Berry Curl
Atwood Farm Brewery

Bottle dated 082817

Received this bottle from @beertunes in the roadrunner vs. coyote BIF. This thing “POP”s open with barely a touch from my bottle opener. Huge foam on the pour. The color is a beautiful, rosy orange that has the clarity of dirty dishwater. The dirty dishwater reminds me of a funny convo from the other day. Anyhoo... Nose is hay, sourdough, lemon pith, and mild berry. Taste is slightly funky, but more mild than I was expecting. The blackberry is very feint. Much of an afterthought here. Finish is very clean. Overall a pretty nice brew.

Lovely tawny amber with that tint of pink. A nice pile of suds in the tall Timmermans goblet. Mouthfeel is light, even watery, but in a refreshing way. Swirls of sediment after a couple of pours, but not that cloudy. It doesn't taste yeasty. In fact, it's quite clean-tasting and one of the most delicious yet understated Saisons I've had. It's just that berry flavor with some warm malt.

Overall, a splendid fruit-flavored Saison that goes down all too easy. From the 750 ml bottle purchased at Elizabeth Station. Bottled date (sticker on cap) August 28; it was a good year for feral blackberries. One of the Northwest's most notorious pests has at least one good use.

Poured into a Fremont small snifter. Pours a hazy orange amber with a fine, two finger white head with great retention and thick lacing. Both a little fizzing out of the bottle on opening and a delightful whiff of fresh blackberry. Aroma grainy saison malt with a mild tartness, saison yeast, blackberry and a light mineral component. Flavor is grainy malt, blackberry juice with a very mild tartness, saison yeast and a hint of funk, finishes with nice lingering fresh blackberry juice. Medium bodied with sharp peppery carbonation, bordering on overcarbonated. I tried this with a little trepidation because I'm not fond of tart saisons, but this one delivered what it promises with a very pleasant balance. The blackberry flavor is really authentic and fresh, with the same mild sweetness and just a hint of tartness that a handful of berries would have. The balance of juice to saison yeast is excellent. I'm always doubly happy to open a saison and find it fitting the grain malt style I like, and especially so with this fruit based one. Atwood is doing a great job on artisanal ales based on local ingredients and putting together enjoyable, somewhat off-beat ales like this one. Well done.

750 poured into 12oz bearded iris tulip. Pours a golden amber color, with a couple inches of white, almost champagne type, head, that dissipated at a crisp pace, and left minor lacing.

The blackberry was a bit sublter on the nose than I would have preferred (I love blackberries, so.....), but was complemented nicely by the base grain and sharp yeast. Pretty similar on the tongue, with the berry aspect having a bit more presence. There was a tangy aspect that really helped off-set the berry sweetness.

The body was light, crisp, and semi-sweet. Drinkability was great, my bottle was gone too quick, and makes me think I need a couple more. Overall, a must buy if you see it.