Saison de Mai

Brewed by Brasserie Saint-Monon
Style: Saison
Ambly, Belgium

Bottle, Moeder Lambic. Cloudy dark golden. 1cm white head. Fully lasting. A subtle, lightly wheaty, slightly spicy cerealic aroma. Full-bodied, kind of sweet for a Saison, but satisfying elsewhere. Well hopped, quite herbal and leafy. Sesame grains toasty finish. Different and interesting take with full-on maltiness, yet the gentle yeasty acidity and hop freshness to maintain its credibility.

33 cL bottle. Pours hazy orange with a white head. Yeasty nose, slight bitter hops aroma. Flavour is caramel sweet with a slight yeast flavour and some spice note. Dry spiced finish with a persisting yeast flavour, presumably so dominant because the bottle has been slight stirred.

A Mes rate: Bottle at Moeder Lambic, thanks to Ian for sharing. Very cloudy darkish brown with a slight white head. Pleasing aroma of wheat, spice, hops and alcohol topped off with a generous dollop of honey. Flavour is more of the same with lots more honey and also very herbacious and some almost wooden or earthy notes in the finish. Excellent mouthfeel. Lots of body. An unusual and enjoyable saison.

Cloudy golden color; creamy head. Soma aroma of malt, candi sugar, sweet caramel, butter, some alcohol. Good body structure, with good malt flavor, sweet, and a clear fudge touch too; distinctive and very good Strong Belgian Ale.

Bottle at Moeder Lambic. Hazy copper colour with lasting thin off white head. Nice hoppy saison with an odd herb which is l’asperule. Very pleasant, full bodied and tea notes.

Wow. A real multi-faceted Belgain ale. Slightly reminiscent of a bock or maibock, but with a spicier finish. Deliciiously drinkable, especially at 8.3%. Lots of amber malt notes. Worth seeking out. I brought this 330ml bottle back from Brussels.

Bottle Murky orange-amber body. Ecru-yellow, creamy head. Very nice and quite intense aroma of smoke, flowers, hops, citrus, american hops, caramel malts, ... great! Moderately bitter, lightly sweet initial flavour. A little bit sweeter in the end. Flavour of caramel, fruits, flowers and some spices. Very nicely well balanced flavour with a decent complexity. Although maybe somewhat too strong for a saison, it is very lovely. I really like this one. Maybe not the greatest or most complex one, but it’s great in balance.

Bottled. Hazy dark yellow with a big, frothy white head. Mild herbal and yeasty aroma of orange-peels, straw and straw. Full flavour of herbs, yeast, cinnamon, and pepper. Full slippery mouthfeel. Long finish of yeast and dried oranges with subtle notes of mild herbs and cork. Quite tasty brew but the the occasional farmhouse character of the style could be more pronounced. Refreshing and quite interesting drink, though.