Flying Dog Wild Dog Colorado Saison

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

Pours a transparent golden bronze with a large-bubbled coating of white head. Aroma of sweet bready biscuity caramel malt and a hint of earthy spice. Body foams up in the mouth revealing some sweet caramel notes once it subsides and a touch of bready yeasty notes. Has some decent authenticity, but could use some more balance.

Courtesy boboski. Pours a bubbly, somewhat cloudy, gold with 2cm of slowly evaportating head. Smells of thick spices and orange peel. tastes of coriander, spices, and citrus fruit. A hint of some clove in there too which seemed somewhat out of place. Pretty big alcohol taste for a moderately strong beer. Pretty refreshing, but overall just a mediocre saison.

750 ml bottle poured a clear gold with a large lasting white head. Aromas of fruitiness, honey, spice and a hint of straw. Palate was light bodied and crisp. Flavors of honey, fruitiness, straw and light spice with a crisp dry finish.

750 ml. bottle- color of golden yellow , with a frothy off white head - nose of yeast , honey , green sour apples , some caramelisation , nutmeg , spices , oranges , and bright fruit – taste of dried apricots , seeds , pears , tropical fruits , and over ripe apples – body light , semi chewy , and sweet / sour – aftertaste of dried apricots , light raisins yeast and orange spice

Bottle. Amber beer with a big whitish head. Wheat, light curacao aroma. Sweet malt, very orange flavor with spice. High carbonation. LIngering sweet malt and orange. Heavy handed.

As I pour this brew a nice grassy, herbal character wafts from the glass to my nose. The beer pours with a frothy, almost with, initially three-finger thick, just barely off-white colored head. The beer is brilliantly clear and an orange-gold color. When the aroma is explored more fully it is still predominantly hay-like and herbal. Notes of green herbs (basil, perhaps some thyme and a touch of menthol) mix with the fresh mown hay notes, and the malt gets into the swing of things by accentuating a note that smells like a field of barley. I would certainly hazard a guess that they used a Dupont derived strain of yeast as that particular brand of funky, grass accenting character is found here in the aroma. Overall this has quite an enticing aroma that makes me hope for good things in the flavor department.

Wow, this is much better carbonated than I expected. It foams quite nicely as it first hits my tongue. Perhaps a touch more carbonated than I would want of a sipping brew, but it fits in perfectly with the Saison moniker on this bottles label. A backdrop of malty sweetness is immediately noticeable, but more than that a grassy, hay like herbal character is once again the dominant note. It does not quite have that lightness of body and palate that I really look for in a great Saison, but the carbonation level certainly helps to balance things out a bit. Hints of orange peel, ginger, dusty grains of paradise, a touch of clove and even some celery root add to a general spicy note. As the beer warms a bit, the orange character becomes a bit more noticeable; it never plays more than a supporting role though.

As the beer loses some carbonation it becomes quite a bit more sweet, and even sticky. Well I should qualify that, it is sweet and sticky for my archetypal Saison, as it does still have some dry leanings to it. Still the mix of grassy hop character, earthy spice notes and pale malt character form a nice melding of flavors that is far better than many American interpretations I have had. In fact, despite my earlier comments, this beer is quite a bit drier than many American Saison that I have had. I was really not expecting much from this beer, but once again, with the Wild Dog series, Flying dog has proved that they can brew characterful, even great beer when they try.

Pours amber with a small dissipating white head. Smells of oranges, bananas, coriander, some grass, dough and pepper. Taste is of oranges, lots of malt, some tartmess and tangy malt. Mouthfeel is very tingly in a good way. Finish is dry and crisp.

Slightly hazy light golden pour with a totally receding tall white head. Aroma is unpleasant wheat, corn, a sweet sugar gloss-over, lemon, cream, bubblegum and orange peel. A pitiful combination. Flavor: Flying Dog should never, ever again be permitted to brew a Saison, this is blasphemy, butchery. Medium bodied palate is far too syrupy and cloying, yeast flavor is unruly. The lively mouthfeel I’d expect for the style is nowhere to be found. Finishes distinctly indistinct. For a triple, which this seems more similar to, it still would earn a failing grade. Nothing truly offensive, but this is not a Saison, and I don’t ever want it crossing these lips again. I would imagine he carbonation would be more noticeable and enjoyable were it not kept at bay by unwarranted sticky sugars clogging up the glass.