made it undrinkable. This is more like a carbonated wine with a slightly grainy aftertaste. I may even have this beer again one day.
Apr 06, 2012
Cabernet Sauvignon Barrel Fermented Saison from Mystic Brewery
Beer rating: 88 out of 100 with 31 ratings