Purchased: 11.2oz CAN from a 4-pack bought at Walgreens in Chicago, IL; 2013
Style/ABV: Saison, 6.5%
Style/ABV: Saison, 6.5%
Reported IBUs: ?
I'm feeling a Strong Average on this. This works, and I especially like the raw hoppy flavor and the raw wheat flavor that I'm getting. Having said that, there are some really good Saisons out there and yeah. I could recommend this if it was available and cheap (I think a 4-pack of this cost me like 12 bucks? ehhh), but you don't need to run out and track this down. This beer would pair well with a leafy burger, a steak with a green vegetable puree, lightly fried chicken, or even something like humus on a pita. There's a raw edge to this beer that elevates it a bit above the norm.
Random Thought: I built a 6-pack of beer for someone who doesn't regularly drink craft beer. I felt like an enabling beer wizard at the store. The worst part is I can almost guarantee that they won't appreciate the selection as much as I do. But you never know.
The Brasserie de l'Abbaye du Val-Dieu has a beer glass that has been sitting on the shelf at my local bottle shop forever. The glass is tiny, probably a tasting glass, and compared to the cost of the surrounding glasses is a total rip off. But these things eat at your soul, and here I am with my tiny glass. Coincidentally, tonight's beer comes in a tiny can. It's like all the stuff I'm drinking tonight is a metaphor for my dong. <sad face>. Or maybe it's a beer for ants. Anyway, about St. Feuillien:
St. Feuillien is is an Abbey-stye brewery based out of Le Roeulx, Belgium, founded in 1873. The brewery's history goes back to the 7th century, when an Irish monk by the name Feuillien came to Belgium to preach the Gospel. Unfortunately...while traveling through Le Roeulx, Feuillien was martyred and beheaded. In memory of Feuillien, his disciples built a chapel in 1125, which became the Abbey of Prémontrés, later known as the Abbaye St-Feuillien du Roeulx. The Abbey prospered until the French Revolution. St. Feuillien makes use of natural ingredients, centuries-old brewing methods, and (I believe) all their beers are bottle conditioned. You can read more about them HERE.
The St. Feuillien Saison is a Belgium farmhouse ale. This beer didn't go into production until March 2009, apparently at the request of the US market. This beer was brewed to meet our demand for hoppy, Belgian beers. I guess Saisons are kind of trending, and it's certainly one of my favorite styles.
The nice thing about the small glass is I can role-play what it was like back in the Great Depression, or I can pretend I'm a Hobbit. Kinky.... This one plays the Saison straight, with a hazy/unfiltered golden-orange body, and a finger of slightly off-white head. In bright light you get much of the same: a radiant, juicy, orange/gold body. The head is a more white in bright light, and there's some lively streams of tiny carbonation. There's some lacing as well.
When I first had this I wasn't overly impressed, but I'm shocked to be pulling out some Fantôme-esque grainy complexity on the nose. There's a big, raw wheat/hay thing going on here. There's some wheat citrus, with orange and lemon. There's also some funk, and a bit of that leather/tobacco grain thing. There's a dash of clove and coriander too.
The taste isn't quite as developed as the nose, as you miss out on some of the complex grain. But there's still a ton of earthy wheat, raw hops, hay, lemon and coriander, big clove, and some mild peppery spice. There's a pretty solid Belgian funk character, and the backing has hints of that grain.
This is refreshing, with mild bitterness, lots of wheat/hay, and citrus splash. I guess I can't complain, the 6.5% is totally undetectable. That's the danger with Saisons. The mouthfeel here is light to medium-light bodied, with creamy/smooth carbonation. Palate depth and complexity are both alright. I guess, I would peg this as a beer that straddles average to above-average. You get some peppery/coriander citrus and grain up front; hay/wheat and leafy hops in the middle; the back end dials up some clove, Belgian funk, and lingering grain. Not bad.
Rating: Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd) |
| St. Feuillien Saison |
The nice thing about the small glass is I can role-play what it was like back in the Great Depression, or I can pretend I'm a Hobbit. Kinky.... This one plays the Saison straight, with a hazy/unfiltered golden-orange body, and a finger of slightly off-white head. In bright light you get much of the same: a radiant, juicy, orange/gold body. The head is a more white in bright light, and there's some lively streams of tiny carbonation. There's some lacing as well.
When I first had this I wasn't overly impressed, but I'm shocked to be pulling out some Fantôme-esque grainy complexity on the nose. There's a big, raw wheat/hay thing going on here. There's some wheat citrus, with orange and lemon. There's also some funk, and a bit of that leather/tobacco grain thing. There's a dash of clove and coriander too.
The taste isn't quite as developed as the nose, as you miss out on some of the complex grain. But there's still a ton of earthy wheat, raw hops, hay, lemon and coriander, big clove, and some mild peppery spice. There's a pretty solid Belgian funk character, and the backing has hints of that grain.
This is refreshing, with mild bitterness, lots of wheat/hay, and citrus splash. I guess I can't complain, the 6.5% is totally undetectable. That's the danger with Saisons. The mouthfeel here is light to medium-light bodied, with creamy/smooth carbonation. Palate depth and complexity are both alright. I guess, I would peg this as a beer that straddles average to above-average. You get some peppery/coriander citrus and grain up front; hay/wheat and leafy hops in the middle; the back end dials up some clove, Belgian funk, and lingering grain. Not bad.
I'm feeling a Strong Average on this. This works, and I especially like the raw hoppy flavor and the raw wheat flavor that I'm getting. Having said that, there are some really good Saisons out there and yeah. I could recommend this if it was available and cheap (I think a 4-pack of this cost me like 12 bucks? ehhh), but you don't need to run out and track this down. This beer would pair well with a leafy burger, a steak with a green vegetable puree, lightly fried chicken, or even something like humus on a pita. There's a raw edge to this beer that elevates it a bit above the norm.
Random Thought: I built a 6-pack of beer for someone who doesn't regularly drink craft beer. I felt like an enabling beer wizard at the store. The worst part is I can almost guarantee that they won't appreciate the selection as much as I do. But you never know.
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