100 Barrel Series #54 - Nordic Saison
Harpoon Brewery & Beer Hall

Hazy , orange color . Big, white, soapy head. Berries , flowers, herbs, and spices in aroma are very hard to describe. Taste is sweet at the beginning and dry at the finish . Light herbal bitterness. In comparison with aroma, taste is rather weak . Good saison.

Review from notes.

Pours a hazy orange/bronze color with a minimal white foam head that falls quickly. Some lacing.

The smell is pretty good. Apple, grassy, herbal (rosemary?), earthy sweetness, bread, light lemon and banana, maybe a touch of clove. No distinct cranberry smell.

The taste opens with earthiness and malt, slightly sweet. Aromatics come in with lemon notes, herbal (still think it is rosemary), apple, a little clove. Then there is a phenolic sting from the cranberry and just a bit of tartness. Overall, the flavor is clean and nicely balanced even though there are a lot of components.

The feel is bright and almost spritzy - considering the lack of head, there's active carbonation to spare. Light, dry, refreshing.

Overall, this was a good beer to experience.

This was poured into a tulip. The appearance was a hazy bronzed orange color with a slim finger’s worth of white foamy to bubbly head that dissipated fairly quickly. Light lacing roamed here and there. The smell started off with some iced apples, sweet lemon, sweet freshly cut grass, herbal sweet earthiness, light breadiness, bananas, and a little bit of clove. The taste was moderately sweet and backed up nicely by the herbal and earthy qualities. The breadiness adds a little bit more with a sweet sprucy touch in the flavor to boot. A lingering dry sweet bready aftertaste leads into a sweet bready finish. On the palate, this one sat about a light to medium on the body with a decent sweet stickiness rolling along my tongue. Carbonation felt refined and light. Its fairly sessionable. Overall, I was a bit surprised by this. I had some lower expectations and it turned out better than I’d thought. I’d have again.

 

"We first met and enjoyed beers with Anders Kissmeyer of Kissmeyer Beer & Brewing on one of our annual beer culture trips to Denmark back in 2005. So when he asked us to join his Saison experiment - brewing the same recipe at select craft breweries - Harpoon's Jaime Schier jumped at the chance. Together with longtime friend Will Meyers of Cambridge Brewing Company, the three fashioned this Saison with a distinctly floral, herbal character, refreshing tartness, and sublimely dry finish." Brewed in the style of a Saison ale, with dried cranberries, rosehips, yarrow, heather flowers, and honey. Available in 22 oz bottles and on limited draft. Entry #54 in the 100 Barrel Series.

Poured from a 22 oz. bottle to a tulip glass.

(Appearance) Pours a sudsy frothed head of an off white note over a moderately hazy honey amber body with abundant and lively carbonation. Retention is average and lacing is light and spotty. 3.75

(Smell) Effervescent and lightly spicy nose with big tropical fruit and banana yeast characters, lightly toasted bread malts, a touch of caramel grain and light honey. The inclusion of adjuncts creates an extended depth of aroma, particularly contributing to the yeast fruit and spice notes. Potency is moderate. 4.25

(Taste) The flavor is very similar in delivery to that of the aroma, with a lightly sweetened bread malt body, some thin honey and caramel contributing a slight bit of body and sweetness. Big yeast notes of tropical fruit, slightly less banana and effervescent spices, somewhat drying finish with reservations on sweetness. Still very tasty with an impressive yeast dynamic. 4

(Mouthfeel) Texture is smooth, lightly chewy, frothy, yeasty, moderately dry. Carbonation is moderate, generating a medium frothiness and a modestly crisp finish. Body is medium for the style, shy of medium overall. Balance is nearly even with a reserved sweetness being just enough to counter for the yeast characteristics. Alcohol presence is mild and there are no off characters. 4.25

(Overall) This is a really solid saison with an incredible amount of yeast subtleties and fruitiness. I'm not certain how well many of the adjuncts come into play (cranberry, rosehips, yarrow, and heather flowers), but quite possibly may have given the fruit and peppery qualities of the yeast profile an extra push in the right direction. My favorite Harpoon release in quite some time. Although even the 100 Barrel Series can be very hit-or-miss, this entry in particular was very enjoyable and comes highly recommended. 4.25

Harpoon Brewery & Beer Hall's
100 Barrel Series Session #54: Nordic Saison
4.12/5.00

 

Beautiful golden beer with amber undertones, fluffy china white head with nice lacing. This is a wonderfully complex brew that dances on the palate on the way down. Starts peppery and citric, and giving way to bright floral notes and a touch of an herbal note. Finishes acidic and dry. Delightful saison, many times brews with so many ingredients can become messy, but this one is delicious!

 

A: Pours from bottle a hazy, yellow color with a frothy white head that lingers.
S: Aroma is herbal, grassy notes with toasted grains and a dry cracker nose. Some spicy/pungent herbs in the background too.
T: At first, a semi sweet honey and bread flavor with more toasty grains and stones wheat cracker flavors. Then the yeast imparts its character and has compliments of heather and pungent herbal spiciness and a tartness that lingers.
M: Crisp carbonation and medium body with a tart dry finish.
O: Wo this beer really impressed me for its flavor and overall grip on the saison style plus creative herbs! Give this a try for sure!

 

Appearance: Pours a hazy honey color capped by an impressive head that turns rocky as it fades; webby lacing hangs around

Smell: Cracker malt, floral, herbal and fruity (cranberry and banana)

Taste: Cracker and honey, up front, with banana, cranberry and floral/herbal tones building; after the swallow, the blend of flavors intensifies and lingers into the finish; the bitterness that is produced by the yarrow is quite unusual and additive

Mouthfeel: Medium body with moderate carbonation

Overall: The more I tasted, the more I liked; this is a terrific Saison that hits a lot of buttons for me

 

 

 

 

 

Cloudy light gold with a thick topper of purest white whipped cream. As it recedes it leaves bas relief designs of extreme lace.

Lemon, rounded tart, citrus zest, a bit of a funky note, and light grain and hay aromas make a delicious, medium strength bouquet.

Nice, starts with tasty lemon/orange and generic citrus zest. This combines with some really tasty flavors thrown by the yeast, especially earthy tart, touch of pepper, and light pineapple funk. There is a degree of sweet in this beer, a merest hint of grain and grass, but it is a dry sip that ends with earth and citrus bitter.

Medium bodied, med. carb.,nice clean flavor profile, excellent finish, very refreshing.

Love this beer, delicious, complex, and refreshing. Highly recommended.

Pours a beautiful hazy golden.
Smells extremely herbaceous. I assume that's the yarrow?
Taste is saison spice, a bit of cranberry, and the bone-dry, herbal finish I often get with unhopped gruits.
Feel is relatively light, super dry.
Solid beer, well short of the HF and Enlightenment iterations.

Had today from the 22oz bomber into a glass. Pours clearer than expected, but typical golden with a small head. Smell is interesting, there's the requisite yeast but also some sweetness, maybe some stone fruit? Taste is on point, a lovely blend of cracker malts, gentle saison yeast spice, and the backend has sweetness and a hint of berry. A little heavier on the body but overall a great beer from Harpoon and a nice "summer" saison.