I will be hitting the road soon, so the blog may be quiet for a bit. No, I’m not going on one of the great Brewpublic style adventures, no great interviews with famous brewers, probably no great pubs like 3 Floyds, doubtful any truly exciting beers will be discovered to be honest. No, I may be going to the opposite extreme, a beer wasteland… but maybe this will be a good thing, a reality check of how good we have it in Beervana.
Stay tuned!
Man, just when you think you’ve brewed up a nice Saison reality just slaps you in the face. The other day I was sipping on the Saison I brewed a few months back. I was really enjoying it, digging the pepper and spice, dry and dangerously drinkable in the warm weather, then along came a bottle of Dupont to remind me how far there is to go.
With so many new beers here in Beervana I often don’t get around to the “staples” often enough, glad a bottle of this drifted my way to remind me of it’s greatness. I don’t recall Dupont being so hoppy, but after drinking this up it is clear I need more hops in my Saison, the floral earthy hops meld beautifully with the peppery esters, a stronger bitterness finishes it off, bringing up the drinkability over my homebrewed creation. And the damn thing just looks so perfect, a gigantic rocky head stays tall the whole time, you can spread this beer out over a nice summer evening and not lose the carbonation and spiciness of it. Paired with some cave aged Swiss cheese I picked up in the bargain bin at the store, they just went hand in hand, then again what dish won’t this beer pair with?
Anyway, just an ode to The Saison, only rivaled in my opinion by it’s winter kin the Avec les Bons Voeux.
A box on the door step often means a few new treats to add to the beer cellar. Another beer trade done and some great beers will be had in the coming months, one had it’s night tonight. I noticed while unpacking that the bottle of Captain Lawrence Golden Delicious had a cap that looked rather uneven. While pulling the wrapping off the bottle a soft “hiss” was heard… aw shit. I grabbed my capper and tried to clamp the cap down, but it wasn’t going to work, this cap just wasn’t seated right. Good news is the bottle still had ample carbonation, maybe it was just on really loose, but I wasn’t going to take any risks, oh well, just an excuse to drink this one up tonight.
I thought this might be some sort of apple sour, but it turns out to be a tripel, aged in apple brandy barrels. The beer pours cloudy orange with a thin white head… strange, as the carbonation is rather high, in my Duvel glass a turbulent current rises in the center, like some Old Faithful jacuzzi. Still the head doesn’t seem to stick around. Lots of booziness to this, making me wish I could have cellared this, might have to seek out another bottle.
I have to say, brandy barrels add an incredible character to beers. I believe the Hair of the Dog Matt was aged in brandy barrels, so this being my second brandy barrel beer I have to see they are 2 for 2, solid work so far. Aside from some pear notes from the excess alcohol, a smooth apple sauce flavor blends with vanilla, fig, tropical fruit, and honey. Knowing more about brandy would help in this description, but there is just something that works so well with the brandy barrels. Bourbon is great and all, but brandy might just work better for some fruitier styles. I’m damn impressed, although, if you get a bottle of this I suggest letting this sit for at least 6 months to a year to let it mellow a bit on the fusels. In the end an excellent execution, and I’m already thinking about picking up some brandy to start soaking some oak chips in.
