The Bruery, Saison Rue

Brewery/Name: The Bruery
Style: Saison
Brewed In: Placentia, California
Origin: Belgian/French
ABV: 8.5
Serving Glass: Goblet
OMG Beer Rating: 8.0

Appearance: orange and cloudy, nice white head that fades to a consistent thin white top

Aroma: yeast, sweet fruit (makes me think vaguely of a mango-peach juice I like, but also sweetened apple juice), very subtle spice and bread underneath. No sour aroma, considering the bottle mentions Brettanomyces yeast.

Taste: starts off with a yeasty and tart fruit mix, and then the sweetness takes over. When it washes away, there's a spicy rye finish, which maybe shows up just before the sweetness hits you. Not a ton of heat from such a high ABV, but that might contribute to the sweetness. Great use of citrus-y hops make this beer very interesting. If you aged this, that might fade, while a slight sour fruit feeling would balance that sweetness and perhaps let the spicy rye shine more. I've read reviews getting more sour and funky flavors, leading me to believe those bottles were just older, as this beer is bottled with the brettanomyces inside.

Mouthfeel: medium-bodied, nice high levels of carbonation that emphasize the rye spiciness, but to me, almost too sweet upfront. Really great tingly spice finish though.

I'd recommend sharing this beer with more than just one friend. 750ml (wine size) bottles go far with a beer this strong, especially with the alcohol content so well hidden. Sip this, explore the flavors, it's beautifully complex. Buy two, age a bottle. This isn't my favorite American-made saison, but it's at the forefront of how well American breweries are making beers in the saison-style, and making them with very complex flavor profiles worthy of beer blog dissection and more. This would go really well with some countryside-influenced food.