Even though you can start to feel the shiver-inducing chill in the air, there’s still plenty of time to enjoy the beers of summer. Well, plenty of time might be an overestimate. Best get in as many summer beers in whilst you can.
Beers such as farmhouse ales or saisons:
Saison (French, "season," French pronunciation: [sɛ.zɔ̃]) is a broadly defined pale ale that in modern versions is generally around 7% abv, highly carbonated, fruity, spicy (sometimes from the addition of spices), and is influenced by Saison Dupont Vieille Provision. As a beer style it originated from beers brewed during the cooler and less active months in farmhouses in Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium, and then stored for drinking by the farm workers during the summer months.[1] It is believed that these farmhouse beers would have been of a lower abv than modern saisons - probably initially around 3 to 3.5% abv on average, rising in the early 20th century to between 4.5 and 6.5% abv. Modern saisons are brewed in a range of countries, particularly the USA, and are generally bottle conditioned.
Our featured brew this week is Tank 7 Farmhouse Ale from Boulevard Brewing:
Most breweries have at least one piece of equipment that’s just a bit persnickity. Here at Boulevard we have fermenter number seven, the black sheep of our cellar family. Ironically, when our brewers were experimenting with variations on a traditional Belgian-style farmhouse ale, the perfect combination of elements came together in that very vessel. You could call it fate, but they called it Tank 7, and so it is. Beginning with a big surge of fruity aromatics and grapefruit-hoppy notes, the flavor of this complex, straw-colored ale tapers off to a peppery, dry finish.
A four-pack of 12oz streamlined brown bottles is $9.99. Label is classic design with light blue background.
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME: 8.5%
COLOR (0-2): Gold and nicely clouded. 2
AROMA (0-2): Yeasty with banana and clove. 2
HEAD (0-2): Bright while color with tons of volume. 2
TASTE (0-5): Tasty combo with bright hoppy fruit flavors of citrus, mango, and passion fruit meld with bready malts and spicy yeast. The finish is crisp and peppery. Good carbonation and a medium body. Quite drinkable and you scarcely pick up the potent alcohol content. 4
AFTERTASTE (0-2): Flavors of fruit and spice follow through.
OVERALL (0-6): A very well done rendition of a farmhouse ale. Refreshing yet with plenty of taste to savor as we seek to do the same for these last days of summer. 4
TOTAL SCORE (0-19): 16
