Singel Hop Saison - Nelson Sauvin
Tired Hands Brewing Company

 

 

 

On-tap at Tired Hands for their 1st Anniversary party, served in a wine glass.

A- Pours a hazy dark yellow color, finger of white head, nice lacing.

S- Loads of white grape, a bit herbal and spicy, mild bitterness, really just an awesome showcase for Nelson Sauvin.

T- More great Nelson Sauvin flavors of white grape, herbs and spice, along with the usual TH saison yeasty must, wheat, and very mild tartness.

M- Medium-bodied, smooth and soft, dry finish.

O- Once again, a great saison from TH. One of my favorites from the day.

 

 

 

 

Growler courtesy of Moll. Pours a hazy light straw color. Lots of lacing. Nose is really nice with tropical fruit and plenty of wheat. Some light saison spice. Flavor is a beautiful mix of hops and wheat with saison character in the background. Extremely well executed and impossible to stop drinking. Amazing beer.

 

Thanks are owed to Deuane for sharing this growler with me. Review from notes taken a month ago. The brew pours a hazed yellow golden color with a white cap that fades at a normal pace. It leaves a webby and spotty pattern of lacing effect on the glass.

The aroma really shines with a scent of white grape juice. An exceptional display of nelson hop character that seemingly outplays all other aromatic aspects. Once I get away from that lovely vinous note, some hints of herbs and almost a vegetative aspect come out. 

The tastes is bitter with rindy and pulp citrus hop flavors. A bit of a residual grain flavor is left along with a veggie and cheesy hop flavoring. Whereas the aromatics really brought it with an enjoyable display of nelson, the taste is a bit forgettable with nondescript hoppy bitterness.

This is a medium to lighter bodied brew with a modest amount of carbonation. The alcohol was surprisingly prominent for the listed abv. The nose here was shockingly good but as the experience continued and the newness wore off, it turned out to be a pretty good offering just lacking a bit with the expected saison attributes.

 

Pours a cloudy white peach color with a thick, frothy white head that sticks well and leaves plenty of lacing. Doesn't look highly carbonated like a typical saison, but still has a very attractive appearance.

The aroma is of powerful, juicy hops, reminiscent of fresh garden herbs, like sage, pineapple mint and chamomile, with a citrusy kick. Some spicy, peppery notes are there as well, making this a very well-rounded saison aroma. Wonderful!

Juicy hop flavor up front minus harsh bitterness, with a nice grainy malt and wheat flavor mid-palate. Herbal Nelson Sauvin hops mix well with the rustic saison yeast, and the beer finishes with a lingering, dry bitterness.

As is typical of growler pours, the carbonation is much smoother than usual, with a medium body and a dry finish. Pretty on-point for the style.

Another winning beer from the good folks at Tired Hands. They did a great job of highlighting this fantastic hop varietal in their signature style, the "American" saison. What I am assuming is their house saison yeast works very well in complimenting this hop and malt bill. Just a beautiful aroma and a very delicious beer....I am glad I got to share this with good friends.

 

 

Growler shared by...someone...sorry, can't remember who brought this one!

I've had almost every TH beer on tap at the brewpub and taken a few growlers home with me along the way. In my experience not everyone does as good a job filling them as Jean does, so sometimes the mouthfeel and perfect carbonation these guys always have on tap doesn't translate as well off-premises. In this case the fill was decent enough but the overall feel was just a little watery and undercarbonated and not as smooth and creamy as I'd expect from this brewery.

The beer pours a lightly hazed pale gold with a small cap of white foam that settles quickly and some patchy lacing on the glass; I'd say the appearance might have a taken a bit of a hit in comparison to the draught version, but that's only a guess (these guys always make a lovely looking brew). Nose mixes the juicy, tropical fruit notes of the Nelson Sauvin hops with the peppery, spicy esters of the house saison yeast. Additional citrusy, lemony tart notes detected as well as a bit of dry maltiness underneath propping things up.

The flavor follows the nose to a degree but seems to lack a bit of complexity; I think sometimes single hop beers have this problem in that there's not enough depth and the wider flavor profile created by a mix of hop varieties is missed. Nevertheless this beer is tasty and also instructive in that it puts the fruity, grassy Nelson variety into stark relief.

I'll certainly be interested to try the forthcoming single hop saisons but personally I don't feel they rise to the level of some of the other more complex Tired Hands beers. Definitely worth a shot though.

 

 

This poured out as a hazy golden color with a white head on top. The smell of the beer gives off a unique hoppy aroma that comes off smelling a bit herbal and like green peppers. The taste of the beer is much like the nose, it's got a ton of sweet pepper flavors in there, really something unexpected for sure. The mouthfeel of the beer was light bodied with a pretty good carbonation to it. Overall I thought this beer was decent but not something I would rave about. This is one that needs to be paired with something that will compliment the flavors it's has. Drinking it on it's own wouldn't be something I'd want a lot of.