Millys Tavern Evil Eye

Brewed by Millys Tavern
Style: Saison
Manchester, New Hampshire USA

[tap @ the brewpub] Pours a nice, dark golden color with a pretty minimal head. Very spicy aroma, almost IPA-like with the amount of citrus present. Flavors are an interesting blend of bitter, and sweet/spicy. Some coriander and pepper spices come through towards the end. Very tasty stuff; a really interesting take on the style.

sampled at the brewery and at the BA BBF 06. Hazy golden in appearance. Aroma is heavy on the citrus hops, with light esters and spicy saison peppery notes. Taste is citrus hops, bitter, with light fruity esters(citrus not banana) and spicy yeast notes. A great hybrid saison, very enjoyable. Just wish I had more.

Draught Samples at two beer festivals, the most recent of which was the New England Beer Fest on 10/29/2005.
Thick-looking liquid is a deep golden-brass, with hints of light peach/tangerine tints. Very dense, creamy white head is well-retained and provides sticky lacing in rings at the top of the glass. Clarity is medium to medium-low.
The nose is filled with spices. Quite varied, and they keep the nose on the tip of its toes, but at the same time, it drives back the yeasty/Belgian part of the beer almost completely. What is left behind, is a touch of lightly fruity esters (pineapple, mango, lemon) that fold easily in to a sweet, honeyish malt finish, still quite alive with ginger and pepper. Spices do not seem to die down as it progresses, nor is there much in the way of hop crispness (some leafy, lightly grassy notes are minimally bitter). Coriander dryness helps balance things, but coincidentally, also aids in bullying the real saison qualities.
The flavor seems overloaded with spices. While some tropical fruit notes do break through, it almost adds to the overwhelming sense of strong flavors going on here. Malt is strong, sweet and could probably stand a bit more attenuation. 5% ABV from an OG of 1.053 leaves quite a bit of sugar behind. Ginger lays in to the palate as pepper and coriander build up and create some near astringent qualities on the finish. Mouthfeel is certainly full, strong and supportive, but again, not exactly crisp, as I would seek in a saison. Still, for an American spiced interpretation, it’s clean/without brewing flaw. Alcohol is not apparent.

Cold keg at home: Pours a cloudy light golden orange color with a fair sized alabaster head that mostly dissolves into a thin layer. Aroma is of sweet malts, different spices and orange. Taste is of strong spices and sweet malts with a note of orange. Has a bitter and sour ending with a mediciney aftertaste.

Yummy! This is what beer should be like. Very refreshing and a delite to drink. Thanks Mike for sending this!

Huge thanks to DirtyMike for sending me a bottle of this. Nice cloudy orange color with a citrusy aroma. Mild bitterness at the end but with a clean aftertaste. Very reminiscent of many of the beers I had while in Europe last year.

Haylike, herbal hop notes with a lighter fruity and floral tone to the aroma. Hazy golden body is topped by a dense, fine bubbled, white head that recedes slowly to a lasting cover. Haylike, herbal hops are joined by a pleasantly full maltiness with fair bitterness and spices that come in to play mid to late taste and last on the palate. Medium body finishes perhaps a bit sweet (perhaps could stand to drop another couple of points?) but engaing, fine bubbled carbonation takes my mind off that very quickly. I could certainly see myself enjoying a pint or three. Thanks, Mike! Sampled at GABF 2005.

Bottle at Aaron and Kathy’s Holiday/YeHa Party on 12-3-05. Courtesy of argo0, I believe. Cloudy with a gold tinge. Nose is lemony and wheaty with a light hint of soap. Not too uncommon for this style and for wits. Light sweetness in this as well. Taste is wheaty and semi-sweet with light lemon, straw, spices, and some flowery notes. Some yeast presence throughout this. Body is light-medium with mild carbonation feel. Finishes with more lemony notes, flowers, light yeast, spices, and light soap.