The 750 Saison

Discussion in 'Beer Talk' started by zid, Jun 26, 2016.

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  1. tmbgnicu

    tmbgnicu Maven (1,280) Mar 15, 2014 Pennsylvania
    Trader

    Noticed a lack of HF saisons on the domestic front. None of the "shelf" ones are particularly hard to come by and are some of the best domestic examples of the style. Arthur and Anna are top 20 beers for me and I always need to keep a couple on hand in case the mood strikes...
     
    #21 tmbgnicu, Jun 26, 2016
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  2. TongoRad

    TongoRad Grand Pooh-Bah (3,884) Jun 3, 2004 New Jersey
    Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Not much to add here, except Outstanding Post!

    Off to a great start...
     
    #22 TongoRad, Jun 26, 2016
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  3. lester619

    lester619 Initiate (0) Apr 17, 2009 Wisconsin

    :grinning:
    Just looks like Saturday night to me. That really is a serious amount of beer.
     
    #23 lester619, Jun 26, 2016
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  4. boilermakerbrew

    boilermakerbrew Initiate (0) Aug 13, 2010 Indiana

    Agreed that Saison DuPont is the place to start. That is such a great beer.
     
    #24 boilermakerbrew, Jun 26, 2016
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  5. Jacobier10

    Jacobier10 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,102) Feb 23, 2004 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah

    Great thread, I'll be following along. Saison is such a versatile style, the beer can really go in so many directions. Looking forward to your thoughts on a couple of these in particular: the Pissenlit (which I thought was a totally unique beer and I was a huge fan of) and the Boulevard Saison-Brett (which I just bought a bottle of but have never had). Enjoy!
     
    #25 Jacobier10, Jun 26, 2016
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  6. MileHighShooter

    MileHighShooter Initiate (0) Nov 23, 2010 Colorado

    My favorite style to brew (home and pro) and consume. It is really such a blank canvas of a style.
     
    #26 MileHighShooter, Jun 26, 2016
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  7. MileHighShooter

    MileHighShooter Initiate (0) Nov 23, 2010 Colorado

    Go buy a few more Blvd S/B's, drink one now and then give it a year. VERY different beer, I usually wait at least a year to drink mine. And buy plenty, cause once you've had it aged you'll be mad if you can't have more haha.
     
    #27 MileHighShooter, Jun 26, 2016
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  8. Jacobier10

    Jacobier10 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,102) Feb 23, 2004 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah

    Aw man, I knew I should've bought a second bottle to throw in the cellar when I had the chance! I think I'll drink this one fresh and then buy another one to age if I like it. Based on the reviews I have a feeling I'll be buying more :sunglasses:
     
    #28 Jacobier10, Jun 26, 2016
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  9. Tilley4

    Tilley4 Pooh-Bah (2,811) Nov 13, 2007 Tennessee
    Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Walland Farms has a Blackberry Saison that I will be opening shortly... Looking forward. Should pair nicely with the kick off of Shark Week!
     
    #29 Tilley4, Jun 27, 2016
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  10. Scott17Taylor

    Scott17Taylor Initiate (0) Oct 28, 2013 Iowa
    Trader

    If you trade try to get something from funkwerks
     
    #30 Scott17Taylor, Jun 27, 2016
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  11. Urk1127

    Urk1127 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,790) Jul 2, 2014 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    I loved your barleywine thread. I love this idea.....i love.......you.

    im stoked to see this thread develope. One of my all time favorite styles. I wish i had thought of it. Love the historical relevance you mentioned on the cork style bottles. And im sure if they are less than a year old a high abv would keep it interesting enough. I always thought saisons if bottle conditioned held up well.

    Can't wait to hear opinions on the Schlafly beir de garde. Love the "style" i use that as a broad term for you can do a lot with a beer as noted also about IPAs. Been eying one in my store for a while.
     
    #31 Urk1127, Jun 27, 2016
    Last edited: Jun 27, 2016
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  12. Pantalones

    Pantalones Initiate (0) Nov 14, 2014 Virginia

    Think I'll be following this thread -- somehow I've never really gotten around to trying saisons, even though a lot of the descriptions of them I've read make them sound like something I'd really like and I've found myself looking at them in the beer store many times (but for some odd reason never going ahead and buying one.)
     
    #32 Pantalones, Jun 27, 2016
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  13. zid

    zid Grand Pooh-Bah (3,132) Feb 15, 2010 New York
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    I will always try to open new-to-me saisons on Sundays to coincide with New Beer Sunday (but I doubt I will get to open up anything next Sunday - oh well). Earlier today I had Kent Falls Equinox Saison on draught. My brief reaction can be found here.

    The 750 I opened was this guy:

    [​IMG]

    Fantome Hiver

    Fantome seems to be the poster child European brewery to support the idea that a saison is a flexible category. There are people who feel really strongly about the highs and the lows of this brewery. I've had about a half dozen different Fantome beers and they've ranged from interesting to wow. I've never had Hiver before. Hiver translates to winter, and it is one of the Fantome "season saisons" (a redundant pairing of words, but you get my drift). Supposedly, the recipe for this beer changes every year.

    This is one of the beers that I felt could be an aged disaster. In typical Shelton fashion, there is a place on the label where a date could be notched out (Sam Adams style), but there is no notch to be found. The date is a "best before" and the range of possible dates on the label is from 2007-2012. Either this beer has an old label on it and it didn't matter to the producers because it wasn't going to be notched anyway, or the the beer is very old. The latter seems more likely.

    The beer is a burnt sienna color. (thanks for the reference Bob Ross) Some carbonation is present when you pour it, but totally gone seconds later. The first thing you notice in the taste is the typical (but I think unintended) Fantome smoke. There is some oxidation but surprisingly it's not very pronounced. The beer isn't very dry. It tastes like apple juice with strong earthy hops (but the bitterness isn't as smooth and as pleasurable as Dupont's). The beer is actually more pleasant than the description suggests, but any pleasantness is of an odd sort. The beer is a "spiced saison" but I can't detect any spices.

    Given the brewer's reputation for inconsistency, and the crap shoot of the bottle age, things here could have turned out far worse. As it is, I'm left with an odd beer that tastes damaged but I'm still inexplicably going back for refills.
     
    #33 zid, Jun 27, 2016
    Last edited: Jun 27, 2016
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  14. edward_boumil

    edward_boumil Initiate (0) Jun 28, 2015 New York

    Awesome thread man! Saison duPont is a great beer, one of my all-time favorites. Had the opportunity to by some Fantome at Hill Farmstead last weekend but passed it up for some house saisons (when in Rome). Got Florence and Leaves of Grass, and Dorothy (if you count it). If presented the opportunity I recommend to anybody to try and get Leaves of Grass, it is so complex and almost wine like in character. So phenomenal.

    But I can't express how happy I am this style has survived. Such a versatile style with amazing characteristics.
     
    #34 edward_boumil, Jun 27, 2016
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  15. Urk1127

    Urk1127 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,790) Jul 2, 2014 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    I completely agree. any style that has history behind it, that can cross an ocean and still keep going is amazing. Saison is physical proof of beer bringing people and cultures together. Because without those things, it would be long forgotten, and im happy such a thing exists in my lifetime.
     
    #35 Urk1127, Jun 27, 2016
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  16. utopiajane

    utopiajane Grand Pooh-Bah (3,982) Jun 11, 2013 New York
    Pooh-Bah

    Hi all! Checking in for this thread. My first purchases are a 2015 GI Sofie. I loved Sofie when I first had it and not so much after it became popular. Many told me it was because I must have had an old one that had developed some funky character. I told the fellow at the beer store today I am buying this one old and I want to tell you why. :grinning:

    I have one classic Saison Dupont which I intend to drink again before this thread is over and I want to start with it if you don't mind a whole host of posts on this one classic beer.

    Now because this one is a new beer to me I want to do this one for NBS. It's also a combination of styles a farmhouse wheat beer form Jolly Pumpkin.

    Finally a saison in CANS from Avery.

    Chillin'

    [​IMG] [​IMG]
     
    #36 utopiajane, Jun 27, 2016
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  17. Urk1127

    Urk1127 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,790) Jul 2, 2014 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    Perzik Saison is very good but the colder it is, the less peach there is, but as it warms it is very peachy and one spicy saison
     
    #37 Urk1127, Jun 27, 2016
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  18. zid

    zid Grand Pooh-Bah (3,132) Feb 15, 2010 New York
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    I hope so, but I know it won't be the case. I am counting on a lot of leeway here, but I've had some old saisons in the past that were clearly no longer fit for happy drinking.
    Yeah, it's clearly not just a case of imports even though I made it sound like that. That's my last Jack D'Or (sniff), but I've also said the same thing twice before and I keep going going back. I'm not worried about that one. I love that beer and I had to give it some love here. Mystic... I'm not at all confident about the bottle of their plain ol' "saison" - do they even make that beer anymore? You probably have better options for them in MA but around here their stuff just sits. It's a pity.
     
    #38 zid, Jun 27, 2016
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  19. zid

    zid Grand Pooh-Bah (3,132) Feb 15, 2010 New York
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    I think there are a few reasons why some American brewers gravitate towards them, and flexibility is one of those reasons. There some who believe that this approach isn't doing the category any favors.
     
    #39 zid, Jun 27, 2016
  20. zid

    zid Grand Pooh-Bah (3,132) Feb 15, 2010 New York
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Those bottles are much more common around here. I've only seen bottles with a label like the one I opened in my post twice. In both cases, the label featured clear layman dating rather than a code, and both bottles were from the end of last year (Oct and Nov).
     
    #40 zid, Jun 27, 2016
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