Session Saison
Sweetgrass Brewing Co.

 

Poured from bottle into a tulip glass, a strong initial head, leaving good lacing, attractive slightly rosy colour to it, quite clear and effervescent.

S - tart and supple raspberry, gooseberry, some grapefruit, a nice tasty build with some of the lemon, white pepper, a lot of florals as well, its quite a vibrant and dry saison.

T - slightly tart start with a lot of raspberry flavour, mixing lemon citrus comes in, a creaminess to it, smooth yeast with rustic malt, a mouthfilling character, along with the tartness there is some pleasant florals, herbal and spicy Belgian yeast, and cherry leading to balanced crisp and tart finish with a lingering hint of raspberry. Nice drying aftertaste.

M - tart on the start, a pleasant carbonation and balanced body to carry it through, it has some heft to it, but it is more dry and tart than sweet, the raspberries are really good about contributing flavour without excessive sweetness.

Overall, a really pleasant offering. The yeast I felt contributed more of a creaminess and mild fruit character initially then really opened up to take charge of the flavour profile. I really liked the incorporation of the raspberries, which were pleasantly tart and balanced by the other flavours, rather than being one dimensional. A very drinkable ale for sure, could even be more assertive flavourwise, and although not super sweet, it could also have been drier and a bit more tart which would have improved it in my books. Try it if you see it.

 

 

Session Raspberry/Lemon Verbena has a kind of orange creamsicle complexion that falls somewhere between raspberry red and lemon verbena green/yellow. Brewing with real fruit rarely results in bright, vivid colour, though the berries have clearly tinted this Saison's typical golden tone (and probably further muddled its already blurred complexion).

Everything advertised can be easily appreciated in the nose. There's underlying raspberry flavour, with bright lemon-accented herbalness, and a rash of orchard fruit esters and peppery phenolics courtesy of a bonafide Saison yeast. These three elements seem to get along wonderfully; this bouquet makes for a delightful introduction.

The worst fruit beers are saccharine; these are the brands made with added 'flavour', concentrates and/or sweeteners. They're seemingly designed with a child's palate in mind. Brewing with real fruits rarely, if ever, results in cloying beer. This offers a more authentic taste of the fruit - which includes the slight tartness contained in even the ripest berries.

Session Raspberry/Lemon Verbena Saison is one of these beers, the kind with integrity. It may not offer the same degree of exaggerated, bombastic fruitiness, but there's not even the slightest impression of syrup or artificial flavour. Actually, the raspberry is second fiddle; Belgian yeast takes a backseat to almost no one.

Indeed, the ale's flavour and mouthfeel alike are characterized by a peppery spice and herbalness (one, it must be noted, that is enhanced by the addition of lemon verbena). The grain is also appreciated by way of a cereal maltiness with hay-level dryness. It's built like an archetypal Saison with a cleverly added fruity dimension.

This beer was conceived from 7 craft beer bars in Toronto aiming to promote variety and high-quality beers. In that mission, they've succeeded. Session Raspberry/Lemon Verbena Saison is creative and extremely well crafted, and places an emphasis camaraderie, seasonality and artisinal production - all things worth supporting!

Pours an interesting amber with a hint of red and pink. The flash in the pan head doesn't leave much lace on the glass. Yeasty, bready notes mix with sweet raspberry and cherry in the nose. The taste is raspberry syrup predominantly with doughy malts and a phenolic yeast character also quite prominent. A light, herbal, grassy hoppiness lays in the back. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with a prickly full carbonation. Light bitterness and some raspberry in the finish.

A nice beer but not enough Saison characteristics - a bit clean and almost hefe like yeast instead of the traditional Belgian Saison yeast, and a bit processed raspberry flavor. Still quite good and a great summer quencher. A good gateway beer.

 

750ml corked and caged bottle poured into tulip 24/6/14, thanks liamt07 for sending the bottle

A the cork just couldn't wait to get out of the bottle, a hint of pink in a golden orange body, lots of fine particles and bubbles, very lively pour and it explodes into foam when it hits my glass, even a gentle pour gives me half a glass of foam, great retention, lots of random lace

S real raspberries, strawberries, lemon grass, dried grass, hay, lots of farmhouse yeast, bubblegum, dry cereals, faint noble hops, about what you'd expect from a raspberry saison, well done

T the fruits a little medicinal in the mouth, almost reminds me of cough syrup but that's not necessarily a bad thing, spice I can't place, some mint perhaps? a little soapy, still heaps of yeast, good but not what I was hoping for after the nose

M light and fluffy, foamy really but to be expected from the style, not quite tart, spice, fruit and cereal linger on the finish

O solid brew and well suited for this warm summer day, good use of fruit without overpowering, I could've scored the nose higher so a little pump up overall, well worth a try

I'm not sure if I could session this without falling over but I took down a 750ml solo in no time, interesting brew, sparked my interest in what else they might come up with