Flying Dog Wild Dog Colorado Saison

Brewed by Flying Dog Brewery
Style: Saison
Frederick, Maryland USA

Pours a deep, cloudy gold with a thick, soft, white head that fades to a thin, yet unbroken disc of head and leaves a small amount of lace on the glass. The aroma is a little spicy (nutmeg, licorice), a little fruity (apples, raisins, a hint of peach), malty with some notes of honey, a little grassy, and alcoholic - all quite appropriate for the style. The flavor starts off malty with hints of sweetness, but balanced by some mustiness and grassiness and hints of acid. The middle of the flavor is quite pleasant - lots of sweet malts with flavors of sweet, doughy bread yeast, some subtle, earthy hops balancing the sweetness, and some fruit (honey-covered pears). The finish is very grassy and musty, but continues the same gist of flavors - malty and yeasty with touches of fruit and hops. It finishes medium in body and crisp from carbonation with a zip on the back of the tongue. The after-taste is grassy with some malts and a touch of acidity. Overall, a decent representation of the style and quite tasty.

Bottle from Party Source. Poured hazy copper color with an average frothy white head that mostly lasted with fair lacing. Moderate spicy ard yeasty aroma. Medium body. Medium complex balanced bittersweet flavor with a medium bittersweet finish of moderate duration. Drinkable complex beer.

[750 mL bottle, corked & caged]: yellow-orange with a rose hue. Tall, off-tan, medium bubbled head. Thick lace. Astringent alcohol aroma with strawberry undertones, blueberries and spicy yeast. More alcohol on the tongue – orangey this time…orange liquour? Follows with yeasty dough and lightly toasted grains. Fruity finish with a bit of black pepper and anise. Better than I expected, but didn’t seem very traditional to me...too much alcohol.

Gold, white head. Nose is yeast, clove, ginger, lemon, honey, some hard cider notes. Flavor is cider, yeast, clove, alc, some malt. More clove in the finish.

Flavor, appearance, and aroma of Saison are a spot on avatar of a Belgian-brewed version, but the hyperactive force carbonation may be a little out of whack. Musty and earthy, the orange citrus flavor is very subtle and seeps in near the end of each swallow. A bit bitter, but certainly not heavy-handed. Champagne-like mouthfeel could have been a bit softer on the palate. A big fat frothy head towers oer the beer and says "look at me".

Cloudy orange color with a quick white head. Aroma is of big citrus and orange. Taste at first is quite bitter and alcoholic which takes away drastically. Yeast in the aroma as well. Malty full bodied flavor. That bitter alcohol detracts a bit and gives drastic negative points. Control that and all else is good on this guy.

750ml Bottle (Very difficult cork to pull): Aroma is moderately sweet. Smells like champagne. Notes of apples, honey, yeast, and spices. Poured golden in color with a big, creamy, frothy, off-white head that lasted throughout. Very good lacing. Clear. Very sparkling. Flavor is lightly sweet. Tastes of apples, yeast, fruits, and a little spice. Not a very complex flavor. Medium body. Tingly texture. Fizzy carbonation. Very short, sweet finish. Overall, way too much carbonation makes it almost undrinkable.

Bottled. A hazy golden beer with a thin off-white head. The aroma is and very citrusy, but also with light notes of bret, straw, spices, and barnyard. The flavor is sweet malty with strong ntoes of straw, citrus, and spices - especially coriander and cloves, leading to a dry spicy end.