Saint Somewhere Pays du Soleil

Brewed by Saint Somewhere Brewing Company
Style: Belgian Ale
Tarpon Springs, Florida USA

22 ounce handbottle ??? from Bierkraft in NYC by way of goryskewych. Thanks George! Pours a dark hazy copper color with a medium head. Fair head retention and lacing. Tart, fruity aroma with notes of peach, plum, berries, apple, banana, spicy herbal and floral notes. Earthy with toffee malts in the finish and a bit of alcohol warmth. Taste is full of dry, tart berry notes. Almost cassis like, though I assume that is the palmetto. Also notes of apple, peach and herbal/floral notes. Dry and tart throughout. Slight alcohol warmth. Smooth, med-full bodied. Very nice beer.

[Draft @ Capones] Lightly hazy, mahogany color with a small, off white head that left nice lacing on the glass. Aroma of berries, spices, flowers, and citrus fruits. Taste of flowers, spices, dried fruits, berries, citrus, and a semi-dry finish. This was the best of the new St. Somewhere beers I had yesterday.

Bottle courtesy Bob. Pours a hazy redish brown with a large light tan head that lasts leaving good lacing. Aroma of dark fruits, spicy yeast, tons of flowery Hibiscus, a slight earthiness, and a hint of acidic funk. Taste is the same as aroma with a good dose of acidity and flower petal goodness from the Hibiscus. Medium mouthfeel with a mild amount of bitterness and spicyness from the yeast. Very good.

Courtesy of Degarth and Bob. Pours murky brown with initially tall tan head that drops off in a couple of minutes to a thin ring. The aroma full, rich, quite varied and inviting. Wow, lots of notes of dark fruitiness like prunes, sticky mashed dates and sweet Concord grapes. There’s a big hit of tartness that leads into faint funk at the end of a big draw. It can have a different aroma on successive draws. I even get freshly cut oak notes at times. There seems to be lots going on here and the nose has ratcheted up the expectations of the flavor to come. Here goes, the taste is very much like the nose with sweet varied fruitiness like prunes, dates, ripe cherries, dark grape sweetness and ripe red delicious apples. The flavor also has a layer of tartness, yeasty spice, some mild tannins and a faint background of funk. I look forward to trying this again and when it has aged.

Bottle courtesy of Bob and Degarth. Very excited to try this one, since his other two beers are both very good and getting better with each batch. I have to note the improved bottle and corking here, since those were both such issues with his first runs of Athene and Divina. No worries about carbonation on this bad boy, this thing has tons of life and body to it. Gorgeous looking beer, very bruised looking dark plum body with a dense head. At least 2 or 3 fingers thick with exceptional retention and lacing. Finally resolves to a ring of foam atop the beer and at it’s edges. Plums, grapes, figs, raisins, honey, assorted spices and some funky yeast notes make up the ever changing and impressive aroma. Flavor profile falls off the slightest bit from the aroma, but it’s still a very tasty beer. Dark fruits, clove, banana and mixed spices pick up at intervals. Grapes are the main show here, making this one juicy and very fun to drink. Medium bodied, chewy and creamy, soft rounded edges. Super long finish, tons of fruit, yeast and biscuit dough notes, with grapes picking up midway and finishing things up. Outstanding.

Cask @ 2009 Classic City Cask Ale Fest. Poured a hazy orangish red with a tight white head. Plenty of visible carbonation. Nose was a mix of tart fruits, spice, and yeast. A little like a fruity saison. Taste is similarly carbonated, spiced, and the fruit is similar. The carbonation of the cask was really nice. Overall, a solid effort and another interesting brew from St. Somewhere.

On tap at Capones. Murky brown with lacy white edging. Nose is sourish; elderberry, grain and grass. Medium light with a mild carb sparkle. Taste is barely tart under-ripe red berries, toffee, mild banana and green grass.

Bottle Courtesy of Degarth. Pours a dark muddy brown hue with a thin two finger whispy head. Tast is of candied sugars, figs and tart apples. Smell is much of the same. This is in my opinion the best offering to date by Bob.