Sierra Nevada Brown Saison

Brewed by Sierra Nevada Brewing Company
Style: Saison
Chico, California USA

draft at Taco Mac. arrived a deep brown color with a lingering white head. some sweet malt, belgian yeast and dark fruit aromas. medium body with some spice up front and some dark sour fruit towards the back. nice finish with a touch of bitterness and some spice. a nice Saison with a unique quality.

Tap at Rose & Crown. Medium-brown color with an off-white head. Funky aroma with caramel malt and mild fruitiness. Flavor slightly sour and funky, with sweetness from the caramel malt and a little grain. Balance is not great. Palate medium with a little tart bite. Not terrible, but far from SN’s best.

On tap at capones. Pours a dark nutty brown with a nice lasting thin head. Aroma is nutty, toasty, a bit caramel sweetness, ok toasted malts and light phenolic saison yeast- with light fruitiness. Flavor is a touch sweet, but not too sweet for the style- nutty earthy with light fruit and caramel sweetness finishes off a touch drier with some nutty paper and lgith crisp malts and dough. Not bad.

On tap at Capital Ale House - Downtown on 06/02/2009. Clear dark amber body with ruby highlights and a medium rocky white head. Sweet fruity, grainy and spicy aroma. Fruity, somewhat roasty and nutty flavor. Medium body with moderate carbonation.

Tap at RNH. Pours a brown body with a tan head. Sweet with lots of dried fruit. Some light caramel and a light floral fruit flavor. A lot of malt for a saison...

Pours dark bronze with a dense small tan head. The aroma is mildly sweet with some nectar fruit and minimal spice. Medium body that’s a bit slick, but has some roughness with the carbonation. The flavor starts with toasted malt, lots of dry spice, a good deal of graininess and some sourness that works well here. The finish is tart, fruity and lingering. While this is quite good it does not have the refreshing qualities that generally goes along with a saison. This is an interesting and unique beer I hope to have again.

Pours brownish amber with a foamy tan head. Aroma is phenolic, notes of spice, brown malt, pepper and band-aid. Taste is mostly phenolic with spicy and medicinal notes. Mouthfeel is medium to full bodied with soft carbonation.

Growler. Aroma of spicy dark grains, graham cracker, some general floral/herbal character, all a bit hollow, to use a completely inexplicable terml. In the mouth, a huge sense of plastic becomes overwhelming the more I drink. There’s always some peppery spices and dark grains/bread crust in there, but it becomes a struggle after awhile to drink plastic. If I were feeling mean, my rating could be far lower based on the faults of this beer, but it has some merits, and I was able to finish two pints of it.