Crabtree's Apricot Cezanne Saison

If you liked the other releases, you should give this one a shot. It has a bit of Ethyl Butyrate on the nose but nothing Butyric. Fruit is there, oak is fairly bold and the tartness is quite pronounced. In line with their other releases, much more enjoyable than Menage but a step down from the Peach version.

 

I'm with you on Ménage being awesome, amazing beer. Think you can still get the peach saison at Hazel's if you're down that way. Saw a bunch there a month ago, so I'd imagine there's still a few.

 

Would ethyl butyrate be susceptible to being broken down by the yeast since this beer is refermented in the bottle? My past experience with Crabtree C&C bottles is that they are very active in the bottle, so maybe try one now to see if you like it and keep one a few months to see if it's developed into something a little softer. I recommend the Crabtree saison series. Peach blossom was excellent.

 

Ethyl Butyrate typically ​gives off flavors of Canned pineapple, mango, papaya, pineapple, tropical fruits. I don't see these flavors leaving the beer because it's either an indicator of bad sanitation/contamination or a by product of yeast doin their thing. Butyric acid typically will develope into the flavors listed above so I don't see yeast or age breaking these down. I could be completely wrong but only time would tell with specific examples.

Are there any more commercial examples of Belgian beers giving these distinct flavors? And has anyone had an aged example?

 

They were pouring this at the Greeley Oktobrewfest VIP Tasting on Saturday (shameless plug) and I've had it at the taproom a few times. As a Brett beer, I think it's pretty solid. The apricot is subtle but complementary, the oak and Brett work well together to give it a dry, lingering finish. As a Saison, it's missing the characteristic spicy phenolic notes. Not sure what the price point is, but I think it's worth picking up. As far as their wild/sours go, this one is right up there with Frambo, but I still liked Sassy Tart best.

 

I had this at both the Greeley Oktobrewfest this weekend and at their taproom during the last month or so. It's one of their better tap offerings. Highly drinkable and worth trying.

 

Yeah, it was a Solaris blend from last year's batch (the same batch that was eventually used to create the Peachtree, I believe). I'm not sure if the Brett was added at the same time as the fresh batch was added to the aged batch in the barrel, or if it was added with the apricots a few months before packaging.

I agree about price point. Frambo was available for around $7.99 for a 750 mL, which is a pretty incredible deal.

Now that they've switched to only packaging in bigger formats and some cans, I think we'll see the specialty stuff a little more often. I would love to see Sassy Tart packaged.

 

Peach is still on the shelves at parker payless.

 

loved it, the wine barrel really shines in a way it didn't with the peach. this is one of their best beers to date, save the syzygy! worth every penny this one, real fruity, tart, bright, and brilliant. enjoy!

 

Todd, I would consider changing it to the American Wild Ale category. It's got a much stronger Brett character than it does Saison, and Crabtree even entered it into the American Brett category for GABF this year.

Just a thought...

 

That makes sense to me. I guess in tasting it, I would come away with the opposite confusion/expectation if trying it as a Saison. But since it's a beer he's brewed previously as a traditional Saison, I totally see your point. Thanks for the clarification.

 

My wife found their Frambo at a random store this week. Glad these guys are getting some attention.