Chocolate Saison
Boom Island Brewing Company

i had higher hopes for this, which is unfortunately becoming a theme with new beers from these guys, seems like the quality has fallen off a little bit over the years, but this isnt bad, its just kind of bland and maybe overly subtle for a brewery known for belgian styles. it looks really clean, clear for something called a saison and shiny amber in color. i dont smell or taste much chocolate here, which is okay, i mean, how much chocolate do you want in a saison anyway? its not totally invisible, but more of a tootsie roll sort of candy complexion than a bitter earthy nib or a sweet milk chocolate, either of which i think would be better than what they came up with here. the malt is sweet and the yeast doesnt dry it out the way i want a saison to feel, and the yeast itself isnt particularly flavorful, lightly estery and belgian in essence, but not rustic at all, let alone funky or farmy or any of what makes good saison good saison. this has a sort of dumbed down overall vibe to it, and more funky yeast and committed chocolate inclusion would make this a better beer. it might be a work in progress, and i like the idea of it not being a black saison, but it needs some tweaks to get there for me...