Saison de Pipaix

Brewed by Brasserie à Vapeur
Style: Saison
Leuze-Pipaix, Belgium

Bottled, bottle says 07/2005. Copper brown, small white head. Aroma of cork, earth and cowshit. Dry, peppery, ginger, orange peel are there. Very earthy and spicey. Some fruity notes balance the palate. Citrus in the aftertaste. I would say this is very good example of Saison style as such, although maybe not one of the best.

Bottled. opaque light brown colour with a large white head. Strong aroma of cork, funky yeast, wood and barnyard. Herbal, acidic and cheesy flavour with notes of cork, wood and white grapes. Full yeasty, fruity and lightly acidic flacour of cork, dried oranges, and red currant. long woody and yeasty aftertaste of dried oranges and red berries. Funny and complex!

Green bottle, 75 cl, bottled 8/2004; eye: unfiltered apple juice, hazy, no effervescence; nose: cork, lactic, peppery, cardboard; mouth: metallic, citrus, gueuze, finale with a hint of pepper, medium body, rather thin texture, not much carbonation, lighlty bitter, lightly to mildly sweet FRANÇAIS Bouteille verte, 75 cl, embouteillé 8/2004; oeil : jus de pomme non filtrée, voilée, pas d’effervescence; nez : liège, lactique, poivrée, carton; bouche : métallique, citron, gueuze, finale avec une pointe poivrée, corps moyen, texture plutôt mince, pas très carbonatée, légèrement amère, légèrement à moyennement sucrée

Pours an amber-orange with a one-finger white head that fades to a thin cap. The brew itself is a cloudy haze, with small amounts of sediment making their way to the glass after the second pour. Aroma is sweet malt, oranges, lemon, yeasty funk. Interesting to note the -sound- of this one: the carbonation is off-the-wall lively, so much so that I can’t help but hear it vividly. Taste upfront is of orange and lemon, backgrounded by a significant pepper element and a bitter, slightly metallic, slightly yeasty finish. Not watery, but certainly not thick - the taste certainly lingers on the palate, if only because of its distinctiveness.

I sampled this brew after having a cantillion, and I must say that they matched up rather well. Pours out a light golden haze with good a good perk to it. An interesting brew. Very citrusy and fruity. Very much to my liking. My only complaint is that it seemed to overwhelm my palate a little even though it was only 6%. A quality effort.

Not sure ifit was BB August 2004, or made in 2004, although Dum bought it in Spring 2005 direct from the brewery. Hazy amber ale with a thin white head. Corky gueuzy aroma with light lactic points, and loads of peppercorn, and orange peels. In mouth, a rather lemony saison, with notes of thyme, interesting leathery qualities. However, it all seemed a bit too thin for me. Merci au Duminator.

1995 bottle. Lovely golden colour, white head with light lacing. Intense aroma of apples, yeast and spice. A little must on the backbeat. Tart flavour indeed, very sour fruit with harsh afternotes. Perhaps I can’t appreciate a good Saison, or perhaps I hit a bad bottle, although Numenor may think otherwise.

1995 vintage -- Nice golden body with no head. Excellent tart aroma, sour from ageing with nice spices. Awesome tart body with sweet citrus accents, some light bread as well. Tart and sour ending, very enjoyable.