Fay Fuller
Fair Isle Brewing

 

 

 

Pale grayish yellow with abundant foam in the Timmermans goblet. A pleasant mouthfeel with lush carbonation. Tastes of yeast and bitter greens. The acidic sense is right there from the first sip. Very bitter mineral aftertaste. Bitter and sour sums this up. Possibly this is not as vinegary as a kettle sour, but it has that same ghost of fruit taste to go with the tart pucker. Overall this is dirty and earthy, and not in a nice way. The bitterness tastes more chemical than anything from hops or yeast, but if they say so. This is a "good" example of the sour Saison style that eludes my interest. From the 16 oz can labelled Batch # 22087.

 

A: Pours a slightly hazy golden/yellow color. With a dense two finger white head that forms. Excellent retention and lace left behind.
S: Lemon and citrus rind in the nose. A vaguely light Brett yeasty character. Though not exactly Brett, just enough to give it a nice light funky bite. Light esters and an almost grape/vinous quality.
T: Again, lemon and citrus. Pithy almost. Just enough tartness and light "funk" to give a very nice yeast presents. Along with esters, peppery spice . Grape and light bitterness lingering. Oh, I like this a lot.
M/O: A medium body with great effervescent carbonation. With a wonderful tart and dry finish. Which makes this really easy to come back to and drink. I already want to go and pick some more up.

Yeah this is a really good example of a Saison IMO. Really well done all around. Just enough balance between the fruity notes, hops, yeast, and tartness. I highly recommend this.

that these guys are canning now is so dope! this one is dry hoppy and french yeast tasting, something generic and clean for these guys, but then again if i am being favorable to them, everything is is a little safe, subtle, and tidy. this is well hopped, i get the botanical parts sure, but i also get some weirdly astringent elements, an almost melon rind thing, a subtle new brett thing too. nose and taste blasts off on stone fruit and fantasy, simple but infinite, hoppy and not without some bitterness, but also yeast driven and new school. i taste green grape and pear, white linens and bleached hotel fabric, lemongrass and smelly bead drier sheets, folded fresh laundry. important but not, was this beer just made or has it been long matured? parts of it do both, and thats why this is great, and thats why this brewery continues to intrigue, like how can you hint at new tablecloth and medical gauze at the same time, let alone in a good way? crazy thing is that this is whatever beer for them, and it evokes so much, their best ones are transcendent, they just keep giving. i want everyone i care about to taste this, just as a baseline, a starting point...

edit: its better on tap, decidedly more complex and bretty even, at least fermentation stands out as unique in it, dry and sort of oddly fruity, a different drinking experience, but its definitely a different batch and there could reasonably be some variance here...

Can from Lupulo Santa Ctuz, ca.
Golden slightly opaque yellow. Minimal/moderate head with lacing.
Bretty tart nose.
Taste is lemon/citrus, cracked pepper, tart, little funk. Stonefruit notes. Vanilla notes.
Textbook saison body. Light and dry, slightly tart finish.
Very nice.
What is interesting about this one is is strattles the edge of a “clean” or non-ba saison and a ba saison. There’s some tart and funkiness but it’s very subtle. At the same time the cracked pepper and hay notes are there.
The label does say “feral yeast & bacteria” and they’re definitely in there funking it up. (In a good way).
Easy to drink. Recommended! Especially if it’s available in cans that anyone can buy for a reasonable price. You don’t even have to be in the exclusive Grandma’s knitting club.