McKenzie Farmhouse Saison

Formerly brewed at McKenzie Brew House
Style: Saison
Glen Mills, Pennsylvania USA

750 ml bottle. Light gold with an awesome looking thick, white head. You can tell right off, it’s going to be an awesome beer. Sweet peppery aroma to go along with farmhouse funks and yeasty breadiness. Taste is exactly what Im looking for on a 90+ degree day.Not overly sweet and just enough hop twang to make it all worthwhile. I get some cinnamon in this also that adds a real nice touch. A phenominal brew.

At brewpub. Pours a cloudy, medium brown color with an off-white head. Sweet aroma of spicy malts, belg yeast, and some light fruits. Flavors are a good blend of farmhouse, spices, pears, light green grapes, and some lemongrass in the finish. Somewhat barrel aged flavors also present. Very good saison.

on tap at the Blind Tiger Ale House, NYC, for their 1st annual Saison event. all cloudy, extremely so. brownish muddy color and goldish at the edges, like the silty waters of the Brandywine River when you’re inner-tubing the day after a storm. light tan foamy head. horseblanket aroma, a little leather and sharp cheese too. WOW! we’re in for something on the fringe and edge of style-bending. yes, dusty sweet malt flavor, but also earthy soil, cured roast, and herbal/spicy tastes that I can’t identify. tangy & sour with the lively carbonation finish. a little dry and woody, also some citrus in the aftertaste.

Tap @ Mc Kenzies. Somewhat hazy amber/tan color w fair off white head. The aroma was spicy Belgian yeast w the clove note noticable & malt w mod hops. The Flavor was nice spicy, somewhat sour saison with plenty of maltiness and a rather full clove taste that fit very well. The flavors were balanced well with the hops & bitterness, but there was a bit of a green taste in the mix. Overall a nice, smooth, creamy American saison.

A murky yellow appearance. A good blend of some pears, apricots, and lemons. It had a funky sour quality to it. The aftertaste was somewhat bitter. Overall this was pretty good.

750 mL capped bottle [bottled early 2004 (I believe), sampled April 2005]: massive bleached white, small bubbled & rocky foam, leaving behind thick cotton candy-esk lace. Clear gold with lemon highlights and a steady stream of bubbles rising throughout the body. Airy, spicy aromatics with strong lemon grass, bitter hop cones, orange zest, freshly kneaded dough, coriander, cracked black pepper, and sour melon balls. Intense, tingly carbonation deliver bitter melon rinds, perfume and sweet grass across the tongue. Finish is dry and bitter with a strong peppery flavour. Phenols and brett offer a depth of character and help distinguish the pale malts and soft yeast. Last third of the bottle turns the body hazy and the addition of some of the yeast dulls the palate, and morphs the flavour to include some iron, herbal notes and dusty chalk. Overall I would have like a bit more fruitiness, but the complexity and spice were more than enough for me to enjoy a second great Saison in as many days as Spring starts in Chicago…

750 ml bottle consumed alongside Rastacouere, ClarkVV, tiggmtl and MartinT. Bright, glowing gold hue topped with a strong, lasting white cap...bready, sourdough nose, with some simple sugariness as it opens out, pleasant if pedestrian...highly carbonated on the tongue, very dry throughout, bready with little spiciness, pepper and bitter lemonpeel to finish. Rather on the low end for a saison, to me, though drinkable enough.

I believe this to be a 2004 bottle. Sampled at the 3/6/05 Montreal tasting with Muzzlehatch, Rastacouere, tiggmtl and MartinT.
Aroma is very promising, giving off some notes of light cheese baked in to extra-doughy wheat bread. Plenty of light, but distinct hops flavor (and no, they werent high alpha hosp) near the end, with lots of earthiness, but thankfully, this one didnt have tons of herbs and coriander, which I feel can be too distracting in too large a quantity. The pour reveals a bright golden body, mildly hazy, with great retention on its foamy white head. Flavor does not disappoint. Not an "Americanized" saison by any means. Dough and herbs play well together, with light cheese funk near the end. Though it’s light, I greatly appreciated the fact that you can taste a bit of real yeastiness. Too many American saisons have absolutely no bacterial tastes whatsoever. Finishes about as dry as it starts, and being a big fan of dry saisons, I enjoyed this. Classy and not overdone. Medium body, lively carbonation, no alcohol tones. Thanks David and Mike!