Sotel Saison
Barbarian Brewing

sotol saison, super cool, never seen a beer in these barrels before, sort of a tequila or mezcal type agave drink, maybe a little more herbal as it presents in this strong saison, which was barrel aged with brett and agave nectar as well, one of the more unique beers ive had from barbarian, and for an operation who likes to make beer out of cereal and candy and stuff, that really is saying a lot. this is clever, but not amazing in terms of the base saison, points for uniqueness are off the charts, but the saison is off dry, a little tired in terms of mouthfeel, and without much maturity or development from the brett, its almost generically yeasty to me without having as much funk as i was expecting. its pale straw colored, not fully clear in the glass, a little dull, and with a very minimal head on it and lacking carbonation overall. it smells and tastes very different from the barrel treatment, which is the draw of this for me, and that element is way cool, definitely more tequila than mezcal to me, but i am not real familiar with sotol a as a spirit. herbal, lightly spicy but very smooth, woody from the oak, a little rum sweetness, the added agave comes through, and this definitely is weird and cool. i wish the base beer was more lively, drier, and rustic, it seems like grain stew and doesnt really end up being quite the vehicle for these barrels as i thought it would be, although i agree a stronger saison is the right call for this, just dont think they nailed it. thats the thing about barbarian, the inconsistency rages here, and sometimes it seems like they do the hard things well and the easy things poorly, and as much as this is fun, it could be objectively way better beer than it is. props for the super cool barrel treatment though!

Taster at Barbarian Garden City. Cloudy pale golden pour, ring of fine head. Strong agave aroma. Taste balances the agave with notes of lime and the Brett. At first impression it's tequila, but is really more complex than that.