REVIEW: #61 Jolly Roger (Rye Saison)

It is getting warm outside, the sun stays up longer, the days are brighter, and my skin is tanner.  My yard has never looked better after all the work we've done on it in the past few weeks (now to keep it alive with all these warm and dry days).  It is the perfect time of year to grab a cold glass of Saison and a rake.  Designed for field workers to refresh them and keep them hydrated during the Summer heat, a Saison should be light, dry, crisp, bitter, refreshing, and hoppy.  Of course all of this is a showcase for so much yeast character.  For this Saison I used a combination of yeast I stole from a bottle of Allagash's Confluence.  They use their proprietary house Belgian yeast from their Wit, and a proprietary house Brett strain that they isolated from their coolship.  After stepping up this yeast blend I added it to my Rye Saison wort and the outcome is very pleasing.  1.004 FG, 4.7% ABV, 24 IBUs, and so much flavor.

Aroma:  10/12

Calypso dominates the nose with pear, apple, and an odd herbal note.  Still not a fan of Calypso, even though I dry hopped with Amarillo alone, it still dominates.  Past this is tangerines, flowers, geraniums, spicy phenols (can't put my finger on what though), light Brett funk, esters, plum skin, mild tropical note.

Look:  2/3

Pours a stunningly clear pure gold with a big thick moussy white head.  Fades slow to a thin ring.  Lacing a little sparse, needs better cling, could be the glass.

Flavor:  13/20

Spicy phenols hit the palette first, pepper and a touch of clove.  This is followed by pear and citrus rind, herbs, and a floral note.  Biting rye and a touch of bready malt in the background.  Light funk.  After taste is clean and bitter, with lingering rye.  It's all there, just needs a little more punch to it.

Mouthfeel:  4/5

Light refreshing body gives way to a dry and bitter finish.  Carbonation is bubbly on the tongue.  Not thin for such a small beer and low final gravity.

Overall:  6/10

The Calypso dominates in this beer like the 3 others I have done before, thought it might work well in this beer, but I have to say, I am still not a fan.  Beyond that, the nose is a complex blend of fruity hops, spicy yeast and Brett funk, flavor is there, but needs a boost.  Super easy drinking and quite refreshing.  Needs a touch more bitterness and funk, but it is still quite young and I rushed it into the keg for consumption.  Need to work on the lacing.

35/50

REVIEW: Hazy Dayz (Session White IPA)

White IPA, blending a Witbier with its coriander and orange peel, tart, fruity, refreshing, with a bold, hoppy IPA.  When it is made right it is a thing of beauty.  The key is to use the hops to accentuate the fruit already present in the Wit.  Citrusy hops work well.  For mine I used Cascade for grapefruit, and Meridian for Meyer Lemon.  The hops didn't really pop like I had hoped for, but it does make for a great Witbier.  Too bad it is Fall now and light, refreshing, citrusy, low ABV, just isn't cutting it on these dark, cold, wet nights.

Look: Pours a super hazy golden rod.  Looks like a milkshake with a massive, thick, billowing pure white head.  Head retains forever, drops to a thick cap, and leaves tons of lace all the way down.

Aroma: Smells of citrus fruits, orange zest, lemons, grapefruits, spicy, pepper, coriander, floral hops.  Lots of fruit, citrus, in the the nose.  It explodes.  Can't really tell where the hops are in the mix.

Flavor: Tastes like bread, doughy, lots of citrus again, mainly orange, light sweetness, spicy, white pepper, floral hop notes.

Mouthfeel: Light and crisp on the tongue, spritzy carbonation, light tartness.  Finish has an apparent, but soft bitterness that persists, very nice and balancing toward ISA.

Overall:  Solid Witbier, White ISA, not so much.  The hops dropped off quick, even after dry hopping the citrus and spice was prominent.  Hop flavor is low and the aroma is hard to get through all the fruit and spice.  The PC Fantome strain did really well in this beer.  Nice doughy malt, floral, subtle spiciness from the yeast, fruity.  May have to do this one again next year for a summer wit.

Review: BANGARANG The Twins - Saison

As the heat starts to really set in for the summer, it is always good to have a Saison ready to drink.  As I like to do with my Saisons, this one is bottled with Brett.  I have become a big fan of the Dupont strain and Brett at bottling.  The last time I used this combo I took 2nd place in a BJCP comp 7 months after bottling.  We'll see what happens with this one after another 8 months in the same comp (at 1 year old).  It's twin brother fared well in its category in a recent comp, so this one shouldn't do too bad.  The Twins have the same flaw, not enough bitterness, and a low hop profile, but overall, both drink nicely in the heat, very refreshing.  If you blend the two together, it makes for a lovely beer, akin to a Biere de Garde, earhty, musty, malty, light fruitiness, crisp.

Look: Pours a hazy orange-gold with big white head that fades a little fast to a whisky cap that lasts.  Bubbles flutter up throughout, bits of pellicle float on top.

Smell: smells like tons of over ripe fruits, can't pinpoint, tropical, and bright stone fruits.  Basement funk follows, hints of tea, spices, noble hops are light, hint of compost.

Taste:  Taste follows the smell, big fruits tropical and stone, lemon, tart, spicy, pepper, a lot of other spices I can't pinpoint.  Light toasty malt and Pils sweetness.

Mouthfeel:  Spritzy and light on the tongue, medium body with a bone dry finish.  Bubbly.  Balanced, but needs more bitterness.

Overall:  Nice Saison.  Needs a little more bitterness, just like the Pils that makes up the other half of the Twins.  The depth of fruitiness makes it hard to tell where the Saison yeast ends and the Brett begins.  The spiciness is evident but I can't define it.  Great balance between bright fruits and spices, with a subtle funk starting to take shape.  Enjoyable, light, refreshing, as a Saison should be.

Review: Slap Yo Momma (Wet Hopped White IPA)

The last of the three Wet Hop beers, this one is very complex, with big fruits and deep layers to dig through.  It doesn't have near the hopiness needed for a a White IPA, but still goes well beyond a standard Wit.

Look: Foggy gold with thick buttermilk colored head.  Head stays tight for awhile then becomes a thin whisp of bubbles on top.  Good lacing.  The beer sparkles.

Aroma: Big Belgian esters, pear, apple, strawberry, orange, tangerine, clove, coriander, grapefruit, pepper, floral, spicy, chalky yeast, sweet grains, subdued hops, honestly, it is hard to tell where the hops end and the spices begin, and where the spices end and the yeast starts.  This is one complex nose.

Taste: Pear, pepper, clove, ginger, herbal, chalky yeast, citrus, sweet grains, floral hops, rose water, alcohol, coriander.

Mouthfeel: Big fizzy medium-light body w/ pulling dry finish , chalky.  Bitterness is balancing and spot on.

Overall: The hops are pretty low for an "IPA" and fresh hops, but it is a good beer.  Bitterness presents in the finish to clear off the complex palate.  Drinks like a stronger / hoppier Wit.  Really enjoy it even though the hops are fading quick.

Review: Le Ferme du Funke

Every so often you come across a beer that you brew and you know that you got it right.  This is one of those moments.  It was one of my first Saisons.  Honestly I gave more thought to the other Saison I brewed on the same day, a Rye Saison with Apricots named ApRYEcot.  This beer was supposed to be a basic Saison while the other was to be a nice fruity, spicy Summer drinker.  This beer evolved when I decided to pitch Brett at bottling and let a case age.  That was extremely difficult with how good it turned out.  And it's a good thing I was able to hold back on that case.  When one our local, yet national, BJCP sanctioned homebrew comps hit this past February, I decided to enter it.  I'm sure glad I did.  I took 2nd place in the KLCC Homebrew Competition, Category 16: Belgian and French Ales.  1st place went to a very talented homebrewer, who consequently I tied for 2nd place and then beat out in a mini-best of show for the win, splitting him to 1st and 3rd.

Look:

Pours a clear gold with 1+ finger of brilliantly white head that fades slow to a thin cap and nice ring leaving good lace.  Lots of tiny bubbles continue to flutter to the top.

Aroma:

Smells of spicy Brett, light funk, hay, lemon, pepper, barnyard comes in as it warms.

Taste:

Tastes the same as the nose, spicy, floral, lightly funky, hay, lemon, peach, lingering fruit in the finish.

Mouthfeel:

Crisp dry finish, tart, but not sour, bubbly, light, smooth, bitterness lingers and makes for a perfect finish begging for another sip.

Overall:

Very nice Saison.  Refreshing, crisp, dry, spicy, light flowers and fruits, lots of Brett phenols, light Brett esters.  Barnyard is restrained but the Brett is not.  Could use more malt and hop flavors and aroma, but Brett tends to eat everything in sight and transform it.  The Brett did it's job.  Great carbonation and head, looks beautiful.

Review: Antiquated Ambush (Sour Saison)

What do you mean you brewed a sour in 4 weeks?  Yup.  Did my original Saison recipe from a few months ago with a few tweaks, and then, due to a boost in efficiency had an extra 3/4 gallons of wort.  Took it out of the main fermentation and hit it with my RR starter.  4 weeks later I had 5 gallons of Saison, and 3/4 gallons of sour Saison with a hint of Brett, and a nice tartness.  Blended the two and bottled.  Nice pellicle in the bottles.  After 7 weeks in the bottle at garage temps the bugs and Brett are doing a great job of boosting the carbonation levels closer to the typical Saison range (under carbed on purpose so I didn't get bottle bombs).  I'm very hopeful of how this beer is going to continue to develop over time.  Nice thing is that I used the yeast slurry from the soured version to do the same thing with my Witbier!

Look:

Pours a slightly hazy (souring bugs and Brett still active, pellicle at top of the bottle) burnished gold with a nice 1+ finger pure white head.  Lots of tiny bubbles.  Decent lacing.  Head fades slowly to a thick cap that persists to the last drop.

Aroma:

Smells of lemon, pepper, apricots, tropical fruit, hay, Brett funk, tart, light buytiric acid as well (not too off-putting, just a mild fecal scent).  Spicy and floral hops are present but not powerful.  

Taste:

Tastes much like it smells, tart lemons, peppery spice, ginger, apricot, sulfur, fruity, floral, Brett funk is mild yet present.

Mouthfeel:

Dry, crisp, spritzy, light, refreshing, bubbly, tart, very balanced finish between the dry, bitter, sour, sweet.  The finish is surprisingly perfect (surprising due to being a first time attempt at the recipe).

Overall:

I'm very impressed with this beer.  The Saison yeast is quite restrained on this version compared to the original, more than likely due to overpitching (same issue on the Witbier), wish it was popping a little more.  Lots of stuff working together on this version.  The Brett and bugs are quite present for being this young and the low FG, they must have ripped apart the 3/4 gallon early.  The spice, fruit, tartness, look, Brett, dry tart finish, hops, all of it works together to make a very delightful drink.  Only two things that I wish would change are the mild buytiric acid (which over time will hopefully be esterfied by the Brett and bugs), and the weather.  Oregon is nothin but rainy and cold right now, and this beer just begs the clouds to kick and the sun to ramp us up to the 80s.

Review: Gummy Bears - Simple Saison

I love Saisons. Real ones. Light, refreshing, rustic, big spices and big fruits, dry, hoppy, packed with flavor and aroma, with a clean finish that draws you back for more. I love them made with the 3724 DuPont strain, not so much on the French Saison yeast that so many use to avoid the care needed for the DuPont. Enter the 3726 Farmhouse Ale strain that Wyeast releases only every 3 years. On this beer I had to try it before it left. And I was not disappointed. 1 week fermentation took the beer to 1.008, no stalling, no problems, 76*F controlled fermentation, great Saison. This beer is a simple recipe, 41% Great Western Pale Malt, 41% Weyermann Pils, 18% German Dark Wheat Malt, 147*F mash for 75 minutes, 1 tsp Gypsum and 1 tsp Calcium Chloride (split 3/8 each in mash, 5/8 each in boil). Bittered with 0.4 oz of Seuz at 45 minutes, 0.6 oz Styrian Bobek at 10 minutes, and a blend of 0.4 oz Bobek, 0.5 oz German Saphir, and 0.5 oz Hallertau Mittelfruh at FO for a total of 20 IBUs. The beer didn’t finish as low as I had hoped, but with the combination of the tartness of the yeast, the bitterness, and the acidic bite from the high carbonation, along with the sulfates, it turned out perfect.

Look: Pours a deep gold w/ rustic orange burnish, big frothy pure white head that fades slow to a whispy layer atop and a thin ring along the sides. Nice bubbly carbonation. Decent lacing.

Aroma: Lots of fruits, pears, bananas, strawberries, apples, white pepper, cloves, ginger, grass, hay,

floral, rosemary.

Taste: Pepper, fruity, lychee, rosemary, ginger, spicy bite, lite floral, refreshing and crisp, grainy, yeasty.

Mouthfeel: Fizzy, dry, light acidic bite, spicy finish, bitterness is there, but not overly done, balanced between bitter, dry, acidic, and sweet.

Overall: Very good Saison, big fruits and spices. Herbs and florals from the hops shine. Very dry and light, bitterness and carbonic acid play well together for a perfect finish. Lacing and head retention could be boosted some, but very well crafted Farmhouse Ale. Rustic, fruity, spicy, floral, dry, bitter, hoppy, grainy, light, crisp, tart, refreshing, as it should be.