Squatters Fifth Element

Brewed by Salt Lake Brewing Company / Squatters Pub
Style: Saison
Salt Lake City, Utah USA

750mL bottle @ Squatters Pub. Pours a gorgeous, clear and bold honey-yellow color; thick, frothy white head with fine-bubbled lacing and retention; a beautiful pour. Loads of tart lemons, bright acidity, and touches of white pepper in the aroma; immediately brings back RR Temptation: the lemon and funkiness, the soft wooden character (strikes a balance of oak and vanilla butteriness that falls somewhere between Batch 1 and later batches); gorgeous, generous, mouthwatering aroma that would be perfect if it only lasted a touch longer; great balance of elements. Temptation clone? Medium-to-full mouthfeel: this doesn’t have the bracing acidity of the most recent RR batches, but the toasty and softly buttery / vanilla / oaky Chardonnay aspects are turned up closer to Batch 1; this strikes an ideal midpoint of both, for me; lively citrus acidity (grapefruit shows strongly), solid levels of lightly buttery Chardonnay-tinged oak and toastiness; fluffy, effervescent carbonation; a gorgeous beer, if suffering only slightly for being ever so close to something preceding it. I’m not sure if the overall complexity of this would measure up side-by-side with Temptation, but it’s very close and hits a particular note perfectly. Medium finish: tart citrus (lemons, some grapefruit), toasty oak, very slight touches of butter and crackers; nicely dry. Utah?

750 ml bottle shared with Douglas88 and Footbalm at the brewpub (can’t take it out). Nose of light belgian spices, mildly funky yeastiness, oak, and citrusy hoppiness; cloudy yellow with a big, glass-lacing white head; flavor is lightly tart, lightly sweet, woody oak, and citrus; tickle your tongue carbonationm and a lightly funky finish; great stuff! A well balanced saison!

Opaque, banana yellow pour. Cheesy, pungent aroma of sharp blue and a musty, sweet bit of pineapple; funky in a way thats really much like a sauv blanc. And a bit tropical too, and still in a white wine kind of way.

Sweet, and soft, lightly funky flavor; carefully spiced with a pleasing nectarine and peach dominant flavor. It has a sharp muscat grape tartness and a tropical, creamy sweetness that softens that nicely; it softens even more after swallowing, on a feathery, sweet texture; still a bit funky, but so velvety and warm. Seems i can taste ever white and golden fruit here or there; golden kiwis, pears, yellow apples; calm and collected, not scattered.

Smooth and acidic texture; funkiness lingers distantly in the very long finish. Extremely classy stuff. Thanks so much Eric!

750ml bottle at Squatters SLC. Beautiful clear deep gold color with a tightly packed foamy head that lasts throughout and leaves great sticky lacing. Served a bit too cold, so I enjoyed the great aroma while it warmed a bit. Loads of sour lemons, wet grass, light fruit, funky yeast, tart apples and a touch of wood in the nose. Flavor is initially tart and lemony, giving way to tart apples, unripe peaches, oak, yeast and funk. Very lively carbonation. The foam continued to rise out of the bottle until the brew was gone. Tart, dry finish left me wanting more. Unfortunately I couldn’t convince the server to bring me an unopened bottle to sneak out. Seriously fantastic brew!

750ml bottle. with a HUGE THANKS to Eric! Puncy, tart and lightly sour on the nose. Musty, peach skin and pear meat. Nice mix of dusty, dry yeast, malt and barrel. Pours a beautiful bright gold with a very thin ring of white around the edge of the glass. Flavor is quite tart and dry. Plenty of funk. Apple skin, lively, funky yeast, barrel tannin, lemon zest. Wine like... buttery California chardonnay... but not nearly as flabby. Really reminiscent of a RR brew. Medium bodied... lively carbonation that compliments the barrel tannin quite well. Finishes rather acidic with a but of earthy funk. Wow... Utah beer doesn’t suck. Thanks a ton for this one Eric!

750 ml bottle at the brewpub in downtown Salt Lake City. Pours a clear yellow color with a medium white head. The bottle has a ton of foam in it, and the brew is quite carbonated and fizzy. The aroma is very nice; an initial sourness, some strong oak aspects, a funky yeast and citrus notes also. The flavor did not disappoint; tons of dry yeasty flavors and dried apples dominated initially, some more citrus, followed by an awesome finish of funky barnyard flavors and finally a rich and mellow oak touch. The barrel aged aspect is done really well; it is noticeable, but does not dominate. The mouthfeel is fizzy and champagne like. An awesome beer, Squatters has done it again! Anyone who still thinks Utah cannot make good beer should try this. I’ve had this a few times now and it is just awesome.

Poured a cloudy apricot/straw color with a fizzy white head that reduced to a thin froth. The nose has a bit a of barnyard funkiness to it with hints of lemon. The tastes starts with light citrus notes then transitions into tart green apples. Next comes a dry oakiness that compliments the tartness well. The finish is a combination a champagne like dryness and bitter florals. Light and dry but highly drinkable. Oak aged and bottle conditioned at the brewpub. A great effort.

same bottle that Richard was drinking, nice to share one with you again!! I really am ashamed at myself for not trying to put this Utah beer on the radar. Poured a very light cloudy golden yellow. as much as it kills me to admit, I really enjoyed this beer. It is so refreshing to see a Utah brewer-ess trying to finally push the envelope. I have dumped a shitload of Saisons down the sink but this was very good, lots of refreshing light fruitiness that was joined by some sour funk. Very easy drinker for a Saison and a nice representation of the style, Kudos to Jenny the brewer.