Fraîcheur Du Soir
Brasserie Trois Dames

Pours hazy, gold in color with half inch head. Taste is cardamom, coriander, green apple, and herbal hops. Medium bodied, slightly bitter, with moderate carbonation. Tastes like a biere de garde. Solid example of the style. Not one to rush to get, but good.

this is the first beer i have had from these guys that didnt really impress me. i just picked up a decent amount of bottles too on blowout pricing, so its likely pretty dated, but i thought a wit from these guys is likely to be a little funky, and would probably hold up pretty well over time, but that doesnt really appear to be the case, and ill have to try this fresh to compare at some point, but it didnt quite take me where trois dames beer usually does. a little darker in color than expected for the style, brassy looking but also dull, kind of still, and with a little sediment, almost grey looking in the right light. i get some coriander on the nose, dry and sort of toasted to me, but no citrus freshness, and worse, no yeast character of any real merit or intrigue, which is what i was most hoping for with it. i also get some oxidation here. in the flavor i get the coriander and the wheat just fine, a little tired, but fine. its the yeast that turns me off, its dull, not even belgian tasting here, just sort of doughy and off, unexciting and certainly past its prime, if it was ever cool it isnt anymore. there is some bitterness, some oxidation, and a lack of life that i really miss in the style. a little strong for the style, and the alcohol does come through. no bretty funk or anything either. not quite still, but sagging in feel for me too. overall a real letdown from these guys, but knowing their beer the way i do, i suspect this is merely a product of age and travel, not anything to do with a lackluster recipe or poor execution. hope to try it again in better form...

edit: this isnt getting any better with time, not that i expected it would, but there is always hope with the yeast forward breweries. still need to source a fresh one...

edit: even more time on this, i keep hoping, but its just not coming around, ill slug the last bottle or two i have and close the book on this one until i can find it fresh. they dont all age well, and this one certainly hasnt...

 

 

Poured into a Gulden Draak tulip. Pours a hazy caramel amber with a thin white head that dissipates to patches with no lacing. Aroma of bready malt, light orange and lemon citrus and a hint of spice. Flavor is orange and lemon citrus with grapefruit rind, mild wheat and biscuit finishing with a mildly astringent citrus rind and coriander bitterness. Medium bodied with ligth carbonation. An interesting take on a Belgian white ale; there are some nice semi-tart citrus flavors, but not much wheat character and the body is so neutral that the spicing is left to be too astringent, almost medicial, especially in the finish. Glad I tried it, but prefer a more tradition witbier.

 

 

 

 

 

33cl bottle poured into my large Gulden Draak tulip, Fraîcheur Du Soir is a cloudy gold with an off-white head leaving medium bubbled lace.

Smell is sweet clean ethanol, accentuated by the citrus of orange and coriander. Pithy minerality, almost quinine like, but a little syrupy with the orange.

Taste is less tonic and more malty, spicy wit. Fairly phenolic. Spices are notable but integrated, it works, pretty classic, with a somewhat acrid, rustic finish.

Mouthfeel is dry, medium light bodied.

Drinkability is fine, this is a solid wit, not really worth tracking down, but worth a try for fans of the style. It's always nice to try a Swiss ale branching out beyond the German pils category, looking at this brewery's line-up, I'll keep my eyes peeled for some of the more intriguing brews, but not go out of my way to pay the Swiss franc surcharge unless it's a style I really like.

750ml bottle poured into tulip 8/8/12

A cloudy bright golden yellow with a large bone white head that hangs on for a little while leaving a few thin partial rings of lace

S smells of bubblegum with a little spice, cereals, a little citrus and pepper and I'm not sure where the booze is hiding

T I'm surprised how different the taste is, heavy amounts of lemon and tart citrus, a little sour for a Wit, well a Imperial Wit really

M tart with a little pucker, just a little foamy and leaves a little behind in the mouth and slightly sticky on the lips

O smells the best part of this one, I don't mind citrus in a Wit but this one went a little over the top. good beer but I might prefer a simplified version

much better then the other couple beers I've had from these guys but still not worth the price.

A: Poured from a bottle to a pint glass. Had a yellow color and a cloudy consistency. There was a two inch, foamy, long-lasting head. Good lacing.

S: A decent, but not spectacular, aroma of oranges, malt, and yeast.

T: Tasted of orange peel, a bit of malt, a large shot of yeast (more than I expected), and coriander. Basically, a typical witbier. Not a bad flavor, but a little thin and underwhelming.

M: A well-carbonated beer with a crisp, dry finish. Medium-bodied.

O: This is drinkable beer, but it is definitely uneven in spots.

750ml bottle, 2011 edition. A 'blanche double malt', which I take to mean something like an Imperial White Ale. And what's with the winterscape ski imagery, for a wheat beer? Must be a Swiss thing.

This beer pours a very cloudy, golden white hue, with three fingers of thinly foamy white head, which leaves a few leaping arches of lace around the glass as it duly subsides.

It smells of somewhat sweet, grainy wheat malt, a faint orange citrus character, some acerbic yeast, and very subtle savoury, somewhat peppery spice. The taste is more demi-sec wheat malt, a heightened peppy coriander twinge, some dry orange rind, and soft earthy yeast, with nothing beyond a simple, understated warming to indicate the 14 proof ABV.

The bubbles are fairly edgy, and just powerful enough to provide a complex structure, the body on the lee side of medium-light in terms of weight, and rather wholesomely smooth. It finishes off-dry, sure, but with a trend towards dryness, as the proclaimed double malt ebbs, and the spice, yeast, alcohol, and fruit essence ascend.

Forget Imperial this, and Double that - this is just a decent witbier, maybe a wee bit too tame with the fruit and spice adjuncts, but that doesn't really detract from the easy inherent drinkability. The extra 2 points of booze don't hurt in the least, especially as they are quite wraith-like, leaving us with a nice, hefty, and clean wheat beer (I don't get to say that about this style all that much).

First had: on tap at Farmers' Cabinet, Philly, PA

Poured a hazy blonde color with a small delicate head. Wheat profile in the aroma, light citrusy sourness, with a touch of spice. Taste of biscuity wheat, crisp, sour, citrus pith, light funky yeast, a bit of peppery spice, with some drying hop bitterness coming in in the finish. Taste is a bit lacking, and if it weren't for the sour twinge, this beer would probably be pretty lifeless. Light mouthfeel. Nothing great, but it's not bad overall.

330ml bottle purchased at the brewery

Pours hazy orange with one finger head that slowly dissipates. Aroma is sweetish wheat and spices, hints of oranges.

Taste is very sweet malt with herbal bitterness, some spices in the background. Mouthfeel is full with low carbonation.

Overall, way too sweet and the lack of carbonation does not help at all.

Bottle: Poured a deep orangey color ale with a light foamy head with low retention and no lacing. Aroma of sugary wheat malt with some light coriander and some orange peel. Taste is quite heavy with lots of sugar and some light spices. Carbonation and too low and refreshing factor is also to low for style. Overly sweet with not enough carbonation and lacking spices makes this a below average beer.