The Bruery Saison de Lente

I’ve been looking forward to drinking this beer for awhile.  I bought it last month while I was on the wagon, but tonight while it is still 90 friggin’ degrees out at midnight I’m finally going to drink it. The Bruery’s Saison de Lent is their Spring seasonal beer, and better yet it is at least partially fermented with brettanomyces.  You all know what a sucker I am for the wild yeasts, hopefully it lives up to my expectations.

Here is how The Bruery describes their beer:

Our Spring Saison is light blonde in color with a fresh hoppiness and a wild and rustic Brettanomyces character. Lighter in color and alcohol than our Saison Rue, yet equally complex in its own way. Perfect for warmer weather and Spring celebrations.

Style: Saison

ABV: 6.5%

Bottle: 750ml Capped

IBU: 35

SRM: 4

Release: March – May

Appearance:

Another saison, my second in as many nights, with a giganto head.  But, it is a common attribute of this type of beer.  With over carbonated beers the head will usually just dissipate quickly, but with beers in this style the head retention is crazy, so much in fact you can almost make foam sculptures (picture above) by pouring more beer as the head subsides a bit.  But, I’m sure the genius brewers at The Bruery didn’t have this in mind, but why not have fun!

Aroma:

I find this saison to more traditional in it’s aroma then what I would have expected with the wild yeast.  The aroma was dominated by grassy and grainy aromas with a nice pepper spice note.  Still, there was a bit of the funk under it all, but had I not been looking for it, I’m not sure I would have picked it up.

Taste:

The same carried through on the flavor, there was a nice refreshing pepper spice flavor, to me reminder me of some tequilas I like, in particular Casa Noble single barrel reposado.  There was a bit of fruitiness in the middle with a touch of funk which was quickly buried by a good dose of earthy bitterness.

Overall Impression:

While an enjoyable quality beer, I hate to say this, but this was my first disappointing Bruery beer.  I’m not digging this nearly as much as I had hoped.  What kills it for me is the strong bitterness at the end, it isn’t working with the pepper and the very minuscule wild yeast flavor.  Sorry, but you push the wild yeast on the label, but it just isn’t coming through in the beer.  I’m still looking forward to the 3 or 4 other Bruery beers I have waiting for me to try including, Mischief, Coton, and a couple others.