Crab Apple Saison
Country Boy Brewing

Now that's a fruit beer! Piling on a slew of home-grown crabapples onto a Belgian-styled base that already celebrates a cider-like supple fruitiness and a spicy dry balance to give impressions of sour ale without actually being sour.

Crab Apple Saison pours a hazy gold and a shot stocky head. Mouth-watering and jaw-tightening from scent alone, the beer's strong cider and green berry character is lightly pungent and peppery to the nose. Supple sweetness is wafer-thin and brisk with powdered sugar and dough.

The malt breaks apart quickly on the middle palate and the ale takes on a tart, dry and spicy demeanor afterwards. Its strong apple current carries across the tongue with a piquant tang, tart and thirst-stripping acidity. Under-ripened orange, gooseberry, faint pear, light grapefruit and lemon dance delicately below the crab apple dominance while the saison's natural grassy bitterness, peppery bite and hay-like earthiness balances the fruit and ensures a dry palate.

Medium-light, the beer's acidity helps to give impressions of a crisper and more refreshing session. Ample carbonation works in tandem with the fruit acidity to scrub the palate like dry, oak-aged chardonnay. A quick after-tow of dry hay and apple skin proves perfect for most summer entrees, pork loin or simply to beat the summer's heat.

 

Cloudy straw colored body hosts just a skim of eggshell colored head. Nose is very faint and hard to pick up any thing other then a dusting of Brett. Taste is where it is at for this brew. Crab apple is both tart and dry while being incredible refreshing. This is a nice sour and great use of the crab apple.