Brooklyn Sorachi Ace - Brooklyn Brewery

SirSketch

Massachusetts

3.3/5  rDev -20.3%
look: 5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

A - The bright white, shampoo foam head is a beautiful sight, and the beer itself is pale gold and fairly clear throughout.

S - Boatloads of peppercorns and coriander spiciness mixed with a grassy, vegetal hop character, as well as some lemon.

T - The taste is not what you could expect. The spice is now a bit more like holiday spice. There is a woody, tree bark flavor and a taste I can only describe as lemon Pledge, which I attribute to the hops. It's not too bad, but definitely different.

M - Crisp, but not overly dry. Fizzy, with a light to medium body.

O - The strange flavor here must be the Sorachi Ace, and I am not a fan. It would be better without it.

Serving type: bottle

09-23-2011 02:54:50 | More by SirSketch

bigflatsbeerman

New York

3.3/5  rDev -20.3%
look: 5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 5 | overall: 3

Appearance: What I think a saison should look like, a hazy golden color.
Smell: A very pronounced lemon scent.
Taste: I liked the first half pint of the 750 ml bottle (noteworthy: this is a 100% fermented ale). The rest was a chor as I found the "lemony fresh" smell and taste to be too much (if it was a claening product it would be spot on).
Mothfeel: Light, this would be a great summer beer, which saisons were designed for.
Overall: Average, I like the fact they did a saison and 100% bottel conditioned, but I am not a huge fan of the lemon taste.

Serving type: bottle

02-11-2012 23:59:30 | More by bigflatsbeerman

brureview

Massachusetts

3.3/5  rDev -20.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

The beer poured a beautiful amber color with a 4 finger head.

A strong lemon smell from the head, and a well carbonated mouth feel.

The finish was very lemony, but not fruity-smooth as in other saisons, and the bitterness seemed out of place in this style.

Overall worth trying to compare with other saisons. I prefer a mellower saison with more fruited presence and less alcohol in the finish.

Serving type: bottle

04-16-2012 02:39:15 | More by brureview

thekanna

Maryland

3.33/5  rDev -19.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Had on-tap at Kramerbooks and Afterwords Cafe; it was labeled Brooklyn "Brewmaster's Reserve" on their menu.

A: Served in a Belgian beer barleywine goblet. Hazy straw yellow, a bit reminiscent of the color of a good witbier. This was capped off with a thin white head around the rim.

S: Pear and lemon zest, a bit of funkiness; some horse blanket, grass, and medicinal aromas also.

T: Medicinal herbs, pear, lemon, generic citrus zest, slight earthiness, and some horse stall funk. Ended in a slightly bitter, herbal medicine-type hop flavor. Medicinal taste with horse blanket was a bit off-putting.

M: Medium-bodied and juicy with ample effervescent carbonation.

D: Definitely a unique taste, but I think I'm good with having it just once.

Serving type: on-tap

08-01-2010 15:21:08 | More by thekanna

dca1972

Ohio

3.35/5  rDev -19.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Sorry if Ive got this wrong ... long time member, first time reviewer.

A ... Light, golden
S ... Floral, bright, hoppy
T ... Creamy hop character
M ... bubbly, light

Has a lingering taste that changes. More Pils than Saison. Unexpected ABV @ 7.5%
Impressive offering from Brooklyn Brew
Seems to mellow as it breathes, warms

Serving type: on-tap

08-02-2011 22:13:34 | More by dca1972

Wadsey

Indiana

3.35/5  rDev -19.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Brooklyn Sorachi Ace

Served in New Belgium globe glass

A: Pours clear pale gold with 3-inch, white head that crashes quickly and leaves modest lacing. Great effervescence. 

S: White pepper and perfume/floral notes. Lot of lemon on nose, too. Some grainy malts are also evident. 

T: A touch of malty sweetness before pepper spice, grains and lemon take over.  Medium bitterness. Finish is lemon peels and lemon zest. 

M: Medium body and medium-heavy carbonation. Creamy, soft mouthfeel despite robust carbonation. 

O: Sorachi Ace hops fit well with  Saison yeast, a little too well, perhaps. This beer is quite simple, but I do find it reasonably enjoyable. 

Serving type: bottle

08-07-2011 09:47:25 | More by Wadsey

jamie2dope

Massachusetts

3.4/5  rDev -17.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

I have had this a couple times from the tap, but this will be my first time from the bottle. The color is golden straw, with tons of air bubbles, and a very large, frothy white head. I have to say that when I tried it last, it had a sort of burnt rubber aroma to it, which I attributed to the Sorachi Ace hops. In this case, there is still some of that, but significantly toned down, and more dominated by tropical fruit such as papaya, mango, as well as some dry grain. The flavor starts out on the sweet side, with the fruit coming through nicely, and then ends on a more bitter note from the hops. The mouthfeel is lively, and quite nice on the palate, with prickly carbonation. One glass is enough for me right now, though I will definitely be finishing this bottle over the next few days. Unfortunately, the problem with this beer is what it is centered around: the Sorachi hops. At least for me, this is not a preferable varietal. On the flip side, good for Brooklyn for jumping on this new hop strain.

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2010 02:30:46 | More by jamie2dope

TheBeerAlmanac

Kentucky

3.4/5  rDev -17.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottle poured into a tulip

A: Pours a very light and hazy whitish gold color with an absolutely huge white head that forms a solid sponge.

S: Smells very Belgian with apricots, figs, some pastry malts and a hint of coriander spice.

T/M: There is a very high amount of carbonation and a light hoppiness up front with some lemon and vanilla notes, biscuit malts followed by apricot bring up the reasonably clean finish.

It’s good, pretty complex and very well balanced. This isn’t the boldest of beers but it’s good. But, I mean, look at that label, huh?

Serving type: bottle

07-21-2011 22:46:10 | More by TheBeerAlmanac

Thorpe429

Illinois

3.41/5  rDev -17.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.25

On tap at The Brickskeller. Reviewed from notes.

Pours a light straw lemon color with some haze. Good white head. Nose is lemon, grass, and a bit of earth. The taste brings out lemon, grass, some herbs, and a hint of earth. Bitter and dry. Drinks well.

Serving type: on-tap

10-19-2010 22:27:58 | More by Thorpe429

TheycallmeTim

New York

3.43/5  rDev -17.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3

Growler from Bierkraft in Brooklyn poured into a Hennepin flute.

A--Bright, bright yellow--the color of Troegs Sunshine Pils--with a two finger rocky head. Lots of lacing, plenty of bubbles while sitting throughout the tasting, even in a glass without a nucleation point. Very snappy looking beer, especially in the heat.

S--Heavily floral, with an oddly biting peppery back end. This is some weird hop action. No pine, no citric notes except massive LEMON I could pick up. There's also enough coriander to make an herbal tea out of. Yeast may lend some pepper, too. Malt is non-existent in the nose.

T--And the flavor spectrum. That's ok, especially given the season. Not like I was expecting much in that dept. anyway from the color. Let's stick to the hops, since they're supposed to be spotlighted. Like the nose, the flavor is very lush floral up front immediately--just a waterfall of like rose petals. Like that scene in American beauty except with beer instead of a naked high school girl. Hops quickly pan out into something more earthy and herbal, and the peppery bite of the nose is even bigger due to the (over)use of coriander. The spice really overpowers this hop-focused saison, and it tastes, honestly, more like an imbalanced wit than a farmhouse ale. The yeast from Brooklyn is just too, um, everyday (i wanna say boring but think that's too harsh) to warrant anything Belgian about it, I feel. But the hops finish is bitter and full and satisfying.

M&D--Creamy, champagne-like mouthfeel. Excellent. Drinkability takes a hit only because I'd rather see a pale ale or something that highlights the hop more, since the variety has such a damn interesting flavor profile. I feel like its characteristics are a bit obscured because of the style the brewery chose. But it does go down smooth and easy.

A big beer, not a subtle beer--and that's where I think it falls short. Brooklyn doesn't really impress when it tries to do complex, high-end brews, because they tend to blur together. Blindfolded I couldn't say I could pick this out from a Local 1. But maybe that's just me.

Serving type: growler

08-05-2009 22:26:59 | More by TheycallmeTim

canjeeps

Pennsylvania

3.43/5  rDev -17.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Very excited to pop this one with Bottlequeststeve. Picked it up at wegmans a few months ago for $12ish. Any to the brew
A- very gold to light gold color. Very well carbonated. Bubbles were sticking on the sides of the glass. Decent head

S- very Saison like. Earthy a touch of sweetness and then I got the Sorachi hop presence. Quite strong hop smell

T- the first sip was like how it first smelled. Good at first then ingot pounded by the hop bitterness. I like hops but this one was just bitter and outbid balence.

M- good, exactly what it should be for this style

O- this one was disappoint. It was just to bitter and not in a good way. Maybe with some more time the hop bitterness will fade

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2011 15:24:28 | More by canjeeps

PorterLambic

Florida

3.45/5  rDev -16.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Arrives clear and golden with a full finger plus of white foam sitting atop. Drops to a thickish film while leaving copious lace behind.
Smell is weak but notes of wheat, wet cardboard, oak and some faint malt and lemon.
Taste is exactly as expected with malt, wheat, oak, lemon (faint), and light spice notes.
Fairly full bodied for a saison with solid but not overwhelming effervescence throughout. A solid brew.

Serving type: on-tap

04-04-2012 00:23:26 | More by PorterLambic

jsled

Vermont

3.48/5  rDev -15.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Corked+caged 750ml bottle, bought at Winooksi Beverage Warehouse, into Sam Adams Sensory Pint glass.

Appearance: slightly hazy golden straw. Thick, solid head, ~2 inches, supported and reinforced by copious carbonation.

Smell: citrus. slight barnyard funk.

Taste: bubblegum. slight funk. citrus rind. relatively balanced between initial sweet/tart bright citrus flavor and lingering bitterness.

Mouthfeel: slightly bitting due to high carbonation, slightly tart, but light and pleasant.

Drinkability: pretty nicely balanced, crisp and clear, a little funky for a bit too long, but it comes back into harmony.

Serving type: bottle

05-30-2010 21:42:09 | More by jsled

Tilley4

Tennessee

3.48/5  rDev -15.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Finally getting to give this one a try after hearing some good things from various folks...

A nice cloudy yeasty looking pour topped by one very impressive head... Very much looks the part of a Saison for sure...

The yeasty aromas dominate all the way here with the slightest tinge of hop aromas on the back end... Lots of lemon or lemongrass one present... Very earthy aromas as well..

Citrusy lemony wheat flavors mingle with the yeast presence here and blend fairly well... Not sure if it's an elite Saison but a pretty good effort nonetheless...

I liked it fairly well.. Not sure if I would revisit it at the price point but I'm sure glad I got to try it out...

Serving type: bottle

03-21-2011 18:27:20 | More by Tilley4

kbnooshay

New York

3.48/5  rDev -15.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Big corked and caged bottle with an attractive label, especially the back. Poured a hazy glowing light golden straw color withe a billowing frothy white head that holds shape when you finger it. Shrinks in a few minutes leaving minimal spotted lacing. Smells lemony with light herbal grassy verge notes. This doesn't taste like your average saison. The citrus notes are great but the sorachi hops are odd. There is a weird medicinal earthy taste from them. Fairly bitter for a saison. Feel is light to medium. Drinkable, but again the unique grassy medicinal taste kinda puts me off a little.

Serving type: bottle

08-18-2011 23:30:19 | More by kbnooshay

fo5s

District of Columbia

3.5/5  rDev -15.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

750mL served in a duvel tulip. No bottle dating, and honestly I'm not sure when this one was brewed...offhand I think it's rather fresh, but who knows.

A- Aggressive pour yields a lively head with big bubbles. Golden in color with minimal signs of lacing. Slightly hazy.

S- Bready, earthy, not much on the fruity angle.

T- Slightly spicy, overpowering flavor on the back-end of lemongrass - medicinal without enough earthiness to counterbalance. Just a hint of citrus from the sorachi ace poking through. Very dry.

M- Dry on the palate. Lively carbonation. Done quite well.

O- well put together, but the lemongrass is a bit dominating for me. Not my favorite, but a solid brew and I can certainly understand why some folks love this.

Serving type: bottle

08-27-2011 05:05:02 | More by fo5s

TheHopHeadGirl

District of Columbia

3.5/5  rDev -15.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

It's a single hop saison, germanpilsner malts, with spices, golden farmhouse ale. Has a 7.6% etoh. Reminds me of honey basil from berkley & saison du buff from dogfish. It would be great with food. My 1st time having it is @ pig & fish in rehoboth for $i a 16oz glass.

Serving type: on-tap

05-24-2012 22:30:31 | More by TheHopHeadGirl

organicbrewer

Pennsylvania

3.53/5  rDev -14.7%
look: 5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A-Nearly brilliant gold. Huge cloudlike head. Lots of tiny bubbles rising from the bottom of the glass.

S-Lemon pledge. Some cinnamon and cumin. Woodsy, not like oak but like a forest. Some pine.

T-Nice light crackery malt flavor. Firmly bitter, but not harsh. Lemon scented soap. more pine. Slight spicy phenols.

M-Fairly dry. Very prickly from the carbonation.

D-Interesting beer. A dry bitter "farmhouse" ale. the Sorachi Ace hops are pretty strange. a mix of lemon soap, pine, and kitchen spices. This is good, but I don't want another bottle. I'd like to try a Sorachi Ace beer that didn't focus entirely on the single hop strain.

Serving type: bottle

06-24-2010 00:21:21 | More by organicbrewer

SFLpunk

Vermont

3.53/5  rDev -14.7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

750mL brown glass cork and cage finished bottle. No date.

Appearance: A hazy yellow with lots of sudsy fluffy bone-white head that stands up tall like meringue.

Nose: Lemon zest and violets. Smells like a field of wild flowers with some citrus raining down over it.

Palate: Crisp with some tart acidity. The hops are somewhat out of balance with the body. There's lots of bitter lemon zest and chive flavors. Herbal and floral too. Body is sharp and snappy to start but then gets fat and flabby like lemon balm.

Notes: Starting to think that I don't care much for this hop. A decent brew, but out of balance.

Serving type: bottle

08-22-2010 05:07:49 | More by SFLpunk

rhoadsrage

Illinois

3.53/5  rDev -14.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

(Served in a tulip glass)
A- This beer pours a crystal clear pale yellow with a big white creamy head that last for a good bit. There is a strong carbonation of tiny bubbles that swirl to the surface.
S- The big bright hops are full of green lemons with a spearmint quality to them followed by a yellow apple saison yeast quality. This beer smells a bit like lemon dish soap in the finish and that aroma grows as the beer warms.
T- The taste of lemon dish soap is followed by a yeasty note then a dry pungent hop finish. The bitter finish lingers a bit. As the beer opens up the dish soap and bitterness grows with a thyme quality and a note of raw grain coming through aswell.
M- This beer has a light mouthfeel with a tight fizzy finish and no alcohol heat.
D- I just couldn't get past the strong soap smell and taste but there is a great saison underneath. Oddly enough the saison underneath is what kept me drinking the whole bottle. The last glass took on a natural lime-base cleaning taste similar to simple green.

Serving type: bottle

09-03-2010 02:27:23 | More by rhoadsrage

jwinship83

Illinois

3.53/5  rDev -14.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

750ml corked and caged bottle gifted to me from a coworker. drank from my duvel tulip. ive seen this before several times, but never pulled the trigger.

A- this one pours a hazy golden yellow colored body with slight orange highlights. a tall bright white finger of fluffy head sits on top and has excellent retention. large spots of lacing are left behind.

S- the initial whiff brings lots of lemon zest and pale malts. after that i get some almost funky notes and some pepper. slightly earthy/musty.

T- the taste starts out with some pale malts and is quickly followed by lots of mild lemon flavors. spicy black pepper moves in next. a little but musty and old tasting. earthy, spicy, and herbal hops in the finish.

M- light bodied with a high level of carbonation. about what i was expecting from the style. dry on the finish. the alcohol is well hidden.

O- i liked this, but it wasnt my favorite saison. the price point (i think its like $16) makes it something that i doubt ill buy anytime soon. still an enjoyable beer though.

Serving type: bottle

04-02-2011 15:22:32 | More by jwinship83

TheDinger

South Carolina

3.53/5  rDev -14.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

750ml bottle caged and corked poured into a weizen glass. A great looking beer with a cloudy golden wheat haze. Awesome 3 finger pillow off-white head that faded to one finger. Decent lacing start to finish. Smell was a bit faint, but picked up notes of citrus, honey, cloves and banana bread. Taste followed the nose with a tart front end and smooth finish. Some spices crept through as it warmed. A little bit of a fizzy afterhit that was odd. Didn't enjoy the bitter fizz as it sort of crowded out the citrus/fruit. Mouthfeel was a good bit of carbonation and fizz. Not watery and a little dry. Overall- I was wanting a little more from this Farmhouse Ale. The taste was a little bitter for me and I like this style with less of a hop bite. The honey, cloves and wheat are prominent up front and it is still a good effort from Brooklyn. Have yet to have a bad beer from them. Not bad and would have another. Cheers-

Serving type: bottle

12-10-2011 04:02:28 | More by TheDinger

JayQue

Virginia

3.53/5  rDev -14.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pretty good beer, but hardly an exceptional Saison. Looks the part. Big delicately bubbling white head. Good retention and lacing.

Pleasant aroma, but did not stand up to the marinaded chicken and steak that came off the grill. Most of the good Sasions I have enjoyed were paired with dinner. The flavor and aroma usually stood out.

The aroma and taste featured some lemon zest and mild hoppiness. The earthy, funky flavor I usually associate with Saisons was not there.

Mouthfeel was good. Rich and crisp. A very pleasant drinking experience but not a great Saison.

Serving type: bottle

06-18-2012 01:11:32 | More by JayQue

rogueleonardi

Ohio

3.55/5  rDev -14.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A - golden blonde, high carbonation with tons of bubbles coming from the bottom, and a good inch of pure white head.

S - Lots of yeast, some citrus, mostly likely lemons or lemon peel. Nice malt aroma to it as well

T - Definitly not what I was expecting. On the bottle they describe this as "Sunshine in a bottle." With that kind of description I was expecting a much more dynamic citrus taste. Maybe some oranges and grapefruit with the lemons. Instead it was just a small out of bitter lemon flavor with a ton of yeast and some sweet malt that tried to even out with no success.

M - Lots of carbonation, felt good on the tongue. Bitter, and with the high amount of yeast it was rough drinking.

O - This was a pretty average beer. Nothing exciting about it. I've had blue moons that have tasted better. Was not worth the $14 that I paid for 750ml.

Serving type: bottle

01-25-2012 17:33:20 | More by rogueleonardi

Pahn

New York

3.55/5  rDev -14.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

750ml bottle into Duvel tulip.

Appearance: Careful pour yields a 3 inch fizzy white head that dissipates slowly and leaves a few spots of lacing. Pours a hazy yellow. Not much lacing.

Smell: Effervescent Belgian yeast aromas and lemony hops. Spicy; some black pepper notes along with the lemon zest and herbal plus candy sweet yeast aromas. Good mix.

Taste: Creamy and lemony up front, then a hit of sweet yeasty flavor, with a bready finish. Moderately dry. Pleasant enough.

Further in, the dryness catches up with me (welcomely, but it is a bit much), along with some mild black pepper flavor. The sweetness also amps up, which is not a good thing. I like the savory aromas and flavors coming from highlighting Sorachi Ace as this beer does, but this sweetness is a bit sickening.

Some sips really work, especially the more savory ones. Others tempt me to pour the rest of the bottle down the drain. The good ones outnumber the bad, and it gets better with warmth. I'm not falling in love with it, but the flavor combo usually makes sense.

Mouthfeel: Light side of medium bodied. Creamy, with high carbonation. Pretty dry finish.

Overall: While this is not a poorly put together beer, and I strongly like some of the hop flavor, the sum of its parts just isn't working for me. Good aroma, some small wow factor in the taste, but in the end I'd rather drink something else.

Serving type: bottle

04-11-2012 01:00:34 | More by Pahn