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Category Archives: Country: USA

Review of Mystic Saison Renaud

What’s up guys? Thanks for checking back in on another post. For today’s craft beer review I’m going to be trying the Mystic Saison Renaud brewed by the Mystic Brewery situated in Chelsea, Massachusetts.

I can’t say that I know much about this brewery, however this particular beer came highly recommended from my local bottle shop, so I had to pick it up.

Let’s jump over to the website, mystic-brewery.com, and see what they have to say about the Saison Renaud.

A saison for the summer. Made with pilsner malt and Saaz hops…it’s similar to a pilsner with more spice and light fruit.

This beer was batch #007. Let’s do this.

This brew came in a 25.4 oz. bottle and it possessed an ABV of 6.5%.

It poured a hazy, golden/yellow to light orange color. It had a big, billowy, rocky, soapy, white head the had great retention time and some nice patchy lacing. This was a very inviting looking brew that’s for sure.

The nose was very, very complex and in-depth. It produced tones of lemon citrus along with hints of hay and grass. It had a beautiful musty funk. It was also quite floral with a subtle waft of white grape, which made it similar to a white wine. I even smelled some green apple and some light spice. The yeast and bready fragrances really began to pop as it warmed and helped tie it all together and give it a solid backbone. This thing smelled great in my opinion.

The flavor provided the lemon citrus, which was just a wee bit sour, at first. It was quickly followed by the barnyard funk. The grassy, yeasty and somewhat bready components followed suit, while the peppery spice seemed to be dialed down a bit so just to compliment. The green apple savors came through right at the end.

The mouthfeel was medium bodied. It was dry, crisp, refreshing, thirst quenching and bitey. The carbonation was lively, but not stingy. No real presence of warmth from the alcohol, however an excellent shot of flavor was left behind long after each sip.

I’ll tell ya. I found this to be a very, very nice brew. It was super refreshing and super easy to drink. It’s definitely one that I would love to have again sometime that’s for sure. Especially next Spring or Summer. Although, I believe I may be able to enjoy this beverage at any point during the year to tell the truth. If you guys see it, don’t pass it up and give it a try. If you enjoy the Saison style I have no doubt that you will enjoy the Mystic Saison Renaud.

Thanks for reading and commenting everyone. I really appreciate it.

Until next time. Cheers.

Score: 4.2 out of 5

Grade: A-

Review of Crooked Stave Vieille Artisanal Saison

26 Oct

Hey everyone. I hope all has been going well. It’s time to get back to the craft beer reviews and for today’s tasting I’m going to be drinking the Crooked Stave Vieille Artisanal Saison produced by the Crooked Stave Brewery located in Denver, Colorado.

This will be my first experience with anything from these guys. I’ve heard good things, so I’m really looking forward to it.

The website, crookedstave.com, gave up this bit of info regarding the Vieille Artisanal Saison.

Vieille meaning “Old” is our artisinal barrel-aged Saison, lightly dry hopped. Each batch release is a diverse blend of Vieille casks that have taken on a soft Brettanomyces character before being lightly dry hopped. Dominated by a floral, citrusy hop character, a subtle herbal note and a tart finish, Vieille’s character exemplifies artisan Saisons.

Alrighty. Let’s drink this thing.

This beer came in a 12.7 oz. bottle with an ABV of 4.2%.

It poured a hazy, yellow to gold color with a white head. The crown was sized very well and the texture was sudsy, soapy and a touch fizzy. The retention time seemed ok, but the lacing was mostly average. Still not bad though. Definitely a pleasant looking beer.

The nose brought forth a decent shot of funk and oak while a light lemon citrus note crept in after a few seconds. As it continued to warm I began to gather some of those typical Saison aromas. Hints of hay and fresh grasses along with a wee bit of peppery spice and earthiness. Not bad. Not all that robust, however rather suitable.

The taste was even more light than the aroma. It was muted quite a bit actually. A lot of the same characteristics were found in the taste though. Lemon citrus, oak, funk, musty hay and grasses. It almost had a floral type of taste as well.

The mouthfeel was medium to thin. Somewhat watery to tell the truth. Very smooth, crisp, refreshing and thirst quenching. The carbonation was good, although not a terrible amount of flavor was left behind on the palate after each gulp.

Overall, I thought this was an ok beer. It’s definitely worth a try and it would be perfect for a Summer brew. The drinkability was killer and it wasn’t over the top with flavor or nuances. It would also be a great drink for someone wanting to dip their toe into the Saison realm. It was proper and well made albeit a bit underscored. So, if you guys have the opportunity to try the Crooked Stave Vieille Artisanal Saison go for it and see what you think. Be sure to leave a comment and tell me all about it when you do.

Thanks for reading everyone. I really appreciate it.

Until next time. Cheers.

Score: 3.55 out of 5

Grade: B

Review of Prairie Artisan Ales Prairie Gold

24 Sep

Hello everyone. Thanks for stopping by to read another craft beer review. Today, I’m going to be trying the Prairie Gold produced by Prairie Artisan Ales located in Krebs, Oklahoma.

This will be my first time reviewing a beer from Prairie Artisan Ales. I’ve heard nothing but good things about them, so I’m kind of excited about it.

Let’s get to the website, prairieales.com, and see what they have to say about this particular brew.

Prairie Gold is a dry, highly effervescent saison fermented with a mix of ale yeast, wine yeast, lactobacillus and 2 strains of brettanomyces. This beer highlights the various yeasts and bacteria used to make it. Lemon, pear, white wine grapes, and a touch of funk dominate the flavor and aroma in this champagne like beer.

Sounds like my kind of beer!!!!

This beer came in a 25.4 oz. bottle and it had an ABV of 6.5% according to the label.

It poured a hazy, yellow/golden/orange color. A well sized, fizzy white head was formed from an easy pour. It dissipated rather quickly and little to no lacing was left on the sides of the tulip. I saw quite a bit of sediment floating about the liquid as well.

The nose smelled of soured lemon and grapes with some excellent musty funk involved. Bready and yeasty tones along with some grassy and floral tones as well. This thing was very well balanced and harmonized. I liked the aroma for sure.

The taste also had a good deal of lemon citrus and soured grapes. Very white wine like. A slight acidity was present, but definitely not enough to distract. Some grassy tones and a bit of yeastiness actually helped pull it back a tad.

The mouthfeel was medium bodied. Crisp, bitey, sharp and dry. The carbonation was fairly lively and a very nice amount of flavor was left behind on the palate after each sip.

Well, aside from the appearance I thought this was a very nice, solid and good beer. It was properly sour and tart for a wild ale I thought. It was rather complex too. The drinkability was good and I definitely wouldn’t mind sharing this beverage with friends. It seemed like it would be a great brew for the Springtime too. With that being said, give the Prairie Artisan Ales Prairie Gold a try if you see it and let me know what you thought of it.

Thanks for reading everyone. I really appreciate it.

Until next time. Cheers.

Score: 3.95 out of 5

Grade: B+