Saison de Pipaix

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

Tasting at mcbackus 10/19. Just not my style here. Orangish color. White head. Aroma is ok, some spices, funk. Flavor is just sour and full of vinegar. Not my kind of beer.

750ml, purchased at Brasserie Beck in DC (Thanks Thor!). Brewed in 1994, bottled in 1995 and consumed October 2008. Needless to say, there was a lot going on with this Saison. Poured a nice, light, orange/amber color, almost no head. My first sip... uh oh, vinegar. My second sip, much better, tasted more like a geuze or lambic than a saison. Really complex, major sour notes, combined with a wide variety of spices: ginger, pepper, coriander. They had mellowed quite a bit, but definitely detectable. Had this with a nice trout dinner and this beer made an excellent companion.

Enjoyed this one in my new Caracole tulip glass. Appearance: a bronze-pumpkin color, intriguing and beguiling. A very thin white lace of foam around the edge, and quite a few bubbles rising up from the bottom. Aroma: Mystifyingly enticing. Very fragrant. There is definitely a touch of "Flemish Sour Ale" notes here, and the most prominent characteristics are of leather, an earthy floral-ness, and something I can only describe as "forest floor." Taste: Complex, especially for 6.0% ABV, but not quite as complex as the nose might lead one to expect. Tangy, sweet-and-sour, with burnt-honey and grapefruit, and a green-apple finish. Palate: Ever-so-slightly oily finish on the roof of the mouth, and that apple finish lingers. Zippy, zesty, and thirst-quenching. Overall: It’s an odd one, but strangely satisfying. Definitely a dinner (or lunch) beer, rather than a session pint on its own. Try it with Jambalaya or Shrimp & Grits: the cayenne pepper and other spices in the food bring out a *hop* profile previously understated. It’s *almost* not strong enough for the Cajun, but it definitely works wondrously when it’s all said and done. For all of its tart profile, sour complexity, and earthy depth (think geuze rather than saison -- or perhaps the love-child of the two), I find something strangely homey and comforting about this beer: perhaps that, more than anything is the soul and root of the "farmhouse" style.

750ml bottle (Punavuoren Ahven, Helsinki, Belgian Weeks) - shared by Mirjukka - thanks!
Not much aroma. Earthy and apple-like taste. Pleasant carbonation. Slightly black peppery too. A bit flat and dull. Soft grainy finish. As well as apple there’s also cabbage. The palate veers towards sourness as it warms. Some woodiness in the finish. Yeasty dregs were more sour. Odd mish-mash.

A nice beverage, has a woody alcohol aroma combined with a real county aroma. Appearance is a dark brown color, with little head retention. The flavor is complex, with a woody alcohol taste, a little spice, with some country flavors. It’s a nice beverage, a real body warmer. Aftertaste was very warming.

bottle 750ml 6,5e shared at Punavuoren Ahven Helsinki Color:amber Taste:dissapointment. Tickling hops bit malty but in my mouth aftertaste was vineqar. Maybe I have to try again later on but this is not spring beer will be my opinion

(Bottle at Punavuoren Ahven, Helsinki, on 2008-09-20) Orange. Hazy. Small white head. Boiled vegetables and frutiness in nose. Flat medium bodied palate. Wood, hops, sourness and hint of black pepper in taste. Ok, but nothing special.

Bottle 75cl. @ home.
Clear medium amber orange color with a average to large, frothy, good lacing, mostly lasting, off-white head. Aroma is light to moderate malty, light to moderate yeasty, spicy, moderate pepper. Flavor is moderate sweet and light light acidic with a average to long duration, and a peppery finish. Body is light to medium, texture is watery, carbonation is soft. (290608)