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Note: if this is your first time reading The Homebrewer’s Brain, please check this article for a background on what we are doing here.

I’m a really big fan of saisons and due to that fact I end up brewing them often. Sometimes, believe it or not, I brew what I want to drink.
I think part of my fandom, other than the obvious flavor factor, has to do with my great fascination with farmhouse breweries. I love the history of them – brewing beer for the farm workers to drink after a long, grueling day laboring in the fields. I am also enamored with the concept of growing ingredients on brewery property to be used in the beers brewed there. It’s exciting to me to have that much of a hand in what goes into the beer. I am working toward making this sort of lifestyle a reality for myself.
But, history notwithstanding, it’s the yeast and the yeast alone that makes a saison a saison. So I guess, more specifically, you could say that I love saison yeast. I think it’s so brilliant because it has a unique quality to it that makes it distinctly Belgian (or French) but it’s more subtle than your traditional abbey style yeast that’s often just packed with esters and phenols. Saisons are very distinctive. You know you’re having a saison the very moment you take a sip, no matter what the liquid looks like, but they’re never overpowering and always very drinkable and refreshing.
With that being said, it seems to make the most sense to start with a yeast and work backwards. I’m a Wyeast guy, so taking a look at what they have to offer reveals four options. Wyeast 3711 French Saison, Wyeast 3724 Belgian Saison, Wyeast 3726 Farmhouse Ale (Private Collection, available seasonally), and Wyeast 3725 Bier De Garde (Private Collection, available seasonally). 3725 just so happens to be available as I’m writing this article (Apr-Jun 2012) and I’ve never used it before so I have chosen to give it a try. I have come to learn that it was cultured from Brasserie Fantome in Belgium, which makes insanely unique saisons, so I’m really excited to try it. Bier De Garde is, obviously, a different style from saison, but shares the “farmhouse” connotation so I’m not too concerned, especially since Wyeast suggests a fermentation temperature range of 70-84 degrees (which is very much unlike a traditional Bier De Garde which is lagered).
From here I’m going to develop the grain bill. I’ve decided that I want to make this saison black or dark brown in color, perhaps around 24 SRM. I’ve wanted to use Midnight Wheat to darken up a beer style that isn’t traditionally dark for a while now. I have heard that it imparts a great depth of color without lending a roasty character. I also want to put Rye in the beer to add to the traditional spicy flavor element found in many examples of the style (most often from yeast derived phenols). Because many saisons yeasts tend to produce an extremely dry (and therefore often thin) finish, I want to add a few grains that will impart some unfermentables to increase the mouthfeel . Since I now have Rye and Midnight Wheat I thought it would be fun to do Crystal Rye and White Wheat so that I have two different types of each grain. Admittedly, this concept is somewhat inspired by a black saison brewed by New Holland Brewing from Holland, MI.

Photo cred - guysdrinkingbeer.com/

I’ll use European Pilsner as a base and a half pound of rice hulls to prevent a stuck mash due to the extensive use of wheat and rye (both grains do not have a husk). My false bottom generally does a good job at filtering but one can never be too safe. I’ll go lightest on the Crystal Rye to minimize the caramel flavor and use just enough Midnight Wheat to gain my desired color. I’ll try to keep my base grain at about 70% of the grain bill, but I’m really not too concerned with astringency since wheat and rye are acceptable as base grains themselves.
I must admit that I was pretty stumped at first with regards to the hops in this recipe. I was unsure if the standard bitterness numbers for the style would stand up to the added malt complexity. I decided that there was no harm in attempting to contact Brian Strumke of Stillwater Artisanal and picking his brain on the matter. His Existent Black Saison is definitely an inspiration for this beer. To my surprise, or maybe not, Brian responded to my query and suggested that I go with something in the 30-35 range but no higher. I heeded his advice with a bit of conservatism and chose to go with 28. I had some Hallertauer hops in the fridge that had to be used so I chose to pitch them in at 60 minutes for bittering. I also had some Sorachi Ace that I was holding onto for a saison. I have never brewed with the hop but I have sampled quite a few commercial brews that use it and I have always been very impressed. I chose to put some in at 20 and 5 minutes to get a good blend of flavor and aroma without over doing it.
I have made it habit to filter my water for the brew the day before and let it sit out so that the chlorine has time to dissipate. I think it has helped the flavor of my beer quite a bit. After all, water is the most substantial ingredient in beer. Another practice that I feel has been crucial to the success of my recent brews is doing a starter the night before and leaving it stirring on a stir plate the entire time to make sure it’s well oxygenated. To make sure that nothing unsavory gets into the starter I put a musting cap on the top of my Erlenmeyer flask with an air filter in place of the airlock. I currently have an oxygenation system on my wish list which would allow me to have more control of the oxygenation.
I think that about covers it. Let’s hope it turns out as good as I project it to be.

Photo credit www.theelectricbrewery.com

Hey, remember us?

Yeah, we’ve been busy… babies, too many hours on the clock, building business plans, blah, blah, blah.  The fact that so much time has passed since our last post seriously burrows into our collective psyche.  It pains us.  But, sometimes life gets in the way.  What can you do?  Please allow us to apologize.  Consider it a hiatus, a time to recuperate.  And we move on…

One thing that we have absolutely not allowed to go stagnant is our endless trek down the path to better beer.  We have been homebrewing every chance that we get.  For us, brewing is not just a means to the end of having beer to drink.  It’s so much more.  We want to make the best beer in the world.  We put hours into recipe formulation.  We read, we discuss, we reflect…  This is a log of our process.

The ever sharing Eric Salazar of New Belgium (photo credit www.fairfaxbrewfest.com)

The brewing community is phenomenal.  We love being a part of it.  We always feel accepted and we almost always walk away from a brewery visit feeling like we were virtually hugged by the staff.  The one thing that we are often most surprised by is how open brewers are about what they do.  Processes, recipes, sometimes even financials are shared with us openly.  It speaks to the genuine quality of people that we aim to surround ourselves with.  Ultimately, we want to be just as open and helpful.  We want to spread the love too.

So this is our attempt to share.  We thought that it might be helpful to write down our process for recipe formulation, if not to help other all-grain brewers, to help us remember why we did what we did. This way, if a bit of time passes between the first time that we brew something and the follow up brew,we don’t have to start all over from scratch.

We urge you to share your experiences as well, for we are still figuring it all out ourselves.

I (Timperial) should, in addition, mention that I am also writing this as a means to assist one of my employers, Homebrew Heaven, get flow to their website and to create a deeper set of tools to assist homebrewers on that site.  Please check them out if you haven’t already, for they are allowing me to take time on the clock to write these articles.

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Hello brain, let’s hash this out

One of the most important things, to me, when developing and tweaking a recipe is researching the style. I often have a general idea of what goes into it, but I like to know the history of the style and what the recipes of the best examples look like. What ingredients were available and what processes were employed back when the style first came into vogue?

Before I start to peruse the internet there are two books that I almost always refer to. First, for basic history and recipe guidelines, I refer to Designing Great Beer by Ray Daniels. Then, to get an idea of what ingredients are typically used in examples that I like, I check Clone Brews by Tess and Mark Szamatulski.

I then hit the internet. I study the BJCP Style Guidelines and search for more recipe information. Ultimately though, all of this data simply serves as an informational base for my recipe. I’m generally not out to brew a beer that exactly fits the style guideline. I am, after all, an American brewer. I have a great desire to be creative and innovative. I want the end result to produce a feeling. I want he/she of whom imbibes the beverage to say to him/herself, “Yes, this is indeed a Helles, but it’s so much more”.

I have been using BeerSmith software for a while now to create and save my recipes. I also save them on Hopville.com so that I can share them with my brewing partner. It’s free to create an account and it can be accessed from any computer with an internet connection. I can save the recipe at home or at work and then have him log in from wherever he is and we can talk through our ideas. It’s super convenient.

My idea with this beer is going to be loosely based off of Samuel Adams Alpine Spring. It’s an unfiltered lager brewed with 2-row and honey malts and a ton of Tettnang hops. I found it to be extremely flavorful, especially with the heavy hopping. The flavor and aroma is intensely of lemon. So much so, in fact, that I feel as though actual lemon peel or lemon juice was added, but there is no mention of that anywhere on the bottle or the Sam Adams website. I am intrigued enough by this that I plan to go heavy on the Tett in late additions and dry-hopping to see how lemony the hop actually is.

Right there, with the heavy late addition hopping, we are out of style, but I’d like to go more traditional on the grains. In looking at more modern examples of light lagers and pilsners, it seems appropriate to go with European pilsner malt as a base with some Vienna for malt flavor and some light crystal 20 and cara-pils for body. The main goals here will be to keep the original gravity between 1.045 and 1.050 with a terminal gravity of around 1.010 (obviously, no brewer can survive without a hydrometer) and to keep the color as light as possible, ideally around 4 SRM. I was able to play with the grain ratios to make this happen with 83% base, 11% Vienna and 3% each crystal 20 and cara-pils.

I, for a minute, thought about doing a step mash on this one since that is the traditional route but upon further reflection, with today’s highly modified malts, I don’t think it’s worth the added efforts.

Despite the placement of the hops in the boil, I think it’s still possible to hit the BJCP style guideline on IBUs for Helles (16 – 22). I decided to use Perle for bittering at 60 minutes and cram all of the Tett in in the last 15 minutes. I was able to hit 20 IBUs despite using 4 total ounces of hops in a 10 gallon batch. Success!

Personally, I prefer to use pellet hops in the boil and leaf hops for dry hopping. Pellet hops give you a slightly better extraction and they are much more convenient to weigh and bag. I find it super convenient to use the Escali Digital Scale to weigh out the proper quantities. Despite the fact that most brewers simply toss pellet hops into the kettle, I don’t have a good way to whirlpool the wort post-boil. I’m also afraid to clog the Kettle Screen that I use, so I bag my pellets in an 8” X 9 ½” re-usable nylon bag. I use leaf hops for dry-hopping because I feel there is slightly less chance that I’ll “muddy up” the beer with hop particulate. With this I just use a disposable muslin bag for ease of disposal.

Traditionally, soft water is best for brewing light lagers and pilsners, but soft water tends to minimize the hop experience and I, clearly, don’t want to do that, so I’ll just filter tap water with my inline water filter, as per usual. If I really wanted to soften my water, I could combine my tap water with about 50% distilled water, but then there would be some concern with the mineral content required for healthy fermentation.

The yeast I choose will be pretty crucial here. I’m brewing a lager style but that doesn’t necessarily mean that I must use a lager yeast. The key is that I minimize the yeast character… make sure the beer is super clean. I have a garage that I can keep my fermenter in but I do not have a fridge with a temperature controller. This is going to be a big factor in the route I go with the yeast. Since it’s springtime in the Northwest, I can’t rely on a consistent ambient temperature in my garage. It’s unlikely that I will be able to hold a sub 58 degree environment in my garage, so I need a yeast with a higher temperature range. I’m a tried and true Wyeast supporter, so my first thoughts are of 2124 Bohemian Lager (Bohemia is the home of Pils after all), 2112 California Lager and 2565 Kolsch. The lager yeasts have a range up to 68 degrees, which seems very do-able, so I chose to go the most traditional route… that of the Bohemian Lager strain.

And viola, a recipe has been created. We shall see how I did in a few weeks time.

The Mirror Pond. The inspiration for one of the NW's faves. (photo: jjandames)

I love Deschutes. There is no debating their consistent grasp on NW beer consumers’ hearts. There is no debating my love for all they do, from their incredibly adventurous beer, to their NW-esque graphics, to their amazing pubs in PDX and Bend. Well now they are making short films to promote their beer – and its kicking up the beer nerd chatter.

Alan McLeod is an excellent beer blogger. If you don’t already follow his “A Good Beer Blog” – do it. His blog is a worthwhile read, written by someone who is not afraid to speak his mind. While I disagree with him, a lot of the time, I still appreciate his willingness to not pander to brewers and outwardly like everything, as most beer bloggers do. We try our best, but unfortunately Timperial’s iron-clad pallet finds something to like in almost everything. Damn you, Tim.

So today, Alan posted some comments on a new short film/commercial that Deschutes decided to launch about, um, well, I guess their beer? From the objective point of view, you might think it’s a love story, a road trip adventure or a think-piece of self-exploration.  What we know is that they gratuitously toss in some sideboob around the mid-point, so beware those of you watching at work.

Alan seems disappointed in this rugged NW brewery – one that he very much enjoys. His comments find the video over the top, “creepy” and even “uncomfortable.” What ensues is a long back and forth between Alan and a number of other beer bloggers from around the country, trying to decide if this was a good idea.

I get it. It’s weird and a bit too emotional to try and capture a love story to promote a NW beer.  But I like it. I also think it’s a good decision for Deschutes.

Why not be unconventional and why not show something passionate about your beer? I too believe that beer is more powerful than a mere intoxicant. It brings people together and it creates careers and life passions. If the thing represents more than a buzz, why not celebrate that through a representative video? I think that Deschutes shot from the hip, and hit a winner. But this is only a minor part of what I like.

The coolest part of this video is the story behind the beer. The great minds at Deschutes don’t name their beer something clever, they celebrate the great, almost surreal, world around Bend, Oregon. Black Butte, Green Lakes, Mirror Pond, the twilight at Smith Rock, the inversion at South Sisters and the obsidian stone found at Newberry Crater. Having recently visited Bend, I can vouch for its uncanny incomparable character. The world around this small town is otherwordly, and certainly invoking of an existential experience.

I’m not the most touchy-feely guy out there, but I appreciate the Deschutes naming trend. In a beer world where Arrogant Bastard, Hopslam, Dark Lord, Pliny the Elder and a bunch of other creative and clever names do the marketing, Deschutes finds its inspiration organically. And its hard to promote that. Faced with being captured by a beer named after a small pond in downtown Bend or the czar of the underworld, you probably steer clear of subtlety. But Deschutes has not wavered, and in fact it put some considerable time and effort into creating a video that shows you the inspiring world that crafted their message. I dig that. I bet you do as well.

So, take a gander and let me know. I’m all ears about this approach. Who knows, it could be some good research for the Blotter’s future brewing operation (its happening).

Video is below. NOTE: if you don’t see it right away, wait a few minutes. If you wait and nothing – click link below it.

Deschutes Landmarks from NORTH on Vimeo.

The tulip glass gains a greater meaning

Enjoyed on 12/31/2011

Brewery: Southampton Publick House

Location: Southampton, NY

Beer: Saison

Web: http://www.southamptonpublickhouse.com/Home.aspx

Presentation: 750 ml brown bottle, corked and caged.

ABV: 8.2%

Hops: N/A

Malt: N/A

Adjuncts: Lavender, Chamomile, Calendula, Rose Hips

From the Web:

Cuvèe des Fleurs roughly translates to “batch of the flowers”. This most distinctive ale is flavored with a variety of edible flowers. Aromatic and medicinal flowers such as Lavender, Chamomile, Calendula, Rose Hips and Hops (they’re flowers too!) are added to this special brew to impart a distinct aroma and flavor.

Beer Advocate: 91 (4.2)

Rate Beer: 99 (3.8)

Music Accompaniment: Pulse Emitter – Meditative Music

Timperial’s Notes:

Background.

When I lived back East I always had a deep respect for the ales of Southampton.  I think their saison was one of the very first that I deeply enjoyed.  When I started this column and planned to ask my sister to send me some East Coast saisons, Southampton’s was the first one I thought of.  Apparently I wasn’t specific enough with my request and this is what I received.  I didn’t even know this existed.  From what I gather, this “mistake” is going to be even better than that which I was seeking.

It also seems worth noting that I have felt stricken with a case of writers block lately.  Not necessarily in the traditional sense that I couldn’t find word but just that I haven’t been happy with those I’ve found.  One thing that I have always know about myself is that I have above average social chameleon abilities.  One such example is that when surrounded by stimulating, inspirational conversation/writings, I seem to adapt accordingly and, suddenly, I find myself not only speaking but thinking with greater intelligence.  Of course, that’s subjective, but my own judgement is often all I have.  With this in mind, I began to reread a book that is most inspirational to me.  I’ve quickly felt its effects.  May you be the judge.

Appearance.

After some muscle went into popping the cork I feared my jostling could spawn a gusher but there was little signs of life in the bottle once the air was introduced.  On the pour, again, the liveliness was minimal, but a pure white head did present itself on a medium pour.  The hue below the froth holds a most pleasant, soothing, hazy yellow-orange.  It gains a bit of clarity in direct light but looks most cloudy on the table, like a clairvoyant image of a hazed sunrise through a crystal ball.

Bubbles rise at a rate that seems disjointed given the head’s subtleties, but it makes the sight all the more magical and life filled.  Lacing is most minimal, and even a heavy swirling leaves only a splotch or two on the glass.

Odor.

You think the odor of this beer is relevant?  Flowers added?  Good gracious!  I don’t even know where to begin.  Maybe at flowers – there’s some here to be wafted.  A mighty zephyr of petaled perfume has virtually punched me with Spring rites.  I’ve gained entrance to the secret garden and the winds seem to be bellowed from the blossoms themselves.  I’m a slow-motion humming bird with beak probing this glassen tulip I hold…yeah, it sprouts poetry from me. I’m almost brought to tears.

To speak in beer review adjectives seems daunting.  What do I sense other than fantasy?  Mundane “floral” description withdrawn, we really must get creative.  Bubble gum is present, which is familiar enough to pose as yeast derivative.  Herbal tea thoughts spin me to jasmine, chamomile, rose hips…but only as association.  I can’t specifically place any of them.  I get a note of honeydew, maybe even honeysuckle, and no stretch to honeymoon with flower strewn upon bed spread.

There’s an underlying spiciness that is likely an agent of the most common flower within, that of lupulin.  From those holy cones does too come some earth and citrus.  Every new inhale wields its own initiation of wonderment.  There’s some sweet malt in there too.  I sense Pilsner, possibly Aromatic.  A bread like permeation, twisted up with garden gifts, peaks this radiating meditation to rosemary loaf or sage leaf sourdough.  And…incense, like aura of used record store peddling Marley posters and Joplin t-shirts.

Flavor.

Cuvee is surprisingly sweet.  It’s a nice change of pace, and who knows, maybe the brewer’s determined that the floral elements became too overwhelming in arid climates, dried to a more concentrated version of themselves.  That which blooms in the nose is not so easily tasted, and thus the yeast and hops regain primary dominance.  It’s decidedly spicy with a lot of white pepper present.  Still, herbal tea is not out of the mind by any stretch, which is also reassured with bearing on the near stillness of the fluid, or, lack of carbonation.  Despite a deficiency in tongue prickle, the fluid’s body remains bold with sugar density.

Booze is not a silent attribute but it’s easily over-looked with the cacophony of flavor/aroma elements.  I’m feeling it and flavor inspiration is surely striking attrition to writing sense.  Be it the ultimate downfall of combining my loves.

Aftertaste.

Post swallow, the coating sweetness tends to linger and satisfy.  Only the intensely unique flavors beg for another sip.  There is a faint bitterness present, but it’s mostly smooth malts and soft florals.  It’s almost like what the lasting aftertaste of a traditional British tea time with Earl Grey and lemon scones may be.  Wow, yeah that kind of strikes a chord.  You’ve got the citrus, herbs and earth that the tea brings coupled with the sweet, doughy maltiness and added citrus element of the lemon accent.  It’s distinguished.  A treat meant for royalty.

Summary.

I feel strongly that this beer is going to end up changing my life in some small but significant way.  The farmhouse ale brewed with farmhouse flowers.  I now know how beautifully it works.  My future brewery will make a unique version of this beer.  It’ll be estate grown.  It’ll be of the earth about the brewery.  It’ll be delicious, distinguished, and fit for royalty.

I raise my glass to 2012!

Shall we rendezvous on the board walk? Yes, we shall.

Enjoyed on 12/23/2011

Brewery: Left Coast Brewing Co. ||| Lakefront Brewery

Location: LCB – San Clemente, CA ||| LB – Milwaukee, WI

Beer: LCB – Saison ||| LB – Biere De Garde

Web: http://www.leftcoastbrewing.com/  |||  http://www.lakefrontbrewery.com/

Presentation: LCB – 22 oz brown bottle, capped ||| LB – 22 oz brown bottle, capped

ABV: LCB – 7.8% ||| LB – 7.2%

Hops: LCB  – Tettnanger, Mt. Hood ||| LB – Saaz, Mt. Hood

Malt: LCB – Some percentage of wheat, otherwise unknown ||| LB – 2-row, Munich, otherwise unknown

Adjuncts: LCB – Bitter orange peel ||| LB – N/A

From the Web:

LCB – There is nothing like summer, and no better way to celebrate than with an ice cold Board Walk Saison. The Saison yeast strain provides this beer with a pleasant citrus aroma. Our addition of bitter orange peel at the end of the boil gives it just the right hint of orange and a slight bitterness. Wheat malt balances out all of the flavors keeping this beer silky smooth.

Can’t you picture yourself enjoying a Board Walk at the end of the board walk? Cheers!

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LB – A Biere De Garde—literally, “a beer to keep”—is a style conceived in the hills of Northern France. This traditional farmhouse ale is brewed with a special French ale yeast, giving it a subtle, yet delightful ester fruitiness. Ample amounts of 2-row malt give Rendezvous a luscious, full body. Generous amounts of Munich malts are added for additional sweetness and give Rendezvous an impassioned red hue. Saaz and Mt. Hood hops are added for a mild bitterness and clean finish. Robust, smooth, and surprisingly refreshing, the effect on your palate is an intense, fleeting episode: a rendezvous.

Beer Advocate: N/A (3.71) ||| LB – 84 (3.71)

Rate Beer: LCB – 58 (3.11) ||| LB – 70 (3.19)

Music Accompaniment: Earth – Live

Timperial’s Notes:

Background.

I’ve collected a long list of saisons in preparation for this column.  This is problematic for me because I have very little time to write these days, as I’m sure you’ve noticed, and I want to write about them all, but saisons don’t keep very well.  This presents quite a predicament.  A quandary indeed.  Solution: tackle two at once and find the god damned time Tim!  Let’s hope that working 6 days a week at a brewery and a homebrew shop has made me a more educated writer.  Thanks for bearing with me/us.

I’d also like to take this time to briefly send endless props and respect to DSR.  Not only is he a proud 1/3 of Beer Blotter but he is my best friend and future business partner.  I sit here telling you that I’m crazy “busy” after posting my first article in over a month and he, with his newborn and his own multiple entrepreneurial duties, finds time to keep BB out of complete hibernation in my stead.  Next time you see him, if you know him, hug him.  I plan to (as he is currently in NYC as our Facebook indicates).

Appearance.

LCB -Pours a clear amberish gold color topped with a pure white, fluffy head.  Bubbles rise rapidly and keep the head in tact for some time.  The clarity is really a sight to see.  Some minimal lacing is left on the glass.

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LB – Pours a slightly cloudy red color that was very much not expected.  The head is off white and is sizable on the pour but settles to nothing but a ring where the beer, glass and air all meet.  No lacing is found.

Odor.

LCB – This beer smells much better than a 54 on rate beer would ever suggest.  It’s fantastic actually.  So complex in it’s esters and phenols.  For being a super clear beer, I’m amazed at how yeasty it smells.  There is a chemically type of heat coming off the top that reminds me of smelling beer right out of the fermenter.  I do not think that I would have picked out the fact that orange peel was added to this.  There is surely some fruitiness, but I get mostly spice in the nose.  It almost smells like caraway.  I’d suspect that the brewers allowed this to ferment on the low end of the yeast’s temperature range to pull phenols and balance the bitter orange.  It works exquisitely.  There is also a faint tartness that makes for a mighty authentic saison nose.

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LB – This beer does not smell like a saison in any way.  I guess that’s because it isn’t, technically, a saison.  A biere de garde is the saison of France, or the farmhouse beer of France, but if you read the BJCP style guideline, like I literally just did, this beer fits in very well.  It’s surprisingly malt forward with huge notes of Munich malt imbued biscuit flavors.  There is a distinct fruit quality to it that inspires thoughts of plum flesh.  If you told me this was an amber ale I’d say it was one of the best I’d ever smelled.

Flavor.

LCB – There is something about the flavor here that really reminds me of a starchy, under-ripe banana mixed with a tart, spicy guava or passion fruit.  The spices and fruits of the nose are equally present on the tongue, but it’s slightly easier to hash them out with the use of a second receptor source.  There’s a tartness that stimulates the back corners of the mouth, but it’s still subtle in the grand scheme of things.  The spice tastes more of white pepper than the aforementioned caraway.  There is an appropriate bitterness and it’s effect adds one more level of pull on the tongue, which is really asked to work overtime here.  This is an exercise that reminds me, yet again, how much I love saisons.

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LB – Is this a German amber lager?  I’m so confused right now.  OK, yes, it’s evident that this isn’t a normal, clean lagered beer.  It has yeasty nuances, but it’s challenging to really appreciate them in light of that other beer I’m drinking right now.  Honestly, this beer is a really nice change of pace.  I can’t say I’ve had anything like this in the recent past.  It’s exciting that it’s make in America’s Heartland.  Respect!  But oh, the flavor…it’s quite rich is a very toasted malt fashion.  There is some light caramelization that I can’t quite pinpoint the source of.  Possibly crystal malt, possibly melanoidin, possibly heavy boiling, possibly just an ass load of Munich.  I also can’t decide if that fruitiness is a yeast derivative or just a byproduct of the above malts.  Did they do a pure decoction?  Good lord I feel like I need to take a class.  Maybe I need a venture to Milwaukee.

Aftertaste.

LCB -This brew finished with a long lingering spice and a dryness that is all too familiar.  Well after the swallow, the flavor remains with very little degradation.  Highly impressive.

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LB – The overall richness of this beer allows for an aftertaste in stark contrast to the saison.  The malt flavors are unchanged and linger.  The mouth waters with sugarlust.  It’s like the sweet crusty exterior of a bran loaf.  Grain is in center stage and it’s shining in the spotlight.

Summary.

LCB -This is an excellent example of the style in my opinion.  The yeast is a work horse.  The added orange peel may be non-traditional but it just adds a balance and is in no way outlandish.  The color, clarity, ester and phenol production, dry finish…all pieces to the saison puzzle.  I want more.

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LB – I must admit, I was thrown off by this beer.  It is not at all what I expected – which is amazing!  I’d be lying if I said I didn’t like it, it’s just that I expected these two beers to be much more similar than they are.  Here, the yeast is very much not the workhorse.  The malts, or the mashing, or however the hell this beer is brewed is what defines it.  I can’t help but respect the brewers.

Alchemy.

As an added experiment, in light of my double fisting, I’ve decided to blend the two and see what sinister concoction remains after the smoke clears.  50/50.  Surprisingly, the lighter Board Walk’s yeast juggernaut stands up to the malt stronghold of Rendezvous.  Somehow, the combination allows for alcohol to rush out in retreat, as though the abv was not averaged but summed.  There is a slight smokiness (coincidence) that must be phenol meets biscuit.  The finish becomes insanely smooth – almost a perfect middle ground between the two.  The appearance is a fucking mess with a dank haze and a very unattractive hue, but I’d be OK drinking this blindly, before the smoke cleared.