Saison - Hilliard's Beer

LiquidAmber

Washington

3.98/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Poured into a Nostradamus flute glass. Pours a slightly hazey light golden amber with a two finger white head that dissipates to a fine thick layer with lacing. Aroma of apple juice, saison yeast, a hint of wild yeast, bready malt. Flavor follows, with mild wild yeast, apple juice, light coriander; semi dry finish with residual lightly funky yeast and spice. Medium bodied with pleasant carbonation. A pleasant, low key saison that hits all the right notes for the style. Nothing mind blowing, but a very nicely made domestic saison.

Serving type: can

05-06-2013 02:33:25 | More by LiquidAmber

DerAtomsmasher

Washington

4.08/5  rDev +7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Really happy & surprised with this one. Been eyeing up the 4-packs in Trader Joe's for a while, but finally convinced myself to pick it up since it's a local brew.

Thick, thick head dissolving into a hazy lemon-yellow. Smells somewhere between pear & pineapple.

Taste completely took me by surprise; tastes almost like what you'd think an ale version of PIlsner Urquell would taste like; starfruit with a hay overtone, falling away to a clean, bitter finish.

Very happy with this; very eager to try the rest of the line-up.

Serving type: can

04-30-2013 03:59:20 | More by DerAtomsmasher

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

3.28/5  rDev -13.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

Thanks to FalconA for throwing this extra in along with the #properglassware.

Hazy yellow pour, with a fluffy cap of white head that settled to a ringlet, leaving moderate lacing on the glass. Aroma of toasted wheat, funk, earth. Taste was similar, wheat and biscuity pale malts, grassy funk, quite earthy, with notes of citrus pith. A little bit harsh and metallic on my palate, but then again, I've been spoiled with Tired Hands saisons for the past year. Light body, crisp, but a bit too lacking in flavor to be very drinkable IMO. Not undrinkable, but just not something I'd go back for.

Serving type: can

04-21-2013 10:29:03 | More by Rifugium

Braz

Washington

4.08/5  rDev +7.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Poured from can into glass at Parkway Tavern. Pale gold in color with white head. Active looking. Smells are bready with some light fruit notes. Taste notes are wide ranging. Bready, fruity, citrus, picked up a little clove as well. A sort of flavor explosion. Lighter bodied than I anticipated. Very enjoyable and unexpected.

Serving type: can

02-07-2013 19:09:19 | More by Braz

Wetpaperbag

Washington

3.63/5  rDev -4.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

A- Nice pale yellow color. Real light foamy head.

S- Smells like a BMC type beer mixed with a German Hefe.

T- The taste is interesting. It is similar to the smell. BMC with a German Hefe mixed in for flavor. Clove and banana esters are the driving flavors for me here. Savory comes to mind for me.

M- Very light and carbonated, almost too carbonated for me.

O- Not too bad, would be a great summer hot day beer. A good combo for a hot day .

Serving type: can

02-03-2013 22:31:51 | More by Wetpaperbag

bizweasel

Washington

3/5  rDev -21.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3

Can, to various glasses over time.
A: Decent enough straw color, not cloudy. Pretty thin white head when poured.
S: Strong banana ester and grassy. Not the greatest intro.
T: A sourness that doesn't really successfully mimic how Belgian beers are sour. Not a lot of malt to finish the taste. Not the kind of complexity and spice I'd expect from a Saison.
M: Carbonation OK, but the false sour figures into the mouthfeel too.
D: I am willing to cut some slack for a Saison in a can because the idea is cool. But after repeated tries have to say this is at best average beer, not a repeater. For canned beers there are lots of fine examples of other styles, and for Saison there are so many better ones to be had in bottles.

Serving type: can

02-01-2013 01:35:49 | More by bizweasel

barleywinefiend

Washington

3.03/5  rDev -20.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A: Poured a cloudy glowing yellow with a nice white cap

S: Very spicey, fruity, banana esters, some wheat

T: Big yeast presence on this initially. Some citrus and banana really take over balanced with a sordove sulfur meets spiciness. The finish has a lingering yeast, fruit presence with dying spices, sordove cloying.

M: Light to medium bodied. Bleh. Not exactly my cup o tea. Just does not have the taste or feel of a Saison to me. If I didnt know any better I would say it was a hef, meet Belgian Pale

O: Not a bad beer. However, compared to other traditional farmhouse beers like Logdsons I find it very hard to rate it any higher than average.

Serving type: on-tap

12-23-2012 21:48:56 | More by barleywinefiend

Bitter_Echo

Michigan

3.88/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a deep, pils-like dark yellow with low and rapidly fading head. Smells out-doorsy, but not really funky, just hints of it, and bread and yeast and some floral a young fruit notes. Tastes like it smells, and is moderately tart puckering, and well balanced, with subtle sweetness. HInting at a few weird notes, but nothing curiously off or suggestively scary. Probably a good saison to start with for someone who might find hearty barn-like notes a bit off-putting. A good entry saison.

Serving type: bottle

12-02-2012 18:21:42 | More by Bitter_Echo

mdaschaf

Washington

3.93/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Pours a hazy yellow/orange with a massive foamy white head on top, very thick with nice retention and pretty lacing down the sides.

S: Rather bready up front with a bit of citrus coming through lemon, some grass, and a bit of spicy pepper.

T: A bit fruitier than the aroma with some lemon, melon, and a bit of banana. There is a hint of bubblegum and a slight sweetness. Light spices round out the flavor profile.

M: Medium bodied with active carbonation, rather smooth.

O: A solid saison, not earth shattering, but no problems with it either. Easy drinking, would have it again.

Serving type: can

11-30-2012 16:01:57 | More by mdaschaf

gkatsoris

Pennsylvania

4.48/5  rDev +17.9%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: Crazy super light yellow....pretty lol. Lots and lots and lots of little bubbles. Thin whispy head. Lots of bubbles.

S: Funkylicious! Leather, an old couch. Musty and musky. Slight lemon/pineapple. Man I love this smell.

T: Again, funkylicious! Yummy funky too.

M: Tingy. Thin and whispy. Love it!!!

O: I couldn't drink these all day, but man this was one enjoyable brew!!!!

Serving type: can

11-23-2012 00:14:44 | More by gkatsoris

harrymel

Washington

3.55/5  rDev -6.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Canned at some point before getting to my face.

Pours a hazy lemon with a solid sheet of fine white foam. Smells musty, dusty, farmy, some yeast, some grain, some milky character. I like the nose, has the unbound notes I find promising in a beer such as this. Flavor is yeasty, a little much so. Still meanders with some farm, some hay, some manure and clay, but a little too much of the yeast is a bit cloying. Medium on full bodied with a low carb and a semi dry finish. Nice enough. I like where they're headed with this.

Serving type: can

11-10-2012 05:56:41 | More by harrymel

searsclone

Arizona

4.4/5  rDev +15.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

poured from a can into an imperial pint glass. hazy butterscotch with a puffy white head that lasts

smell is bread and sour fruit and a touch of bubble gum

taste is very balanced sweet and sour fruit followed by bread

mouthfeel is very sharp at 1st, almost burns the lips, then very chewy and creamy with a dry finish

overall, I think this one is great

Serving type: can

10-03-2012 01:27:03 | More by searsclone

hmph

Virginia

4.13/5  rDev +8.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Another one received in a box from Lordkrystic, thanks again!

A - very hazy yellow with some darker hues due to the haze, small head disappears quickly, ring of carbonation bubbles up on the edges and leaves an afterthought of lacing

S - pepper spice and lemon grass, hint of clove and maybe some wheat, strong belgian yeast smell as well

T - Thicker on the taste than the smell would imply, some lighter lemon grass taste subsides to a nice musky wheat funk in the mid palate that seems to linger on, really well rounded taste for a saison, it has some 'thickness' to the taste , almost creamy, very delectable and a sweetness to match the tartness really digging the taste

O - Very surprising to find this kind of quality Saison/Farmhouse from a can, it has incredible depth and complexity that most Saison's seem to miss, this is a very balanced (read as you can taste the more than just the yeast) Saison that I would love to have again, one of my new favorites for the style, very well done

Serving type: can

09-27-2012 17:38:19 | More by hmph

woemad

Washington

3.08/5  rDev -18.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

16oz can purchased for $2.59 at Main Market Co-Op in Spokane. No obvious freshness date on the can.

Poured a clear, slightly dark golden color, with a big, sudsy bone-white head that dropped away withion a couple of minutes. Looks a lot like a macro-lager.

A little bit spicy in the nose. This spiciness is all that stands out, otherwise it would just smell like an averaged mass-consumption lager.

Mild spicy notes and a grassy hop flavor greet the taste buds. There’s a real subtle, dry fruit flavor in the background. After that, it’s a quiet, unremarkable fadeout.

Medium bodied, with a slightly prickly mouthfeel.

A fairly plain example of a Saison. Once again I find a beer from Hilliard to be pretty unremarkable. I won’t need to try it again.

Serving type: can

09-09-2012 20:23:48 | More by woemad

draheim

Washington

3.9/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

16oz into a Hennepin glass. Pours a hazy yellow w/ a sudsy white head, a few sticky chunks of lace, moderate carb.

Aroma is spice, pepper, clove and a hint of banana - this could almost be a hefeweizen.

Taste is soft Belgian yeast, pale malt, floral old world hops, and some vague spice.

Mouthfeel is soft, medium bodied. Crisp, clean refreshing.

Overall a fairly bland saison. Drinkable and enjoyable, but not on the same level as my favorites. A good entry-level saison at a reasonable price.

Serving type: can

08-13-2012 05:02:10 | More by draheim

mactrail

California

4/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Big foam-up in the Affligem chalice. Nice sudsy appearance and mouthfeel. Light lemon color. Slight aroma of yeast. Light bodied.

A touch of meaty and mushroomy flavors. Tangy and creamy. A little toast in the taste. Really a nicely made and spritzy beer with a modest but a delightful flavor. Some of the Belgian flavors but not as strong as many Saisons. It seems like a great example of a lighter interpretation of the style. Appropriate alcohol content.

Thoroughly drinkable and pleasing brew. From the 16 oz can. If there are still any can skeptics out there, this is one to check out.

Serving type: can

08-13-2012 04:14:18 | More by mactrail

Mora2000

Texas

3.43/5  rDev -9.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to 5000 for sending this can my way.

The beer pours a yellow color with a white head. The aroma is full of wheat and biscuit malt, with some Belgian yeast and white pepper notes thrown in. The flavor is a little more complex. I get some nice orange citrus notes, as well as some wheat, Belgian yeast, white pepper and biscuit malt. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation.

Serving type: can

08-05-2012 20:25:41 | More by Mora2000

EgadBananas

Louisiana

4.05/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a hazy, sunny color. Opaque, with a bright white finger or so of head. Poured into a Stone Nonic.

The aroma is very musky, with a dank bready note, yeast, wheat and spicy, earthy tones.

The taste is musky too, with a hint of nuttiness, wheat, funk, yeast and bread, with some citrus notes.

Light-medium bodied, lightly crisp, slightly dry.

A rather dank and musky Saison, and I'm digging it.

Serving type: can

07-21-2012 02:44:46 | More by EgadBananas

OneDropSoup

Pennsylvania

3.73/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to bbarnumboy for the can! I really dig the design, first of all - cool retro tall boy feel.

Poured into a stemmed tulip: Cloudy golden-yellow body with loads of tiny, fast nucleation under two fingers of soft, champagne-like head that drops but stays at a half-finger.

Very light aroma, kind of grassy, kind of like under-ripe banana, kind of like dried apricot, kind of doughy.

Taste is fruitier, with some passion fruit, dried apricot & peach, a kind of menthol buoyancy, but turning very dry while retaining a kind of bubblegum flavor. Interesting, & recognizably farmhouse but pretty approachable. The sweetness & tartness surrounds the tongue at the sides but doesn't hit the center, making for a really interesting taste/feel synthesis.

Medium-bodied, a little sweet, a little more tart, a little more dry. It's got that inflating quality that a lot of saisons have, that makes me feel so bloated.

Not bad, pretty approachable, nothing really outstanding about it but no real flaws, either. Pretty satisfying.

Serving type: can

06-25-2012 22:19:06 | More by OneDropSoup

dirtylou

Washington

4.1/5  rDev +7.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

16oz tallboy

I've probably had 25-30 of these things...at the brewery (sweet room, Ballard), on the Puget Sound paired with the freshest oysters in the world, used as a broth for mussels, and most recently, on the couch watching the eurocup

appearance: classic can design. served in an odell imperial pint (for some reason, didnt use the hilliards can-pint for this one)...hazy peach body, creamy white froth with moderate retention

smell: fresh, grassy, lemon zest, light spice

taste: The concept of having a local (~0.5 miles from my house) canned saison is extremely useful. Not only is it portable, the saison is in my opinion the most functional and versatile beer on the planet. The hilliards version is quite light on the funk compared to belgian counterparts but has a pulpy delicious freshness to it - tangerine, lemon zest, peach, pear, crisp yeast, light spice.

mouthfeel: medium-light, creamy

overall: a very pleasant local saison

Serving type: can

06-08-2012 23:55:40 | More by dirtylou

libbey

Washington

3.98/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

16oz can poured into a Deschutes tulip

A: The beer pours a very cloudy straw yellow/orange with a nice cap of pure white head that leaves a nice trail of spotty lacing throughout the session.

S: Layers of barnyard funk mingle with the smells of freshly cut grass and a touch of lemon zest and spice.

T: Front end is not quite as funky as the nose would lead you to believe. Pretty fruity with layers of lemon and spice combining with a nice bready yeasty finish. Really tasty.

M: The carbonation levels are spot on and carry this light bodied saison perfectly. The flavors dance on the pallet and the overall finish is fairly dry and crisp for the style which I like.

O: Overall this is very nice saison offering in a can from Hilliard's. I look forward to drinking more of these throughout the summer on the deck. Yum.

Serving type: can

05-16-2012 00:02:51 | More by libbey

bstave

Washington

4/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Tall boy in awesome retro can.

A- Poured cloudy orange with a nice white head.

S- Big barnyard funk with orange peel and lemon zest.

T- Barnyard funk, wheat, citrus

M- Tart, refreshing and highly quaffable.

O- Not a lot of experience with this style other then Saison Dupont. I really enjoyed this beer as it portrayed lots of interesting flavors and can imagine this being really refreshing on a warm summer day. Great job.

Serving type: can

05-03-2012 03:40:07 | More by bstave

grittybrews

Washington

3.78/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured a pale yellow-orange with a finger of bright white head. Gentle aroma of lemon, a touch of orange, grass, and mild spice.

Moderate carbonation and a light, creamy mouthfeel. Wheat up front with lemon, green apple, a trace of funk, and some earthy spice on the dry finish.

Light and pretty refreshing, but the overall flavor profile wasn't too memorable.

Serving type: can

04-20-2012 03:15:22 | More by grittybrews

msubulldog25

Oregon

3.95/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

One from a 4-pack of 16 oz. cans, picked up earlier this week at Whole Foods-Westlake in Seattle. Cracked and glugged to an imperial pint glass.

'Classy' label, harkening to 1960s design/spirit: a zigzag-ing herringbone pattern and calligraphied font. 'One Pint of Beer'

A: A milky/cloudy version of 'blonde'; a paler yellow with abundant carbonation. Really hazy, in fact. A fluffed white topping (a finger, maybe?) that dies rather abruptly. Broken skim of cream on top and some good lace. All told, it's a nice-looking saison.

S: A sweeter, honey-drenched kind of saison. Bready, fruity (apples primarily), a sprig of herbal greenness. A twinge that's not quite 'sour', but that definitely falls into the nebulous 'funky' category. Really nice strength - it grows better and better as it warms.

T: Solid 'farmhouse' ale: loads of baked bread (with a peppery-dry backbone and minty 'menthol' quality as well). Peppery and very dry spicing, a chalky 'mineral' quality, too. Bitter in the end, almost to a fault.

M: Light-medium body, good effervescence/carbonation. A slighlty coating malt/grain effect. Finishes bone dry and quite crisp.

O: I haven't tried too many canned Saisons, so comparisons are lacking. This is NOT better than Surly's canned version of the style, but it's still plenty tasty AND not far behind. Worth having again and certainly worth snagging a 4-pack if you're in Hilliard's extremely limited distribution area.

Serving type: can

03-30-2012 08:20:15 | More by msubulldog25

flagmantho

Washington

4.15/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from 16oz tall can into a tulip. The fact that tulip-appropriate beer even comes in a 16oz tall can pleases me.

Appearance: light yellow silvery-golden hue with a light haze and a moderate effervescence. Head pours two thick fingers of pillowy white foam. Overall, pretty nice.

Smell: light, sweet malt with just the right amount of dank funk. It's not too heavy, but it's strong enough to let you know you're drinking a saison. Basic, but very well-executed; I like it.

Taste: very much like the aroma, but with a fruitier character. This reminds me very much of a slightly sweet, fruity tripel with just a hint of funk; the flavor is less funky than the aroma. I like it.

Mouthfeel: medium body with a big carbonation and very big creaminess. Love it.

Overall: while the flavor might be saison-lite, it's also very tripel-ey, which I love. This may be the best beer I've had from a can; certainly it is in a Belgian style.

Serving type: can

03-14-2012 23:10:40 | More by flagmantho