The Return
Anchorage Brewing Company

Look: It pours yellow with a white head. The head is large and quite frothy. Head retention is very good.

Smell: It has grainy and earthly aromas with coriander and lemon. There are other light spices a bit of funk.

Taste: The flavor is grainy with lemon and coriander. There are other spices and some funk. There are very light citrus notes.

Feel: It has a medium low body with a mostly neutral aftertaste.

Overall, a nice easy drinking table saison.

 

16oz can

Pours two big fingers of white head into my Willi. Retention is average and the head steadily fades over the course of a few minutes, settling into a sturdy half finger of head. Lacing is solid. Body is a pretty cloudy straw yellow, with a moderate amount of bubbles coming up. Nice looking beer.

Nose is light, some delicate citrus notes - lemon. Bubblegum comes out with agitation, maybe the smallest hint of clove. Some sulfur comes out with time, not a huge problem. It’s a soft nose, but it smells nice.

Flavor is very interesting. Somewhat watery and minerally on the front end; finishes with some lemon, wheat, touch of bubblegum, and a significant floral presence. This is the epitome of subtle. They may have taken the light “table” nature of this just a tad far into the flavor, but I can still dig it.

Carbonation is significant. Body is pretty light. Bitterness is low but there is a very small tartness to it; it’s definitely on the drier side. Pretty on-style mouthfeel, the watery nature on the front end is more from lack of flavor than lack of mouthfeel.

Drinkability is great.

Overall a solid beer. A little light for my liking, but it has a time and place.

 

 

 

Appearance: Pours with excellent Belgian style, the three fingers of marshmallow head perched atop the hazy golden liquid; good retention and gobs of clumpy lacing

Smell: Spicy yeast, some funk from the Brett and grassy hop tones

Taste: A faint pale malt base emerges but the more prominent flavors quickly arrive, with the spicy, peppery yeast and grassy hops lining up; through the middle, a modest barnyard funk arrives; all the flavors merge into the finish

Mouthfeel: Light body with moderate to high carbonation

Overall: A lot of interesting flavors packed into a low ABV table saison - excellent work

an absolutely gorgeous and delicious table saison with a little anchorage bretty funky to it, these guys make such great beer, and i was pumped to find this in a can, the first i have seen from them in this format i am pretty sure. the white head rushes right out when i crack it, a very lively beer, and uniquely delicate as i take it in. super expressive and distinct on the fermentation side, funky and mature, but also fresh because of the hops, which i swear to god are sorachi ace on first pull, but which fade a little more bitter and noble as the beer warms, by the end im thinking it could be hallertau blanc and saaz or something, but its a nice hop profile either way, id love to know what all they use in here and when! plenty of brett to this, but its not stinky or weird, its clean for being this way, rustic and earthy more than anything else, and no sourness at all. some fresh lime in the middle makes me think of galaxy hops, but its tough to tell. hay and straw notes in here with the wheat too, a crackery pils note to the grain as well, very old worldy to me, and the best of fresh and well aged. the brett is horsey and floral and musty, and the hops are just the opposite, juicy and new. effervescent carbonation, a little white wine and kiwi note, and a very dry finish. this is amazing beer, drinkable as they come, fluffy and funky and perfectly executed. i would drink this every day if i could. love the low alcohol too, this is pricey maybe for what it is, but its well worth it, really tasty and quenching, even in the morning, even on a hangover, delicious!

edit: this was a bit different on tap at the brewery, maybe fresher than the can i had years ago reviewed above, way cleaner on the ferment, only whispers of brett, maybe less developed, so to me the hop bitterness pops a little more on the swallow. seems super light too now, less frothy, more delicate, i could drink a dozen of these. way more funk in the can, i like them both equally!

 

 

 

 

 

L: Orange-Straw coloration with a one finger head of moderate retention and low lacing.

S: Crackers, Straw, Muted Lemon Citrus.

T: Similar to smell with the addition of a slight white peppery note.

F: Nice and light-medium bodied for the ABV.

O: Solid Light Saison. May have scored better years ago with less competition, but this is a decent brew for a night out and little competition. Not a four-pack I would purchase though.