Grand Arbor
Southern Tier Brewing Company

 

 

 

3/4/2017 - Beer, Bourbon & BBQ - Atlanta

 

 

 

I'm a fan of funky, farmy saisons, but this one was a bit too funky for me. It was OK but nothing I'd necessarily drink again. It was supposed to have been brewed with maple syrup, but the maple flavor was quite faint.

 

 

 

From a bomber bottle.
Pours with a large foamy white head over a light copper body.
A bit dank and earthy, with moderate bitterness.
Overall: Disappointing, but then not a favorite style.

 

Poured from a bomber into a tulip glass.

L: Pours a clear light golden amber color. 2-3 fingers of thick creamy white head. Mild lacing.

S: Belgian yeasts... bananas and bread mixed with lemon zest.

T/F: Taste follows smell. Bready and yeasty with notes of banana and citrus. Honey and maple syrup sweetness up front with some thyme and spice. Zesty mouthfeel... well carbonated and spicy which lingers a bit on the aftertaste.

O: A very pleasing saison from Southern Tier. Better than I'd expected and definitely one I'd enjoy having again.

 

"Flemish brewers add sugar as an adjunct during fermentation. We add "American sugar" in the form of real maple syrup made by our neighbors at Big Tree Maple, a farm literally across the road from us. Cheers to collaboration and bit old trees." Brewed in the style of a Farmhouse Ale with Maple Syrup, available in 750ml. bottles and on limited draft.

Poured from a 750ml. bottle to a tulip glass.

(Appearance) Pours a frothy foam head of a pale beige cream tone over a moderately hazy amber body with abundant carbonation with light sediment. Retention is good and lacing is light. 3.75

(Smell) Fermented syrup with a biscuit malt presence and a light spicy and fruity yeast profile. Potency is moderate. The aroma of maple syrup certainly is not difficult to notice in this beer. 3.5

(Taste) Biscuit and caramel malt with a distinct syrupy undertone, finishing quite dry with a slight yeast presence of peppery spice and light fruit. At its current spot, it drinks closer to a Tripel for the feel of a much heavier, and somewhat grainy body. 3.5

(Mouthfeel) Texture is slick, lightly chewy, moderately syrupy, peppery and medium dry. Carbonation is full, generating a moderate frothiness and a briskly crisp finish. Body is medium/heavy for the style and medium+ overall. Balance is slightly peppery spicy and grainy over sweet. Alcohol presence is moderate and there are no off characters. 3.75

(Overall) The inclusion of Maple Syrup does change the overall composition of this beer tremendously, generating
a thicker body, slightly more exposed graininess and a higher perceived alcohol presence than usually expected in a Farmhouse ale. Notably, I find the saison yeast used insufficient to produce much of a counter flavor to challenge or balance out the enhanced malt body with its added malt backbone. I'm not too big a fan of this but don't consider it all that awful, it doesn't come off as much of a saison, but as a hybrid beer style, it's passable. 3.5

Southern Tier Brewing Company's
Grand Arbor Bottle Conditioned Ale
3.54/5.00

 

 

 

 

 

Look: It pours pale orange with a full white head. There is plenty of lacing as the head recedes.

Aroma: It has high fruit aromas of citrus and orange. There are also low aromas of caramel, earth, cheese, and spices.

Taste: It has high fruit flavors with orange and citrus leading the way. There are earthly elements, cheese, and a bit of a malty caramel like backbone.

Feel: It has a high moderate feel to it. It has a dry, bitter finish.

 

This beer definitely has about 2 years age on it, but it's been stored properly so we will see how it developed.

Look is a hazy orange with a thin half inch head.

Funky saison aroma with a heavy molasses malt smell.

Definitely more of a malt bomb. Light herbal flower from either the yeast or the hops. But then a lot of toffee malt and a slight maple sweetness.

Saison to the core - promises of maple syrup were a little unkept but many lesser beers would have overdone it. Slightly bitter for my taste, but it is a saison.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A nice barely cloudy rich good color with a tall white head after an aggressive pour. Smells like hay, yeast, and grass with some booze and a very minor whiff of maple. The taste follows suit but adds some citrus and clove. Not a bad Belgian but the one I had could have used a bit more maple.

Capped 750ml bottle poured into a chalice.

A: Golden in color with good clarity. Fine-bubbled and foamy white head retains at a solid two fingers. Clumpy webs of lacing cling everywhere.

S: Sweet, toasty, and bready malts. Walnuts. Yeast is musty and a bit chalky. Mildly tart/vinous white grape aroma. Perhaps some floral hops. Touch of clove.

T: Sweet and toasty malts. Walnut. Grain. Herbal hops. Good dose of musty yeast. Sugary. Hint of vinous white grapes, Apple skin, and pithy lemon. Clove. Stiff alcohol. Drying musty yeast finish.

M: Sturdy medium-thick body. Rounded and creamy with a sense of heft and weight. Somewhat chewy. Lots of acute, scrubbing carbonation forgives its size and lifts the body right off of the palate.

O: Not a bad beer, though it seems bigger in all respects than it has to be. The 8% abv is felt and its big-boned nature sacrifices drinkability to some extent. I want to quaff a saison, not sip it. The use of the maple syrup imparts little flavor; it's mainly there for the added fermentables.

If you like Southern Tier, then you know what you're getting into when you see that they've put maple syrup in a saison. These folks have a sweet tooth, and the only cure is more cowbell.

This is a pretty enjoyable saison for people who prefer barleywines. It hits the style, with plenty of straw, citrus, and pine notes, but there's also an underlying sweetness from the maple syrup that brings vanilla and turbinado sugar into the mix. That said, it's still somewhat dry, with a moderately short finish that asks politely for you to please take another sip. Nicely done!