Lost Abbey Ne Goeien Saison

Formerly brewed at Port Brewing/Lost Abbey
Style: Saison
San Marcos, California USA

Bottle, thanks to Snojerk321. Pours a nice, cloudy yellow. Nose is mildly spicy and lemony. I had this fear that this would be some sort of banana mess, but it’s not. It’s earthy and crisp, refreshing and mild. A good amount of bitterness. This reminds me of why I love saisons. Finishes relatively dry, and bitter. Fantastic stuff.

Bottle. A light gold body with a small white head. Pleasant spice, grassy hops, yeast and horse blanket in the nose. Flavor is yeasty, light lemon, spice, and lives up to the "firm bitterness" from the label description. Finishes with lingering bitterness that dries it out. Watery at first but filled out as it warmed up. Could finish a little cleaner but still very good.

750mL bottle, 2008. Pours a clear golden with a 1 1/2 Belgian white head, pretty good retention. Yeast, floral hops, lemon, and spice quite present in the aroma--faint stale saltines in the backend. The flavor was a bit more peppery, though most of the other aromas came through as expected in the flavor. Light carbonation with a medium body. Pretty good saison--I definitely disagree with the previous rater in that it is more like a Hoegaarden than a saison--from the first sniff I knew it was a saison.

Shared half and third of five different bottles of Lost Abbey Belgian beers this week and they seem to blend into each other. Big bottle. Amber. Sediment bits and big lasting white head and thick lacing. Inviting aroma keeps getting stronger but the funk is tame for the style. Lemon, peach, hops and chalk. Drinkable patio quality beer. As advertised "a simple Saison style beer with firm bitterness". Leaves an earthy chalk coating on the tongue and a hop residue on the roof of the mouth. Very peachy. Almost hefe-like with above average citrus hops. More like a Hoegaarden than a Saison.

Appearance: Pours a hazy, pale yellow body with a thinnish, though slightly creamy-looking, white head. Smell: Meagerly spiced bread dough scent packed with sharp lemon pith notes and far lesser aromas of fruit and flowers. Taste: Slight initial pils maltiness with some hints of dough and unrefined wheat. Pinch of sugar for sweetness. Floral, pithy hops with a real punch of moderate bitterness. Squirt of lemon juice. Minor spicy yeast hints, but they are a bit overshadowed by the hop bitterness present. Finishes dry with a lingering basic bitterness. Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied. Moderate carbonation. Drinkability: This one just isn’t for me. I simply felt this one lacked both the rich, yet subtle complexities and the keen refreshment of many saisons. Which is not to say I wouldn’t cheerfully revisit it, though, being a brewery collaboration, it’s one I doubt they’ll revisit, so I guess that’s that.

sample at the Ale Atlanta meeting on 4/2/09. deep golden color... malt and caramel aromas... very smooth over the palate... some hops and light fruit... a wonderful Saison...

Bottle shared by sloth at SL. The pour was pale yellow, nice generous soda-pop looking head initially, decent lacing. The aroma was strong apples, grass, pepper. The flavor was apples, grass hops, peppers, earthy bittering type hops, slight must, but no real funky elements. Finish was extremely dry (in a good way), cleans out the mouth. A nice refreshing saision, not a standout. Thanks, Bert, for sharing!

Bottle. Pours cloudy gold, with a small, white head. Aroma is pepper, yeast, oranges, and banana. Flavor has pretty much the same flavors as the aroma. Ends a bit bitter. Very drinkable and enjoyable. Impressive considering its low alcohol content.