Loral Saison
Whistle Punk Brewing Company

a neat saison here from these guys, showcasing the loral hop in a context i havent really experienced it in before, which is a clean saison. the beer is vinous and estery from the yeast, french type saison, but its mellow enough and under control enough that the loral hops really come through, i suspect they are primarily used in dry hopping here, as bitterness is appropriate for the style and the hops are so vibrant in the aroma here, incredibly compatible with the yeast that still drives this one as it should in a saison. i generally dont love clean saison like this, i want more rustic yeast character, more earthy raw grain, more funk in the fermentation profile, but i liked this because its about the hop, thats the interesting element here, and the beer is dry enough that it really pops in the finish. loral has neat herbal, tea-like, and soft lemongrass notes in here, nicely dosed to be distinct but not too much, and it almost reminds me of like a french aramis or a hallertau blanc or something in this type of beer, delicate and beautiful. the fundamentals are all there too, this is lively on the carbonation, very dry, and light to drink. not overly generic on the yeast either, even though its very tidy. as the clean saison types go, this is a winner.