Saison A La Provision
Burning Sky Brewery

330ml bottle. Hazy, orange colour with a thin smear of head. Smells lightly of yeast and cider vinegar. Tastes of pithy orange & yeast. Gentle sourness on the tongue. A crisp, dry, super refreshing, extra fruity saison. Very nicely done.

Glad to find this example of how English crafters are not shy about experimenting in a field American crafters have gotten a bit too aggressive in: making saisons tart.

Looks are good, but not helped by being unfiltered. Smells are mostly tart and indicate the yeast is average as it is not kicking out lots of fruit. Tastes are more like I expect and not bad, the tart is subtle and never overpowers the modest fruity flavors. (That evaluation comes from a Belgo-phile who drinks more saisons than anything else.) This saison has a long sit in my mouth and cleanses the palate. Incidentally, I thought I'd do a comparison of the most important feature of a saison: how it adds to flavorful food. So, I had La Provision with a semi-spicy sandwich. Then, I finished the sandwich with an English Old Ale classic that also can use a Brett-like tartness. La Provision beat the old style.

In the same small town as the famous practitioner of the English styles (Harvey's is particularly famous for barleywines), Burning Sky is an innovator; kind of a neighbor indicating that we live in a new century for brewing. I went on Burning Sky's website and, while cryptic, I was impressed by their achievement -- and even daring -- in the land of the modest, balanced ale.

 

 

 

Keg, Small Bar, Bristol - Pours cloudy golden with a small white foamy head. Nice lacing. Smell - fermented fruit - apples, bready up notes, light pepper and citrus. Taste - yeasty, light souriness, fruit - apples. Nice easy drinking apple to the fore saison.