Zes Zes Zes - Three Floyds Brewing Co. & Brewpub

Arbitrator

California

3.93/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Chilled bottle into a glass, from lurchingbeast, the guy who won't take "no" for an answer. Thanks, Frank!

A: Pours a murky, orange body with fluffy, off-white head. Good retention and a fair amount of lace. This looks like an IPA.

S: Pineapple, guava, papaya, sweet pale malt, white pepper, squash, and some chalk. This kind of smells like an IPA.

T: Up front, this tastes like an IPA: tropical-forward hops imbue the beer with pineapple, guava, and papaya flavors. There is a noticeable sweetness that culminates in a nearly syrupy finish. The aftertaste has a touch of white pepper and a noticeable chalkiness and squash, which I guess is some sort of yeast residue. Not pleasant.

M: See above for my comments on the aftertaste. It's a little heavy for a saison, and I do detect the alcohol at times. The carbonation seems to have come out in the pour, resulting in a heavy body without a lot of life.

O: I think this is an IPA brewed with saison yeast. They're trying to fool me, but I'm on to them. Pretty tasty.

Serving type: bottle

10-25-2012 05:03:46 | More by Arbitrator

HuskyinPDX

Washington

4.23/5  rDev +7.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle opened on 10.9.12

A - Pours a cloudy dark orange with a foamy one inch light tan head with good retention.

S - Hoppy orange and tropical fruit.

T - Fruity, citrus, candy. Sweet and tropical.

D - Good carbonation with a light-medium body.

O - Sweet and fruity - Nice saison with a 3F twist.

Serving type: bottle

10-16-2012 06:41:51 | More by HuskyinPDX

BarryMFBurton

Indiana

3.8/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Three Floyds saison = hops, I’m hoping; I’m definitely in the mood for a bitter, Belgian-style brew.

A: Hazy, dark amber in color; overhead, a finger of tan cream. Sheets of lacing all around the inside of the glass, with only a paper-thin layer of retention.

S: Dank, citrus, badass hops. Strawberry, tangerine, lemon-lime, grape, and cherry in tart, juicy form – we’re talking Zombie Dust territory here. Damn. Very light pale malt, with some mild European grains and estery, spicy yeast sit in the background. All fruit in this nose, with only a touch of real saison character.

T: Tangerine and peach: smooth, juicy flavors. The hops are sweet, only slightly tart, with a strawberry jelly and grape juice flavor in smaller portions; chewy fruit tastes take up the most of this palate. It’s a marmalade-heavy palate, with accompanying tastes of brown sugar and caramel. Sorghum sweetness with honey and moderately-thick yeast. The finish has a thick syrup flavor, but doesn’t last too long – only a little honey darkness for a second or two.

M: The feel of this one is actually pretty thick; not saison-like at all. Again, it reminds me of an IPA – a malty Three Floyds IPA.

O: What’s the point of a style if you just don’t stick to it? Oh well, it’s a tasty beer, and that’s all I really wanted anyway. It doesn’t satisfy on all levels, but as a standard Three Floyds hop-fest, it’s pretty damn close to a winner.

Serving type: bottle

10-13-2012 01:04:59 | More by BarryMFBurton

barczar

Kentucky

4.25/5  rDev +8.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours an opaque ruddy copper color with a solid half inch ivory head that dissipates slowly into a film covering the surface.

Tangerine, grapefruit, and coriander are the first aromatics I detect. There's substantial belgian yeast character, a bit of musty, sweaty barnyard, and an underlying tropical fruit character of mango and pineapple.

Flavor explodes with tropical fruit. Cantaloupe provides the background, with huge lime, mango, and pineapple notes dominating the initial sip. Grapefruit clears the fruit parade, which ends somewhat abruptly with a fairly dry, powdery, peppery finish. Barnyard funk is subdued. The malt character is slightly bready but somewhat grainy, as well.

Body is moderate, with high carbonation that lightens the mouthfeel. There's noticeable alcohol warmth.

Overall, a fruit bomb of a beer, extremely complex. Lacks a lot of farmhouse character, but would be interesting to see how this develops over time.

Serving type: on-tap

10-12-2012 21:07:22 | More by barczar

tewaris

Minnesota

3.15/5  rDev -19.6%
look: 2 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Thanks Frank!

Doesn't look like a saison... too dark with none of fluffy head etc etc

Interesting aroma... I am smelling (almost) barleywine like malts among other things. Thick, sweet, viscous and malty, and slightly hoppy. This beer is a lot of things but it is not a saison, IMO. Again, that's not important but it's not true to its label either. Among other "flaws", I do not find this remotely refreshing. But overall it cannot be called a bad beer.

2, 3, 3, 3, 4

Serving type: bottle

10-07-2012 17:40:23 | More by tewaris

dirtylou

Washington

4.13/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22oz bomber, split 3 ways, cheers @suncrust

appearance: served in my great lakes chalice, bright (but hazy) orange body, full creamy white head

smell: distinctively 3 floyds - bright citrus hop bouquet, juicy citrus, distant peppery spice

taste: Sure, it's not to style, but it's much better than Rabbid Rabbit. FFF influence is strong - De Molen is no stranger to hops either but outside of the label design, I would never have guessed they were involved. Bright juicy hops - tangerine, grapefruit, lemon.

mouthfeel: bold hop profile, slight dry finish

overall: very enjoyable

Serving type: bottle

10-01-2012 17:39:03 | More by dirtylou

JackieTH

Minnesota

3.93/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured a glowing reddish orange with a huge, persistent head that leaves copious lacing.

This is quite clearly a saison done FFF style. I'm getting hoppy tangerine citric notes, quite nicely hop forward in fact, though at the same time loading in a good quantity of malt. Spice is present in the form of pepper, also a bit of alcohol comes through. Notes of lemon and citric pith. Medium heavy for a saison. Lingering alcohol and hop flavors, with spice and hop bitterness. Very interesting.

Overall this isn't in my opinion a session saison, its a fairly substantial beast actually. A twist on the style with the recognizable FFF hop signature, which is clearly as intended. I enjoyed, more FFF magic. Why not.

Serving type: bottle

10-01-2012 05:19:53 | More by JackieTH

Knapp85

Pennsylvania

4.2/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This poured out as a hazy looking orange color with a nice looking white head on top. The head settles a bit but does leave behind a decent amount of retention and some lacing on the glass. The smell of this beer gives off some very interesting autumn aromas, like un-spiced pumpkin notes and some sweet grains in there too. The taste presents itself with even more unique flavors such as apple and more pumpkin like flavors, there is a hint of some spice or herbal flavors but nothing that I've ever tasted before. The mouthfeel was a bit heavier than I expected but still nicely done. Overall this beer is really neat, I wasn't sure what to expect at all from this but I left an empty glass with a sigh saying to myself "this was a really interesting brew". I would recommend trying this one for sure.

Serving type: bottle

09-29-2012 04:02:02 | More by Knapp85

deadonhisfeet

Kentucky

3.68/5  rDev -6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

My local bottle shop managed to get a small keg of this, which they held back and saved for a big Three Floyds tasting, and they sold pint growlers of it. This tasting sample was poured from a pint growler that same evening into a Dogfish Head snifter. The beer has a dark, orange-apricot color with a bit of a gold tint to it. It's pretty clear, but dark for a saison (although amber is acceptable). There are two fingers of head and it leaves some nice lacing. The nose is very sweet and fruit-forward with big notes of oranges and pineapples, though I don't get much spice or floral hop aroma. Nor do I get any acidic notes.

The beer has a medium body with a really creamy, slick mouthfeel. The flavor is very sweet and fruity up front, without being malty. The sweetness is almost cloying. The sweetness really kind of demolishes any tartness or subtle hoppy dryness one typically finds in this style. The best thing I can say about the sweetness is that it is of the citrus variety - primarily oranges and pineapples (as on the nose). A tiny bit of hop bitterness comes through at mid-palate, contributing a resiny, slightly coppery kind of taste. There is definitely a bit of alcohol warmth on the finish, but not much lingers except some of that citrusy sweetness. Overall, easy-drinking and enjoyable, but not as complex as I had hoped.

If this beer was a bit more hop-forward or had a bit more tartness to balance out some of that sweetness, we could be looking at a 5 beer here. As it is, I really, really enjoyed it. However, despite my appreciation for citrus-like flavors in beer, I think it was just a bit too sweet to be a Saison God.

Serving type: growler

09-28-2012 23:15:16 | More by deadonhisfeet

fvernon

Indiana

3.1/5  rDev -20.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Bomber poured into a FFF Teku glass. Looks a lot like gumballhead except for the thicker white head; the marigold orange is a bit surprising for a saison, but hopefully the aroma and taste will bring me back around.

Hmmm... dry-hopped with amarillo? There is some spicy white pepper, alcohol, lemon, and grapefruit on the nose, but the hop-forward quality is sort of building what I am starting to expect this to be: a very FFF take on a saison - a bit maltier and hoppier than I had originally anticipated. The flavor no longer takes me by surprise - a bit sweet, malty, strong on the citrus hops, a strong kick of alcohol, some peppery bite but not much. Although I'm not surprised now, I am a bit disappointed - it's lacking in the dry, light drinkability that I tend to go for in a saison and instead is a bit heavy, sweet, and not dissimilar enough from some of FFF's normal lineup of (delicious) hoppy ales.

Overall it's probably something some folks would really get behind, I'm gonna stick to the FFF brews that they excel at when I want a more hop-forward drink and get my saison fix elsewhere.

Serving type: bottle

09-27-2012 00:51:22 | More by fvernon

GJ40

North Carolina

4.05/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Sampled in a chalice from a 22oz bottle purchased at the brewery. No date on the bottle.

A - Golden and hazy with a dense, creamy head. Some lacing as the glass empties.

S - Fruity (orange) and spicy (black pepper). Seems like it has some American hops.

T - Rich flavors with fruit and a firm bitterness. The alcohol is apparent and warming. I started at 50 degrees but it gets even better as it warms.

M - The creamy head greets you and leaves a "got milk" feeling on your upper lip. A silky consistency with a moderate carbonation of fine bubbles.

O - Flavorful and interesting. Feels a bit big for the typical saison characteristics.

Serving type: bottle

09-26-2012 21:50:44 | More by GJ40

Florida9

Illinois

3.6/5  rDev -8.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: Very cloudy orange-amber in color. Forms a moderate sized white head that reduces down to a chunky surface coating and a thick, stable ring around the edge. Moderate lacing.

S: The nose is full of citrus and tropical fruit. Pineapple, mango, and orange with milder notes of fruit salad and sugar cookie.

T: Taste starts with a mild sweetness. Tropical fruit and citrus on the front end. But then it turns alcoholic, peppery, and fusel with a persistent acridness. Finish is long and drawn out.

M: The mouthfeel on this one is odd. Starts juicy, almost sticky, but finishes dry and astringent with an heavy alcoholic heat and spice. Carbonation is medium-heavy.

O: I didn't realize this was a Saison when I popped the bottle (I guess I should read the label in the future) and I never would have guessed it since it's not at all Saison-like. Overall, its a decent beer - I really like the hopping on this one - but I wonder how warm the temperature was on this beer while it was fermenting to have the yeast produce the assaulting alcoholic characteristic that are present in this beer.

Serving type: bottle

09-21-2012 00:49:09 | More by Florida9

cfrances33

Illinois

3.98/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bottle poured into a teku glass.

Pour: Completely hazy deep orange with two fingers of white head. Head hangs around a little bit, and leaves some nice lacing.

Smell: Pine and grapefruit on the nose. Some lemon zest in the back. This is a saison? ...oh FFF, of course.

Taste: Follows the nose with really, really sticky pine and oranges. Full flavored hop presence that has some saison attributes mixed in. Malt sweetness is pretty nice.

Mouthfeel: Really, really sticky. Wow. I did not expect this from this beer, and I'm not particularly pleased with it. It's good, just not what I wanted.

Overall: A decent beer that is just confused. Hop presence is really up front. Worth a try, but I'll probably spend my money on other FFF beer in the future.

Serving type: bottle

09-20-2012 22:28:31 | More by cfrances33

WillCarrera

Illinois

4.23/5  rDev +7.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

22 oz bomber, no bottled-on date, poured into a tulip glass. Name translates to 666 in Dutch.

A- Pours a hazy orange color, produces a thick inch of creamy beige head, settles down to a thick layer, nice retention, leaves loads of thick, crusty, gorgeous lacing. It looks amazing.

S- Holy crap the smell, absolutely huge, fresh, juicy citrus aroma, lots of grapefruit and mango. Also getting some nice dank, herbal hops, a bit of yeast and some spicy pepper.

T- Sweeter than I would have expected at the outset, with some sweet orange and tropical fruit flavor, mid-palate some herbal, floral hops pick up, along with a considerable dose of spice and some smooth belgian yeast. The finish is herbal and bitter. Alcohol is very well hidden.

M- Medium-bodied, nice carbonation, smooth crisp feel.

O- An interesting cross between a saison and an IPA (what do you expect from FFF), and it's done extremely well. The hops on this thing are incredibly bold and delicious, while the Belgian yeast and spiciness complement them nicely. A great collaboration. Hail Satan.

Serving type: bottle

09-19-2012 07:19:41 | More by WillCarrera

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

4.05/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Smooth grapefruit juice, hoppy yet not bitter, a great balance of spice and malt makes it a very tasty beverage indeed, also some melon and candy. Grapefruit aroma. Cloudy grapefruit appearance with some retained head. Thanks for the extra bottles, John

Serving type: bottle

09-19-2012 04:46:02 | More by northyorksammy

aasher

Indiana

4/5  rDev +2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I was very excited to see bottles of this hit Indy after hearing about how great it was on draft.

Zes Zes Zes pours a light bodied, slightly cloudy dark apricot orange in color with a very soapy, two finger bright white head. The nose is big and citrusy with loads of citrusy hop character and somewhat sweet pale malt sweetness. Nice nose, definitely on the American side of things. The flavors too, a nice balance of citrusy hops with moderate yeast character and some alcohol. It has nice balance but a little too much alcohol. It drinks light in body and is an off dry. Overall this is a fun saison but not the most balanced or Niue saison in the world. If you're looking for a hoppy, citrusy saison this is your beer.

Serving type: bottle

09-19-2012 02:27:32 | More by aasher

emerge077

Illinois

4.33/5  rDev +10.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Served in a tulip glass, quick review from written notes.

Dripping spotty lace, lasting veil over the surface. Bright orange body. Savory tropical aroma, alternating sweet and dry. Huge papaya and dried mango flavors. Finishes dry and clean, some lingering fruitiness with a bubblegum aftertaste. Impressions of fuzzy fruit skins and distinctive dried papaya. Great balance and unique flavors on display here...

Serving type: bottle

09-18-2012 16:45:05 | More by emerge077

DaveHack

Pennsylvania

3.98/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a murky, orange-brown. Fluffy white head dissapates leaving a nice amount of lacing.

Smells like grapefruit juice in a BIG way. There is also a musty smell smell, but not in the Brett sort of way.

Taste is citrusy grapefruit right away, then followed by some bitterness.

Mouthfeel is rather heavy. It really coats and covers the mouth on every sip.

Overall...I was so excited to try this, and while it is different than I expected, it is still very good. It is a crazy take on a saison, and definately something to try and enjoy!

Serving type: bottle

09-14-2012 00:47:36 | More by DaveHack

Etan

Illinois

4.08/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

22oz bottle into a Brooklyn tulip.

A: Pours a darkish orange with a great white head. Awesome lacing and retention.

S: Huge tropical dry-hopped aroma. Thick pineapple, pale malt, hint of pepper.

T: Big hop bitterness and peppery esters dominate the palate, with some pineapple and grapefruit and vanilla cake coming out from under the bitterness. Hints of lactose as well.

M: Light with crisp and slightly frothy carbonation.

O: The hop profile on this beer is amazing - it smells like straight pineapple juice. It certainly doesn't taste or smell like a saison, however...(more like a Belgian DIPA).

Serving type: bottle

09-12-2012 20:13:04 | More by Etan

ThePorterSorter

New York

4.5/5  rDev +14.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Thanks Tim for sharing this bottle...
The beer pours a rich looking amber with no head. The nose is pure grapefruit hops with a touch of funk...barnyard zombie dust? There just as much grapefruit in the taste and aftertaste along with good yeast character and sweetness. The beer's mouthfeel is medium with ample carbonation.
This is a great beer and an unexpected highlight at our tasting.

Serving type: bottle

09-09-2012 19:28:57 | More by ThePorterSorter

chanokokoro

Illinois

4.33/5  rDev +10.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at Three Floyds Brewpub, served in a tulip glass.

Served with a two finger fluffy white head hazy golden with amber hues. A fair amount of wispy lacing is evident as the head recedes. A combination of citrus, fresh cut grass, and notes of farmhouse yeast on the nose. Quite complex, citrus sweetness, lemongrass, some bready accents. Finishes dry with coriander-like spice and light citrus flowery hop bitterness. Suprisingly on the heavier side of medium-bodied well-carbonated. Malty and sweet for a saison however an extremely unique brew--almost seems to be a saison/DIPA hybrid. Throughly enjoyable.

Serving type: on-tap

09-09-2012 03:27:17 | More by chanokokoro

merc7186

New York

4.43/5  rDev +13%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I had this beer poured from a bomber into a snifter glass.

A: Hazy Golden Straw Hue, Passes Some Light, White Head Ring, Some Lacing

S: Tropical Fruit Explosion (passion fruit, pineapple, oranges), Grapefruit, Mild Corriander

T: Grapefruit, Passion Fruit, Mild Corriander

M: Decent Carbonation, Light to Medium Bodied, Mildly Sweet, Mildly Spicy

Overall, a really solid saison with a strong tropical fruit nose and taste..but worked.

Serving type: bottle

09-09-2012 01:51:07 | More by merc7186

sleuthdog

Illinois

4.43/5  rDev +13%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

2012 bottle poured into FFF Teku glass

Appearance: Zes is a murky orange color with one 1 &1/2 finger head with a careful pour. Head is soft white with tight bubbles and I can see a ton of bubbles rising up along the side of the glass adding to the tight bubbles that settled on the head. Some sticky lacing is present.

Smell: Funny I am getting a boat load of tropical notes up front. Some orange, pineapple and citrus aroma and a honey sweetness. Didn't expect that up front. There is some grassy hop notes there in the middle and a bready, yeast smell at the end.

Taste: Again the tropical aspect takes center stage. Citrus and sweet as hell for the style to me. There is some mid-palate bitterness that grabs some of the sweetness and pulls it back a notch. This is followed up by a tangy bready finish and a s This is a huge Saison.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied beer with moderate carbonation and fairly dry finish.

Overall: Truly did not expect this for the style. It surprised me in every aspect and I really enjoyed this one. I picked up two but will make a stop tomorrow for a couple more. This has that signature FFF taste and they just know how to knock it out of the park almost every time.

Serving type: bottle

09-08-2012 01:20:29 | More by sleuthdog

Shagtastic

Indiana

4.38/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to Patty and Jay for this one!

Poured into a Goose Island wine Glass

A: Pours a dark orange color with minimal head

S: Loads of citrus here. Really wasn't expecting this much even though I'd heard a ton about it.

T: Citrus is right up front there. Not much of a traditional Saison taste but really delicious regardless.

M: A little heavy for me with a saison but hides the abv pretty well

O: What a great beer. I was not expecting it to be as good as it was even with the hyped up previews I had. It almost tastes like a saisonified Zombie Dust (Patty you were right) Grab this one if you get a chance!

Serving type: bottle

09-06-2012 00:33:43 | More by Shagtastic

bears256

4.8/5  rDev +22.4%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

This beer is amazing. I have been waiting for a great follow up from some of the stuff released at Dark Lord like to live a rich life. This is great. Just picked up the Cognac Moloko and Risgoop as well as Camulet Queen last night. I have already taken down three of the Zes Zes Zes because it is so good. Diffently the stand out of all of them. I don't know how they do it. But 3 Floyd's remains the Kings of the beer world. And there isn't a close second.

Serving type: bottle

09-05-2012 20:04:13 | More by bears256