Nøgne Ø Saison

Brewed by Nøgne Ø
Style: Saison
Grimstad, Norway

Pours a golden hazy color with thin off-white head. Aroma is of light citrus, yeast and lightly floral. Taste mirrors the aroma with a little more citrus shining through. Light mustiness permeates this beer and brings it to the forefront of Saisons I’ve had. Pretty damn good.

Pours a hazy golden holdy with some spotty lacing. Has a Tripel aroma - some spicyness, some honey, and banana. Taste is about the same with some citrus and fruityness. All right, but just not funky and sour like the typical saison. The Norwegians need to get on the ball.

Golden, hazy. Medium white head. Fresh flavour and aroma. Floral. Notes of pine. Green apples. Some underlying malty sweetness. Slightly dry hoppy bitter finish.

Cloudy yellow golden with a small, white head, fair retention. Aroma of herbal and earthy hops, light spicy peppery notes, and some citrus notes. Biscuity malts back it up. Flavor has stronger biscuity notes and less citrus, though still earthy and kind of light on the pepper. There is some sweetness, but the Dry earthy bitter finish (peaked at a 4). Burps stale crackers. Some alcohol is present. Medium body with light creamy carbonation. Not too bad at all.

Cloudy orange color with a frothy, white head. Aroma of bananas, peaches, pineapples, pepper and straw. Flavor is a bit grainy and begins moderately sweet, somewhat acidic and altogether unrefreshing. Finishes less sweet and lightly bitter. Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. This beer seems as though it could have been brewed with some softer water. Another Nogne beer that just doesn’t live up to its steep pricetag.

Bottle. Pours a frothy, hazy straw color. Nice rocky head with good retention and lacing. Aroma of tangerine, coriander, herbal spice, pear and light caramel candiness. The taste is refreshing and complex. Primary flavors are citrus, pepper and mild apple/pear. The finish is balanced with fruitness and some clean bitterness. A nice beer that I’ll have to revisit in the warm weather.

(Bottle) Pours a lightly cloudy yellow body with a small white head. Aroma of clove, grass, orange peel, , and florals. Flavor of light floral/citrus hops and herbal qualities.

Pours with a three-finger thick, pale tan colored head that is made up of a bunch of large bubbled froth. The beer is a hazy, straw gold color. The aroma is an appetizing mix of grain, hops, fruit and yeast character. Aromas of orange zest, herbal nettle, grassy grain, a touch of honey-like malt, soda crackers, sweet ginger and white pepper are all easily noticed. The citrus character is quite pronounced in this beer, and looking at the label this must stem from the use of Crystal hops.

A soft, creamy mouth feel greets me as I take my first sip. A bit of carbonation adds a little zippy tickle and a touch of peppery carbonic acid that does not overcome the creamy mouthfeel. The combination of the creamy mouthfeel and the citrus-like hop notes make me think of orange-cream candies. Substantially malty with flavors of grassy grain, fresh crushed wheat, honey, and a touch of soda crackers in the finish. The beer is fairly sweet, though at times towards the end it dries out with the grassy grain notes, but ultimately the sweet malt is what lingers on in the finish. This lingering, honey like, sweet malt note is joined by a light, but noticeable hop bitterness and a fair amount of citrus hop character. Spicy yeast derived notes provide touches of ginger, a touch of phenolic soaked cotton ball, definite clove, white pepper and a touch of green apple.

Perhaps a bit full bodied, when compared to my ideal of a Saison, but I find the mix of Crystal hops, sweet grain and spicy yeast character to be quite pleasing here. I really like the use of Crystal hops here; sure it is not in the least a traditional Saison hop, but it reminds me of the Saison / American hop brews that I have bee fond of making over the past couple of years.