Note To Self
Brasserie Saint James

an abbey blonde ale, and quite a substantial one for its mild alcohol content, i liked this, and i have liked all the belgian style beers these guys make, really its what they seem to do best! not quite blonde in color, it has the faintest amber shade sneaking in, and its off clear, with a nice frothy white belgian head on it from the tap. the aroma is nice, spicy sweet belgian yeast to me, almost like a baby tripel or something, and maybe the same strain they use in that one too. a surprising degree of maltiness here, this has some body and some sweetness and some general heft from the grain, something i am not used to in a beer in this style, say like a duvel or something which drinks so light, this is a lot heartier, which may cut some of its sessionability, but i quite like the increased texture, still pillowy and bubbly and soft. esters of pear, white wine, cooked banana, nutmeg, and clove, along with a faint candied element, like cooked sugar. fluffy and flavorful, i thought this was a nice beer. maybe not their most compelling one they do, but these guys are doing a nice job across all of their beers right now!