Saison Elysee
Elysian Brewing Company

 

 

 

On tap at Elysian Fields, listed as 5% ABV, with pan roasted ground cumin.

Appearance is hazed orange with a white head leaving decent lace. Always down for a darker saison.

Smell is strong spicy, the cumin gives it a funkiness that isn't unlike BO. But there's a pleasant depth to it that I really enjoy. And it's super unique. Win-win.

Taste is interesting...not saying I love the cumin, and I generally hate any beer where I can pick up the specific spices, but they definitely pulled it off here. Saison meets smoked meat. Like the nose, I bump it up a ½ point for pulling off the creativity, in that it's good, not just unique.

Mouthfeel is creamy, medium bodied.

Drinkability is pretty high if you're down for the roasted cumin taste. Huge flavor without being to strong or heavy, definite saison characteristics in the yeast on the dry finish. Very cool take on the style, I give them bonus points for creativity.

On tap at Elysian Fields today.

The beer pours a honey gold color with very good head retention and lacing. On the nose I get some light honey, light ginger ale, and spice (maybe some white pepper). The beer smells pretty good, and comes across as fairly light. Flavors on the palate replicate the nose, with some nice hoppy bitterness in the finish. The bitterness helps to counter the fairly light, moderate (at most) sweetness. Mouthfeel is very light, crisp and refreshing, with the alcohol no more then an after thought.

This is really a nice take on the style, and with the relatively low alcohol (my menu indicated a 5% abv., as opposed to the 6.72% listed on this site), this is a great beer to drink during the warm summer months. Very nice.

Appearance: cloudy dark orange in color with a short 1/2" head. Spots of lace stick to the glass during the session.

Smell: yeast and wheat tones rise easily from the glass and into the nose.

Taste: strong wheat and yeast flavors are way upfront, while some fruity sweetness and some sugar are softer. Bitterness is mild.

Mouthfeel: lightly crisp at the start, with some dryness towards the finish. Medium bodied.

Drinkability: so-so at best. This was not a well balanced saison so it was a bit tough to finish.

I purchased a growler and poured the first glass which as you can imagine, was upright, resulting in a fury of bubbles that for a second or two appeared as though they would never subside but then things cleared up and i was left with a good 3in head.

nice lacing throughout the drink.

Note: I had a pint of this a few months ago and it blew me away, it was very wild and the pepper was dominant. I really enjoyed it.

this batch was more mild, more balanced, perhaps too balanced...

all in all, i nice brew but i'd like some more consistency.

22oz bottle, purchased at the brewery April 2007; Sampled July 2007
What an incredibly intriguing pour; this beer is the most viscous beer I have ever seen. It is well carbonated, yet the bubbles actually have to struggle to get out of the beer. The beer is a brilliantly clear, reddish-tinged, copper color and it is topped by an initially three finger thick, light tan colored head. The aroma has a lightly sweet, fruity note to it that is reminiscent of plums, apples & most notably pears. Sweet malt aromatics accentuate the fruit notes as well as producing notes of caramelized malt and brown sugar. The finish has a nice malt character to it; sort of mix of biscuit-type malts and toasty grain aromas. Underneath the above, more noticeable notes are some lightly herbal notes, which are joined by some spice aromatics of cloves, ginger, and a light grassiness.

Now for the first sip; for a beer that appears so viscous it is amazingly light; that is not to say that this beer does not have a huge body for what should be a dry, light beer style. The sweetness, while apparent, is not nearly as pronounced as the body might suggest. Actually you can sense the viscous character that is so apparent visually; it almost has a lightly congealed texture to (something like soupy Jell-O perhaps); this character is fairly subtle though. I almost wonder if this beer has picked up some ropiness, though it is surprisingly clean tasting if such a phenomenon is present here. The flavor is fairly spicy, with notes of ginger, clove, lemon zest up front and orange zest more towards the finish. A grassy herbal character sort of competes with the malt sweetness & body of this brew, but still is definitely a presence.

This beer is quite interesting, it of course should be much drier, but I am really surprised how viscous this beer looks & even feels at times, yet it still remains fairly light. The last bottle I had of this had clearly gotten funky with perhaps some light Brett notes & it was much drier & quite over carbonated compared to this bottle. This bottle here seems to be a straight forward, albeit funky, Saison yeast strain except for that strange, almost ropy texture. As a traditional Saison, this beer clearly misses the mark as it is not nearly dry enough, but somehow I can't quite help find this beer quite interesting and even flavorful enough to be quite enjoyable; plus given the two, quite different bottles I have had of this, the brewer (intentionally or not) has certainly captured the variability of a farmhouse brewed beer.

A: Pours a cloudy orange/yellow color, huge foamy head. Good lace down the glass
S: Sour apple, yeasty scent
T: Sour fruit taste, apple vinegar, very sour.
M: Bubbly champagne like mouthfeel, way too much carbonation.
D: Not sure if this is how this beer normally is but was unlike any saison I've ever had before, very difficult to drink, most ended up down the drain.

The 05 vintage from a bomber pours a hazy orange, the opaqueness of which is exacerbated by the yeast. There is a moderate head that laces well even though it dissipates quickly. The aroma is overly sour and tart, with hints of vinegar overpowering the beer's fruitiness. When it's all said and done, this is this beer's biggest flaw.

Though the tartness/sourness carries through into the flavor (perhaps too strongly), this beer grew on me a lot. It has a nice pepperiness and lemony flavor, matched by a nice dry finish. The tartness actually makes this beer more refreshing than it would be otherwise. There's virtually no hop presence, though this is fine given the beer's other bittering/souring flavors.

Had I only had a sample of this, my review would have been fairly negative, but like I mentioned before, the complex interplay of the sour and fruit flavors grew on me over the course of two pints. It's not the best
saison I've had, but it is certainly worth a look.

2004 Bottle.
Very cloudy golden body. Small head that barely caps the surface. The nose is very pleasant, bringing to mind tangerines. Taste is full of fruit ... tangerines, passion fruit, mango, red grapefruit, and orange. Finish is a tad bitter with a very dry sourness. I wish there was a bit of spiciness to this. I like this well enough but with a 22 oz bottle the taste can be a bit much. I will try again as I'm curious to see what a fresh bottle tastes like.

Appears a hazy amber with a dense, light tan head that slowly fades out into a mild film and soapy collar. Plenty of chunky lacing is left around the glass. Plenty of yeast is settled on the bottem of the bottle.
Smell is of mild funky and hints of open fermentation sourness(altough I doubt it was openly fermented). There are also aromas of flowers, fruity nectarines, and honey.
Taste is of the same aromas with a crisp, tart green apple flavor that stands out. Everything seems in check as far as a saison is concerned. Lacks the complexity and vanilla, gummy, spiced up esters found in the likes of Dupont, and Dupont Avec Les Bons Voeux but overall not bad.
Mouthfeel starts off with a sweet, fruityness that fades out into a mild sour tartness. Medium bodied and enjoyable. Not a bad pickup for $6/22 oz'er at Michael's Deli in KOP.

Pours a clean amber with a nice off-white head and plenty of sediment stuck to the bottom. nose is herbal, reminds me of honey tea and quite delightful. Taste is definitely less yeasty then many belgian examples and has a strong citrus side to it. Very easy drinking for the style, I imagine it would make a pretty nice introduction to the style. Overall I like this beer, although it is a bit toned down for the style, which is probably smart as many of their prospective customers may be turned off by the "wildness" of a more classical Saison.

Picked up a bottle of this and a Heavyweight for $20 takeout which is pretty reasonable considering PA laws and all.

Elysian palys along with the "farmhouse" motif with a rooster in the windowpane label. Ptior to opening there is a visable scrod layer at the bottom of the bottle.

Uncapping the plain golden cap gives up a "shhst!" and then the pour: a solid golden amber hue, loaded with rising bubbles army to a solid dense beige 1/4" head cap [2nd pour bigger head] for starters, leaving a solid painted lace in the glass.

Initial scents are finding my nose from across the table. Some musty hay and light funk bring out an initial saison signature. Light hard candy malts met up. So far, so good. Solid.

First swigs: Dry clean hay and Earthy glimpses. Some plain bread dough imparted from the yeast. My best guess is that this is not Saison Dupont yeast, but close. Sweetness creeps out via a touch of honey and some sweet Chex breakfast cereal. Overall, quite nice. Somehow a delicate apple fruit and honey creep out. Some subtle warmth really opens up the palate to a fruity carmel apple honey here. Nearly cider-esque.

Feel is firm with a gentle rolling frothy carbonation over a medium body. A bit more apple fruit juice than the standard style.

Last swigs: Honey and dry with a table sugar sweetness. Four flush! Edible, not forgetable and not regretable. As far as my personal preference, a little lighter body and brisker musty flavor makes the proper style.

Beer is good. Happy American saison beering.

Had a pint of this on-tap at The Elk in Spokane for $4 on New Year's Eve. Was hoping they'd still have Jolly Roger, but this helped assuage my disappointment.

Came to me copper colored with a moderate white head. Moderate lace left behind.

The smell was of "light" fruit (apples, pears, etc) and peppery spices. Seemed to be pretty evenly balanced between the two.

The taste was similar to the smell, though there was also a slightly funky earthy taste to the proceedings. The sweet light fruit tastes competed with the peppery spicy characteristics, and the winner was...me.

This was dry yet refreshing in the mouth. The only other saison I've had was Hennepin, and I think it held u[p to the comparison (though I need to find some Hennepin to compare it to - anyone want to send me some?)

This was a very tasty beer. Some Elysian offerings have seemed somewhat bland to me, but I'd happily quaff this any time.

Smells malty mostly but a good dose of farmhouse funk. (Slightly acidic, slightly phenolic, slightly earthy.)

Orange and very cloudy with a big white head that leaves lots of lacing.

Great interplay of flavors from sweet malt to acidity and lots of spiciness. Pretty subdued hop bitterness. Also has a really nice earty/woody character as it warms up.

Full bodied with high carbonation.

Very nice beer. There's a ton of complexity so each sip seems a little different. Thirst quenching at the same time being a pretty substantial body. Very nice job.

Got a bottle of this from my buddy Glenn. Thanks Glenn.

Very light golden color - even lighter than your typical Saison.

An aroma of sour spiciness. A little start, a little phenolic. Orange peel and fruit. Very distinct.

Dry and sharp taste slicing the tongue. A bit of cumin in the finish.

A refreshing and drinkable brew.

I enjoyed this, recently on tap at Redbones. Pour was dark apricot in color, with a small head that ended up leaving delicate lacing throughout my glass. The aroma was rich in fruit: pears, apple, etc, plus there was a honeylike note as well. Taste was big on apples, no real hop taste detected. Nice and refreshing, even at that abv.

Had this on tap at Redbones before the NW Brew Dinner. This is the first time that I have had this style on tap. I have to say that I was very impressed. Poured a hazy yellow color with a nice 1/4 inch head. Well balanced and very refreshing. Spicy floral finish that begs for you to have another. If you have the chance, try this!

On tap @ Rebones.

Mildly hazy weathered golden hue, tight white lace leaves a little on the glass.

Smells peppery and herbal like with a fruity malty backside to boot.

Sweet honey like maltiness is slapped with a peppery phenolic character to quite it down. This is a back and forth thing between the malt and phenolics, alcoholic esters as they try and keep and loud balance of flavours. Moderate body with a slight crispness, light twang of tartness and faint hops within.

Par to style and certainly the treat to find on tap. Not as wild as some more traditional farm house ales but definitely has the fresh twist of one.