Saison D'Epeautre - Brasserie de Blaugies

ausonius

New York

4.28/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

From a 750ml corkfinish into a 22 oz. Riedel.

Appearance: Big frothy/foamy head. Fades to patchy fairly quickly. Glowing cloudy yellow/gold.

Aroma: Fresh, bready, yeasty, earthy & spicy.
Pungent herbal with orange/lemon citrus.

Palate: Big fresh round grainy (rounder than wheat) mouthful on fore-palate.
Becomes pungently earthy/herbal in mid-palate with some creamy Belgian yeast presence& Brett begins to make a show here.
Back-palate is dry, earthy & herbal.
Just a hint of sourness throughout. Nicely balanced toward dry.
A big, complex mouthful. Great flavor, character. So much to this, but all of a piece with nothing out of place or disjointed.

Mouthfeel: Big, but also fresh, round, grainy, earthy, dry & with a bit of sourness.

Drinkability: Great drinkability for such a big, complex, medium strong (8% ABV) brew. Obviously not a sesh brew, but then again more than one glass to see all the facets in this great stuff is probably called for.

This is a Great Saison! Much bigger, more complex than many. Unique.

94 Points.

Brewed with Spelt, which is higher in protein & lower in carbs than Wheat. Never tasted it myself.

Cheers to Spelt!

Serving type: bottle

07-21-2010 23:40:56 | More by ausonius

mscudder

Georgia

4/5  rDev +0.5%

05-03-2013 03:48:30 | More by mscudder

coreyfmcdonald

Georgia

4.38/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

750ml bottle into a tall tulip

A: Pours a clear golden color with a finger of dense white head.

S: Clove, peppercorn,and lots of citrus. The lemon zest works very well with the beer. The aromas work very well together.

T: Extremely complex. Clove is very strong in this beer, lemon and orange peel helps balance the beer and adds to the complexity.

M: On the thin side with strong carbonation. Very good.

O: There is so much going on in this beer. Musty, funky, fruity, cloves. I really enjoy this.

Serving type: bottle

05-03-2013 03:45:01 | More by coreyfmcdonald

nh2032

New York

3.5/5  rDev -12.1%

04-28-2013 20:55:09 | More by nh2032

wesley14

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +0.5%

04-11-2013 16:13:03 | More by wesley14

rondufresne

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +6.8%

04-06-2013 00:50:19 | More by rondufresne

HabiMendes

Rhode Island

4.29/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

The appearance is pale, with a foamy, white head. The aroma is impressive, with a very apparent lemon in harmony with other supporting, background spices. The lightly-bodied beer brings a (relatively) vigorous hop taste well-balanced with the carbonation and astringency. The aftertaste is discrete, leaving vague hop tones in the palate. Excellent Saison.

Serving type: bottle

03-03-2013 18:13:07 | More by HabiMendes

Seaba

Pennsylvania

3.75/5  rDev -5.8%

02-28-2013 14:21:55 | More by Seaba

Blanco

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +0.5%

02-19-2013 04:51:22 | More by Blanco

SocalKicks

California

3.75/5  rDev -5.8%

02-17-2013 03:46:33 | More by SocalKicks

DaveBlack

Virginia

3.31/5  rDev -16.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25

A: The cork came out of the bottle fast. Slightly cloudy, pale golden color. A full 3+ fingers of foamy white head tops it off. The head is fed by a never-ending stream of bubbles from the bottom of the glass, so it has seemingly infinite retention.

S: Grainy, yeasty, spicy and a touch of lemon. Remarkably clean smelling beer for a saison, not much in the way of earthiness of funk.

T: Taste is also fairly clean, and rather subtle. Bread, slightly grassy, yeast and a hint of the lemon. Not much in the way of funk or spiciness.

M: LOTS of carbonation and a light body. Too much carbonation, in my opinion.

O: I honestly don't know if I would have pegged this as a saison. The flavors are light, the spicy, yeasty, earthy goodness are all toned down, and are definitely not the stars of this beer. I would not bother with this beer again. It's not bad, but neither is it especially good. It's a saison light (lite?).

Serving type: bottle

02-11-2013 22:50:17 | More by DaveBlack

ColForbinBC

New Jersey

3.99/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

750mL bottle shared with 2 buddies; poured into tasting glasses

Milliseconds after releasing the cage, the cork shot out. High level of carbonation, but didn't gush. Pale straw color with a foamy paper white cap. The cap was billowy and fell slowly. Some tiny bubbles push north through a slightly cloudy body.

The nose is of lemons, grass, fresh cracked wheat, spicy clove, orange peel, a touch of pear, and floral notes. Has a rustic feel to it.

A bit mellow on the palate. The flavors are all a little subdued. Wheat is prominent, with lemon and clove playing second fiddle. Fruity and floral notes are subtle. Again, a bit of a rustic edge to this beer.

Effervescent, crisp, and dry. Light bodied. The carbonation wasn't as much of an issue as I anticipated.

A classic take on the style that hits everything fairly well.

Serving type: bottle

02-01-2013 21:04:32 | More by ColForbinBC

Mattias

Sweden

4/5  rDev +0.5%

01-26-2013 21:42:13 | More by Mattias

Jwale73

Rhode Island

3.53/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

750ml corked and caged bottle served in my Weyerbacher tulip. Pours a golden yellow with a fizzy/fluffy, three inch, bright white head that quickly dissipates. There is quite a bit of carbonation evident in solution. Head eventually settles into a frothy, quarter inch cap. Nose is fairly clean - lemon zest in the foreground, a light herbal presence in the background as well as some grassiness and maybe a touch of candi sugar. Taste consistent with nose; however, first impressions make it a bit difficult to tease out the flavors due to the gassy/prickly carbonation levels. Once the carbonation subsides, the flavor profile comes off a bit watered down. Mouthfeel is light in body with a little acidity and an overly assertive, gassy carbonation. Overall - nothing to write home about. Flavors are a bit lackluster and the carbonation is just a little too aggressive. Not bad, but there are better examples of the style out there.

Serving type: bottle

01-21-2013 02:27:18 | More by Jwale73

TWStandley

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +0.5%

12-18-2012 03:18:05 | More by TWStandley

morebeergood

Massachusetts

3.25/5  rDev -18.3%

12-17-2012 01:46:43 | More by morebeergood

SupremePie

Vermont

4/5  rDev +0.5%

10-19-2012 02:28:13 | More by SupremePie

superspak

Michigan

4.2/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

750 ml bottle into tulip glass, no bottle dating. Pours hazy golden straw color with a 2-3 finger foamy white head with good retention, that reduces to a good cap that lingers. Good foamy lacing clings to the glass. Aromas of big lemon, grape, pear, herbal, floral, bread, grass, hay, pepper, clove, coriander, earth, and funkiness. Fantastic aromas with great balance and complexity. Taste of lemon, bread, pear, pepper, grape, grass, hay, earth, coriander, and yeast spices. Lingering notes of light fruit, pepper, grass, bread, coriander, and yeast spices on the finish for a bit. Great flavor balance and good complexity; no cloying flavors at all. High carbonation and medium body; with a very crisp mouthfeel that is very nice. Alcohol is very well hidden with hardly any warming noticed after the finish. Overall this is a really excellent saison. Nice balance and complexity of flavors; very crisp and smooth to sip on. Really enjoyed this one.

Serving type: bottle

09-18-2012 03:30:35 | More by superspak

zonker17

Illinois

4/5  rDev +0.5%

09-10-2012 22:19:10 | More by zonker17

pants678

California

3.9/5  rDev -2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A nice cloudy urine yellow with a fluffy white head that sticks.

Nose or lemon peel, coriander and yeast--strong enough to not just be a compliment.

Sharp notes of lemon zest are just a tad bit too much, almost champagne-y. They come through beneath a good herby, earthy body. Grains and pepper are subtle but present. Finishes very clean but still lingers.

Heavy but I don't call that a bother. Carbonation's pretty aggressive here, but again I don't think I'd tone it down.

Serving type: bottle

09-02-2012 22:08:48 | More by pants678

pirmannt1

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +6.8%

08-01-2012 04:38:04 | More by pirmannt1

falloutsnow

Illinois

3.98/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bottle from The Corkscrew in Urbana, IL
No bottled on date
Poured into a New Belgium globe glass

Blaugies' Saison D'Epeautre is a good introductory saison, but also complex enough for connoisseur enjoyment. The flavors are light, fruity, and with enough yeasty variety to be pleasantly complex. In general, aside from the slightly too fizzy mouthfeel, this is a very well put together beer.

Pours a voluminous head, higher than 3cm, even with a slow, careful pour. Head color is off-white with excellent persistence, gradually declining to a 1cm cap atop the beer's body and leaving subtle lacing. Body is a cloudy yellow-gold with lots of streaming carbonation.

Aroma is of yeast, fruity esters, mild cooked grains, mild Brettanomyces plastic resin, light white pepper, slight lemon, and a hint of bubblegum. Generally a light (as in bright, not heavy) aroma that's fairly complex with its grain, spice, and Brettanomyces influences.

The flavor of this saison is more sweet than bitter, with flavors including brewer's yeast, bubblegum, mild grain, fruity yeast esters, mild "funk" from Brettanomyces, and a hint of white pepper. Aftertaste is sweet and of bright fruit flavors.

Body is medium-heavy, but with high (at first), then medium-high (after several minutes) carbonation levels. The beer's mouthfeel is, eventually, smooth, but is never fairly bubbly.

Serving type: bottle

06-10-2012 20:50:51 | More by falloutsnow

BEERchitect

Kentucky

3.95/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

First enjoyed during my recent trek of Belgium and that trip had re-piqued my interest in Saison Farmhouse ales, I generally trend toward Tripels but now... Let's get back to basics with this rustic and seemingly old fashioned farmhouse-influenced variety.

Light and efforvescent to the eye- this bright Saison trends lighter in color, straw in color, and shows light haze. The zesty ale quickly billows with a froath that more resembles whipped cream than foamy malt. Highly persistent and with decorative lace, the beer's foam nearly engulfs half the tulip.

Earth spice, and low fruit provide the revolving door of aromatics with each visit to the glass. The triangulation delivers the scents of grain and rye, then peppercorn and dried botanical notes, but then apples, white grapes and lemon scents before rinsing and repeating. Very fragrant with herbs that smell like fruit.

Flavors are just as electric and rustic as the dry malt taste was suggested in its scent. The taste of dry bread crust, pumpernickle-type spice, and grain give this drier-than-usual backbone of malt its great support for earthen grain bite, freshly cracked peppercorn, and herbal oregano and torn bay leaves. Fruit esters are moderate and temper the spice flavor with zesty white grapes, tart apples, and under ripened pears. The fruity-spicy interplay acts as the opening act for floral hop taste to develop into the sharp and clean bitterness of freshly baled hay and mulled grasses. It's so dry, in fact- that the clean taste and mineral character leaves the beer seltzer-like in finish.

Any indication of maltiness in aroma and flavor never makes an impression on the tongue as the zesty acidity of carbonation bounces the beer off of the surfaces of the mouth and ushers in a whimsical evaporation of taste, much like cotton candy. Only the zip of dry and tart white wines and peppery alcohol and hop dryness persist past the quick and airy finish.

I'm happy to have run into a few saisons recently that explore the drier end of the style's spectrum as these can introduce even more complexities of grain than the usual sweeter examples.

Serving type: bottle

05-23-2012 18:56:36 | More by BEERchitect

nathanjohnson

Vermont

4/5  rDev +0.5%

05-19-2012 18:31:12 | More by nathanjohnson

wdarcy77

Massachusetts

3.75/5  rDev -5.8%

05-01-2012 13:58:56 | More by wdarcy77