L'Esprit Saison
The Tap Brewing Company

 

From 8/26/2009...finally getting around to punching this one in.

Had one on tap and took a growler home. $8.50...can you dig it? Poured the first installment into a Duvel tulip.

Pretty decent natural honey color. Nice tight head of about a finger, but it goes quickly, yielding style-consistent yeast wisps. Body has a bit of cloudiness and slight turbidity, but not a huge deal-breaker.

There's some unexpected funkiness that I didn't catch in my quick pour off the tap. Decent coriander bite with slight sourness typical for the strain. Rustic piney woodiness and a good kick of what seems like Styrian Goldings but I could be wrong. Survey says 30 IBUs so that's some nice hoppiness for style. Malt has a little honey/butterscotch scent to it, which is nice - a little reminiscent of a Tripel, actually. The warmth brings out a little more of the "horse-blanket" stuff that we look for.

Even though I don't see a lot of carbonation, I taste it and feel it - regardless of the scent this becomes an old-world saison quickly with a couple of tastes (ignoring the hoppiness). Mellow yet consistent carbonation, slight sour acidity and a straw-like yet sweet malt profile. Very interesting stuff. Carbonation cleans it up pretty well. In a sense it's dry, but layered on top is maybe a little more malt sweetness here than expected but it works. Wondering how this would mellow in a few months.

Palate gets the sweetness of the nice boatload of malt upfront. Then the carbonation delivers the dryness as it slithers down the palate. Maybe needs a little time to pull it all together but a lot of saisons have a little funky turmoil going on that make them tick.

Hey, it may not be a saison with lots of carbonation and an FG of 1.001 but it's a very good take on the style with the expected elements, a little bit of sweetness and a decent drop of funk. And it has solid carbonation...all in all it's a lot easier to drink than I think it is, 'cause my tulip is just about empty. I'd be interested to see this in about 6 months. Jon continues to show great breadth and depth up in the 'hill.

Poured via growler on 9/5/09. Thanks to mixylplik3 for sharing.

A - Hazy coppery orange body with one-finger off-white head that fully receded and deposited minimal lacing around the glass.

S - Aroma is fruity for a saison with some spicy, earthy and musty notes and a toasted grainy character. Finishes with a hint of alcohol and mild herbal hop bitterness.

T - Fruity notes akin to spicy apple, pear and citrus fruit backed by a grainy malt character. Finishes with a subtle herbal hop bite.

M - Medium bodied with a light syrupy texture and moderate carbonation. Finishes with mild bitterness and residual sweetness on the palate.

D - Reminds me of a Bier de Garde more than a Saison. However, this is a flavorful brew with a light, fruity flair and enough hop bitterness to add a bit of complexity to the overall flavor.