Great Lakes Grassroots Ale

Brewed by Great Lakes Brewing Company
Style: Saison
Cleveland, Ohio USA

Bottle, has a haze orange (and some gold) pour with a white and off-white one to two finger head, some effervescence, aroma of faint malt, fruit sweetness and citrus, mild floral scents, maybe a bit too much spice? Flavor of malt, faint citrus, though not enough, and spices, mouth feel is medium or a bit more and may be a little heavy for a Saison, not a lot of dryness on the palate at the finish, and not as thirst quenching as I find in better Saisons, this is so-so.

Me: I tried the new Great Lakes Grassroots. It’s pretty good: light and refreshing, with a bit of lemony zest, a little spice, and just very summery, to me. Female Friend: Yeah... you like it? Okay... They mention it being a Belgian style, but I’ve been to Belgium numerous times. Me: So you don’t like it? FF: No, it tastes like asparagus, and is watered-down. Me: I love asparagus, don’t you like it? FF: I do, but not in a beer. Especially not in a beer that should have more prominent yeast and should loose the chamomile BS. Me: Wow. We disagree, but I think I want to marry you. (The last line of the above conversation did not actually occur.)

Bottle and served in my Great Lakes snifter (the rare time I actually will use it): A slightly hazy golden hue topped by a nice fluffy head and outstanding lace. The aroma has notes of chamomile, sweet basil, lemon zest, bready malts, pear and grassy flowery esters and a hint of Dimethyl Sulfide. The taste starts spicy and sweet with a bit of a fruity undertone. The edges do show a hint of lemon acidity which prevents the beer from becoming cloy. There is a flowery herbal presence from start to finish. The mouth feel is soft and a tad chalky. Overall not so bad but over spiced and not attenuated enough. The yeast should have done more work here.

Bottle. pours a dingy yellow/orange. Initial smell is barn stall, with some moldy basement thrown in as an extra. a light fruit smell circles the barn and makes it strange. Yeasty crop circles float around on what head there is. Taste is another beast however. The barn stall is still there, but some spice shows up throwing some peppery basil into the mix. Very odd to taste that in a beer.a touch of lemon hides in the back of the mouth, rearing an unwelcome head. Could have done without this flavor tonight.

Funky nose - spicy, pepper, wheat?, lemon grass. Standard yellow with standard white head. Heavy cloves in the palate with a little pepper. Decent summer beer.

Bottle. Hazy straw-yellow body with abundant sediment; medium off-white, tight head. Aroma of honey and sweet fruit (pineapple, pear), associated with coriander and other spices. Herbal, potent. Surprisingly herbal, grassy body, bitter, with nectary sweetness developing after the initial dry characteristics. After half a bottle, the sweetness does become a tad cloying. The flaws didn’t bring this one down for me.

Possibly my least favorite from the Cleveland brewery. What smells Belgian, may not exactly taste Belgian, as was the case with this Saison. A bit too much carbonation would leave an abnormally large head and nearly champagne like bubbly mouthfeel. For a seasonal it is O.K., but with a bit of tinkering this one could be much better!

Light yellow hazy pour with a generous white head. The aroma is wheat, and all those add in flavors, the chamomile is most noticable, then lemon... I have to say, I’ve only had a couple of saisons.... None I have liked. This follows suit. Just a style I don’t like with lots of busy flavors. This means though, the GL will be having their fall beers ready in a couple of months!