Clipper City Heavy Seas Red Sky At Night

Brewed by Clipper City Brewing Co.
Style: Saison
Baltimore, Maryland USA

On tap. Noses in a very mineral heavy, soft Thai spices, with a bit of alcohol, pineapple and soap. Pours a hazed golden with a frothy, tall head in white. Flavor develops rich spiciness, then a good dense chewy malt base. I appreciate the texture of this beer and it’s inline with the other heavy seas beers, that come with a very mineral rich profile. It’s almost as if the beer has been brewed with Evian water and then filtered through cotton. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. This does give a little too much phenol and quashes the overall drinkability with some alcohol and sugar, but it’s not terrible.

Pours a bubbly orange with a very thin white head. Not a very big nose on this one. A little citrus and spices, light orange. Taste is pretty decent. Cinnamon spice is the most dominant in this flavor in this one. Relatively smooth. Not extremely complex. Pretty refreshing. I definitely prefer the Belgian saisons much more, but this one wasnt too shabby.

A below average saison. I am a little suspicious in any saison that comes in a 12oz bottle, but maybe that’s just the beer snob in me. Aroma was decent but in a blind sniffing, I would think this was a hefeweizen. Strong banana and clove aroma. Pour was a flat bubbleless light gold with a thin white film for a head. Taste was like a hefeweizen with sugar and honey added. Medium carbonation with a sugary sweet aftertaste. Calling this a saison is a stretch to say the least.

Gold, with a small head of white, slightly creay. No lacing really, just a couple of spots. Aromas of citrus, mostly orange, but there is some lemon. Coriander and some floral hops spice it up a bit. There is a sourdough aroma, a bit funky and yeasty. Strong coriander in the flavor. Citrus right behind that. Lemons more here. There is a creamy maltiness abundant. Finishes smooth with a bitter bite. Not too bad.

Pour is a hazy yellow with no head. Aroma is candy apples. Flavor is fruity,spicy and very sweet. Lots of sugar and maybe some honey. Can’t really get any alcohol but im sure its there with the amount of sugars used.

Bottle - thanks to slob! Pours dark golden with a slight haze and a small off-white head that mostly diminishes. Aroma is yeasty, hints of fruity esters and spice. Flavor is sweet, featuring banana, apricot, honey, yeastiness and mild hoppiness. Medium body, smooth in the mouth with almost no carbonation. Quite nice!

Pours clear gold into a tulip. Bright white head quickly recedes leaving no lacing to hug rim. Sour yeast and funk aromas. Dry and sharp with sour/sweet clove and yeast. Lasting honeyed pepper finish.

Cloudy orange beer with an off-white -- Oops! it’s gone. The aroma was sweet malt, fruit, some hops. Watery texture. The flavor was sweet with some spice notes. Drinkable but this red sky at night was not a drinkers delight.