Expensive Saisons....

Pepe Nero is cheap.

I think no beer is worth more than $7.00 a serving.

 

You're welcome. Goose Island really sticks it to you for buying the less convenient and less versatile format.
Pepe Nero and Sofie are pretty affordable and very good, IMO.

Cheers

 

What do you consider a serving?

 

12 ounces, for me

 

You miss out on some awesome beers if your cut off is $7. Granted there are plenty that fit your criteria but alot of world class stouts, sours, and barley wines are over.

 

HF saisons are $10.

 

Not usually. Fantome is great. I could pass on Florence and Anna.

 

Personally, I'd take a pass on those pricier Saisons and stick with things like Hennepin, Sofie and Tank 7. (Which also come in single portion bottles.) They provide a nice range of flavors within the style and I haven't really found any out there that I'd prefer for regular drinking so trying the pricier stuff doesn't attract me when there are still so many other beers out there in other styles I've not tried.

I'd also take a pass on the Belgian imports (e.g., the Dupont Saisons) since for me their higher prices don't provide any extra value that I can't get from Hennepin, Sofie and Tank 7.

 

Hennepin is hard to beat. As is Tank 7. Regardless of price. Hennepin is always in my fridge. It is one of my favorite beers.

 

You've obviously never had Avec Les Bons Voeux

The saisons that are being mentioned VS. the saisons with the high price tag OP is talking about are on two different levels. You can't compare Pepe Nero, Tank 7 and Hennepin to Saison Rue, Lectio Divina and Prairie 'Merica (which is a perfect example of when intensity and quality of flavor and aroma trumps whatever the price may be). The latter three have a lot of wild yeast character to them while the former three have little to none. That's what you're paying for when you see a sour/wild saison sitting on the shelf for $15 a pop. Beers with wild yeast require much more care than a "normal" beer and, arguably, are of a higher quality. If you're content with drinking the "normal" saisons and don't feel like delving into the funky and sour ones, that's fine. There's just an extra dimension that the more wild ones have that you won't experience unless you pony up the dough.

 

Thankfully I'm not charmed by barrel-ages stouts, and I probably drink 2 barleywines a year. I know I'm missing out on a gazillion sour style beers, but I am truly content living within the constraints of what I think beer should cost. I also rest easy knowing that I am rarely duped, deceived or disappointed.

 

You're sounding, whether or not you mean to, as though "normal" saisons are less authentic. Wild yeast does not always equate to sophistication. Sometimes it does, but there is a great deal of swindle and swine occurring in the market through the use of wild yeasts and spirit barrels.

 

A number of my preferred commercially brewed Saison beers have already been mentioned in this thread.

Another favorite of mine are Saisons from Stillwater. I am a BIG fan of Stateside Saison and I enjoy drinking Cellar Door from time to time.

Cheers!

 

Most Saison/Farmhouse Ales are overpriced.

 

I enjoy drinking some of the ‘Wild’ Saisons from time to time; I appreciate some of the flavors that Brett produces but I am often not a fan of the lactic acid flavors from bacteria.

Your statement of “arguably, are of a higher quality” is needless to say subjective. What I perceive to be of higher quality may not be consistent with your palate and vice versa.

Cheers!

 

You deserve a gold star for that astute observation.

Cheers to you!!