Rippling Waters
Central Waters Brewing Co.

gorgeous and creative beer here, such an epic lineup at their milwaukee brewery! this is a light saison, listed there at 4.8% abv, done with black tea, lemon, and orange blossom honey, still saison first, but these extras do a lot in here too. sunny yellow brew with a light haze and a frothing two inches of peaky white head, excited and active but also delicate, looks the part. the nose is wheaty and fresh, summery with the obvious citrus and blossoming character, and made interesting by the herbal back tea which has some earthy bitterness and high summer refreshment character. the honey doesnt seem to make this sweet but its definitely floral, lemon adds a little acidity with the estery yeast, quite compatible, nuances of lemongrass, green pear, and a handful of green grapes from the fridge. the flavor is really nice too, the tea is obvious the whole way but never dominant, the lemon gives some light tang to help it stay dry, and i like the pale wheat base having so much flavor and obvious freshness in here too, a part of the saison style not to be overlooked. the yeast dries this out, is clean but not generic, and seems more than just a basic french strain, slightly rustic, even monastic to me, run cooler and less forward than in many saison types, great with the citrus and floral character from the honey. black tea bitterness at the end, love the tea part of this, clean and refreshing, fluffy feeling from the wheat, really brightly carbonated, and drinkable as they come for being so complex and layered. wonderful summer beer, way outside the norm and just supremely well executed. i could drink this all summer long! these guys do so many things at an elite level...