Brasserie La Débauche Saison Saison at 7% ABV (2017 Craft Beer Advent Calendar #21, 330 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 20-Nov-2017, reviewed 21-Dec-2017)
Appearance: opaque pale amber with one finger of fluffy off-white head diminishing gradually to a thin creamy cap, moderate lacing. (4/5) Aroma: orange peel, pale malt, apple, floral. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter, light spice & funky tart. (8/10) Palate: medium-light body, lively carbonation, dry short slightly tart & spicy finish. (4/5)
(Insert standard rant about high-gravity Saisons here.) Now that that’s out of the way, I quite like this. I got almost a curaçao aroma immediately upon decapping, but that faded somewhat, leaving behind a pleasant, slightly funky combination of malt, pome, and floral. The flavours pretty much followed suit, with a pleasant mild spiciness in the finish that didn’t overwhelm everything else. Nicely balanced and quite easy drinking for a relatively high ABV – and, more to the point for this particular style, immensely refreshing. (Fairly sedate stuff as debauchery goes, truth be told.) Not all that seasonal, if you ask me, but it’s good enough that I don’t really much care. (16/20)
8/10 #craftbeeradvent2017 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
