Duchessa - Birra Del Borgo

elNopalero

Texas

4.51/5  rDev +26.3%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Imported from Italy… in my suitcase. Zing!

Bottle says its best before 3/2015—I’m assuming this means it was brewed March 2013? At two months out it pours a light straw-golden color with a good cap of creamy foam. There a spicy aroma to this beauty, with some faint Brett-notes. It’s peppery with floral characteristics and a pleasing floral note that comes through. I found it to taste similar, with a pepper-spice zing upfront and a dry yet floral finish. A tasty, tasty Italian take on the saison.

Serving type: bottle

05-21-2013 07:14:48 | More by elNopalero

laituegonflable

Australia

3.55/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a pale straw-gold colour, massive haze through the body, almost opaque. Head is white, foamy, retaining really nice and thick. Looks like a great saison.

Smells very Belgian. Lots of spicy phenols, with a touch of barnyard funk. Heavy on the yeast but still smells a bit more on the side of Belgian Pale than Saison, could use more of that organic funk character and a bit more freshness.

Taste is a little sweet. Quite malty with a touch of banana as well. A little bit of funk towards the back and some light spice esters. Little bit phenolic on the finish but not really enough to tame the sweetness. Ironically after the nose the palate needs more of those Belgian phenols to ground it. Or more funk.

A little bit of bite from the carbonation; good enough body.

Not a bad beer but nothing spesh and a bit lacking in the saison stakes. More organic funk and possible tang would amp it up big time.

Serving type: on-tap

02-08-2013 05:24:29 | More by laituegonflable

allouez86

Minnesota

3.63/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottle poured into my New Belgian globe.

A dark golden straw color in appearance with a good sized off-white head that disappeared relatively quick. Lots of bubbles, looks like a saison.

Smells a bit "barnyardy" at first, assuming that's the spelt. There's a little bit of banana and a hint of bubblegum. I know the saison category is quite broad but there isn't as much of a citrusy nose to it that I love in my saisons.

Wheat, or spelt in this case, is the first thing I get out of the taste. It says on the label that it's brewed with spelt so it's not a surprise that I get wheat. Sadly I'm not getting much else. The banana and bubblegum are there on the end of the sip but it's not quite as exciting as I'd hoped.

The mouthfeel is thicker than I'd thought. It's not a bad thing but it sort of takes away from the dryness that I like in my saison. There is a good carbonation bite to it.

Overall this beer is ok but that's about it. I really like every thing else I've had from Birra del Borgo, especially Duchessic. That being said, I'm glad I tried it but there are better saisons and farmhouse ales that are available.

Serving type: bottle

01-04-2013 00:08:04 | More by allouez86

jazzyjeff13

United Kingdom (England)

3.45/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A 330ml bottle with a BB of Sept 2012. Picked up ages ago from an Italian deli in York, and cellared in my garage. The ingredient list on the label mentions the addition of spelt to the brew.

Poured into a straight pint glass. A very hazy, almost tranlucent golden hue with tons of chunky yeast fragments and low carbonation. The yeast sediment remains suspended as if trapped in aspic. Yields a large head of white foam that remains for a few minutes before collapsing and disappearing. Aroma of light, grainy malt with subtle fruity yeast esters and a touch of sweetness. A faint whiff of alcohol in the background.

Tastes of fruity yeast esters with a hint of spice and a dry finish. Notes of grain, mild banana, faint bubble-gum, a suggestion of clove, sugar and a whiff of solvent. A slightly harsh cardboard flavour in the background, along with stewed leaves. Dry, earthy yeast upon swallowing. Mouthfeel is smooth, dry and tingly, with a spicy quality and good body. Rather astringent. Aftertaste of fruity yeast and a strangely artificial harshness.

Interesting and certainly not bad, though I don't know how close this really is to a Belgian saison. The appearance is deeply unappetising - tons of chunky sediment despite a careful pour. Carbonation also seems to have gone AWOL. The rest is better; a pleasant yeasty aroma and a flavour that is dominated by a Belgian yeast character. A solid effort that goes down nicely - worth trying if you come across it.

Serving type: bottle

08-30-2012 22:59:56 | More by jazzyjeff13

Beerenauslese

California

4/5  rDev +12%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Hazy golden body with a nice foamy head with good retention and some lacing.

Smells of light wheat malt and spice, I'd say ginger and coriander.

Light malt sweetness, with some fruit, some white peaches, and a funky yeast strain. Has some grassy hops and a dry ginger spice finish, with some bitter citrus peel. Overall, kind of honey sweet, but nothing cloying.

This is not a typical saison. Although it tastes like a wheat-based beer, farro is the main grain used.

Seems to taste better to me in the bottle than when I had it on tap, but that was a year ago. In the bottle version, I am tasting ginger much more. It evolves as it warms up, becoming sweeter.

This is a good drinking beer with a bit of complexity. It has that Italian twist of funkiness and fruit going. In the end, it tastes a tad too sweet and fruity, hardly what one expects from a French farmhouse, but maybe an Italian one with some peaches and honeybees.

Serving type: bottle

08-28-2012 00:20:08 | More by Beerenauslese

lacqueredmouse

Australia

3.35/5  rDev -6.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

On-tap at the Italian SpecTapular festival held at the Local Taphouse in Sydney.

Pours an opaque yellow colour, with huge hazing to the body. Weight is very light, not unexpected for the style. Head is a pocked, but firm white, that leaves some patchy sheets of lacing. Looks pretty good.

Nose is bright and slightly piquant with coconut, brusque funk and a vegetative aroma like frozen peas. This melds with some other sweeter characters like vanilla. It's weird, even for such a lively style as a saison.

Palate is light and smooth on the entry, but a little bit flat, before the suggestion of proper saison-ness comes through on the mid-palate. Here we get some grassiness, a little bit more veggie character, and an earthy, grounded funk. However, this funk sits initially above an oddly sweet body that feels a little wrong, and then drops out entirely, leaving the finish dry, with floury pastry notes.

Feel is light with a hint of astringency that's not present in the flavour itself.

Overall, this is a fractured and fractious beer. The weirdnesses to it just go a little far, and make you feel as though this beer is erratic and uncontrolled. The novelty of this almost saves it, but I can't help feel that overall it's just wack.

Serving type: on-tap

08-13-2012 05:04:04 | More by lacqueredmouse

GONZALOYANNA

Spain

3.1/5  rDev -13.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Smart champagne shaped bottle. Delirium Tremens Snifter glass. Enjoyed on jul´12. -funny no-planned tasting session in good company at the Freiburg-. Golden amber color. Chill haze appearance. White froth. Brief crown. Floral fragrances, intense cinnamon, nutmeg & spiced hues, hay & cereal notes to the nose. Flavors shown sweet malty backbone, subtle sourness, raw grains, yeast & slightly lemony. Spicy touch. Low bitterness. Light to medium body. Moderate to high carbonation. Watery texture. Slightly sweet finish & subtle resins on the aftertaste.

Serving type: bottle

08-01-2012 01:12:04 | More by GONZALOYANNA

drpimento

Wisconsin

4.13/5  rDev +15.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Best Italian saison/farmhouse I've had. Poured at a good temperature with a decent size, cream colored, foamy, head that slowly settles to a nice cover and a tiny bit of lace. Color is a clear amber with lots of bubble trails. Aroma is malt, yeast, hop, dust, caramel. Flavor's like nose and has very nice balance between bitter, sweet, and carbonic tang, plus has a bit of butter. Body is great and carbonation is outstanding. Finish is like flavor, of good length, and is very drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

06-03-2012 20:55:34 | More by drpimento

seand

California

3.78/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Pours a hazy orange amber with a large amount of dense white head. It dissipates to a thin layer fairly quickly, which is enough to leave solid streaks of lacing.

S: Floral sweetness with a strong malt background. Nice complexity with a touch of citrus on the top end.

T: Grain-forward syrupy sweetness, with grassy hops. Finish is dry and crisp.

M: Medium body, medium prickly carbonation.

Overall, quite nice. A good food beer.

Serving type: bottle

02-26-2012 02:50:49 | More by seand

drgarage

California

3.28/5  rDev -8.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

375ml bottle

A: Cloudy, yellow-orange. Comes out hypercarbonated (yep, a gusher). Giant, egg-shaped head, with huge elliptical bubbles like you see on freshly fermenting beer. Once it settles down, virtually no head. But the color is nice.

S: Fairly typical farmhouse funk with a hint of spice on the nose. Smells cloudy, if that makes sense.

T: Complex farmhouse with a lot of layers. Coriander on the finish and a little bit of sourdough. Easily the strength of the beer.

M: Nearly flat, given the gushing earlier. Basically a good saison body gone a little bad.

O: I assume I got a below-par bottle here. Given how much I loved the My Antonia from Borgo, I would still recommend trying anything they make. This one I would approach with caution, particularly if you're not a saison-lover.

Serving type: bottle

02-03-2012 05:14:33 | More by drgarage

DaveHS

California

3.93/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A-Pours clear, pale orange with nearly an inch of fluffy, brilliant white head, very little retention and spotty lacing.

S- Light, spritzy aromas of peach, cane sugar, zested meyer lemon and a touch of spicy coriander.

T/M- The addition of spelt to the malt bill makes for a soft, mouth coating sweetness tinged with delicate citric acidity, not unlike a good hefe-weizen. Grassy hop bitterness fades in mid-palate and carries through to the dry finish, accentuated by spicy coriander. Medium bodied with zippy carbonation and a lingering dry finish.

O- A pleasant, food friendly saison.

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2012 21:46:49 | More by DaveHS

pixieskid

France

3.8/5  rDev +6.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Not real sure about it being a Saison...but hey, I guess that works.

Pours a dark orange with a nice white head.
Aroma: Floral and a hint of spice.
Taste: Herbal and floral notes with a hint of citrus; lemon peel. There's a lingering yeasty overtone throughout that creates an overall rustic vibe...guess that Saison styling is coming into play.
Finishes with a zesty herbal note and a suggestion of elderberries?!?!

Overall; unique and interesting, exactly what I was hoping for.

Serving type: bottle

11-17-2011 20:01:05 | More by pixieskid

SpeedwayJim

New York

2.4/5  rDev -32.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

375ml foiled and capped bottle shared by schen9303. Poured into a Cantillon tulip.

Pours a nice 1.5 finger frothy white head with good retention. Beer is a clear goldenrod. Lacing is stringy and spotty with good stick. Attractive.

Nose is surprisingly citrusy. Lemon tartness, straw, and juicy fruit gum. Not what I normally expect from a saison, but tempting nonetheless.

Opens sweet corn sugar, citrus, wet straw, and cobwebs. Very odd and very sweet. Some herbal notes towards the middle. End is sweet and more corn sugar. Finishes sweet with a weird adjunct-y aftertaste. Very odd and not to style... no in a good way either.

Light bodied with low carbonation. Smooth and oily in the mouth and somewhat watery going down. Finishes oily with a quiet aftertaste. Not to style. No life and not enough carbonation.

Perhaps I don't understand this beer but from a style standpoint, it completely fails. Feel is not lively and there's a complete lack of saison-funk character in the taste, replaced instead by an adjunct-like sweetness. I won't revisit this one.

Serving type: bottle

09-17-2011 02:00:56 | More by SpeedwayJim

brystmar

New York

4/5  rDev +12%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.5

Bottle at the Diamond bar in Greenpoint. Pours hazy gold with TONS of sticky white head. Seriously, more head than almost any beer I've ever poured. Sticky lace remains as the active carbonation fizzes away.

Funky yeast, sweet malts, earthy, plenty of Belgian spice. Really pungent and inviting. My tongue was bombarded by crazy spices upon first sip! Very active carbonation pelts the tongue as the spices join in the fray. Mild sweetness in the middle; funky yeast enters before finishing bone dry.

Body is thin and weak with a level of carbonation rivaling most champagne. Easy drinking here; not too funky or crazy, but still spicy enough to be interesting. A solid beer from one of Italy's top craft brewers.

Serving type: bottle

09-02-2011 00:28:27 | More by brystmar

bishopdc0

Maine

3.5/5  rDev -2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

"Beer is brewed with farro, traditionally grown in the territory of the Regional Park of Monti della Duchessa. It is golden, with orange hues, barely-concealed; the foam is abundant, and creamy. The nose is very broad, fruity (banana, pineapple, tropical fruit and floral, with a light and pleasant peppery. In the mouth the carbonation and end, there is a slight acidity and the body and adequate. The hopping and moderate, very pleasant, fresh." From the brewers website.

Served in a chalice at the Lions Pride.
The beer is orange with wispy white lace.

The aroma is a sweet malty, with notes of orange and other floral notes.
It begins with a slight tingle of carbonation in the mouth, taste of orange and citrus, more acidic then the nose would indicate. The hops are grassy and come in but are not overwhelming.

Serving type: on-tap

08-22-2011 21:28:43 | More by bishopdc0