Apex Predator
Off Color Brewing in Chicago, Illinois, United States 🇺🇸
Farmhouse - Saison Regular|
Score
7.21
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Farmhouse Ale
When you brew as much as we do, sometimes we get tired of telling the yeast what to do. For Apex Predator Farmhouse Ale, we pitch the yeast cold, turn off the temperature control, and let the yeast do it's thing. To our delight, it spat out the sweet scent of juicy fruit wafting from a frothy, white mane. Brewed only with grain and sugar unencumbered by the heat of the kiln, we create a hazy, golden body. Apex Predator gets its teeth from a generous Crystal dry-hopping that completes the dry finish with a fruity bite. Pounce on the opportunity to let it part your lips and you may find yourself at the top of the food chain.
Malts: Pils and Flaked Wheat
Hops: Crystal and Sterling
Secret Techniques: Free rise fermentation and prey selection
When you brew as much as we do, sometimes we get tired of telling the yeast what to do. For Apex Predator Farmhouse Ale, we pitch the yeast cold, turn off the temperature control, and let the yeast do it's thing. To our delight, it spat out the sweet scent of juicy fruit wafting from a frothy, white mane. Brewed only with grain and sugar unencumbered by the heat of the kiln, we create a hazy, golden body. Apex Predator gets its teeth from a generous Crystal dry-hopping that completes the dry finish with a fruity bite. Pounce on the opportunity to let it part your lips and you may find yourself at the top of the food chain.
Malts: Pils and Flaked Wheat
Hops: Crystal and Sterling
Secret Techniques: Free rise fermentation and prey selection
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8.1/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
12 ounce bottle into tulip glass, no bottle dating. Pours hazy/cloudy deep golden color with a 2 finger fairly dense white head with good retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice dense soapy lacing clings around the glass, with a moderate amount of streaming carbonation retaining the head. Aromas of big lemon zest, orange peel, pear, apple, white grape, pepper, wheat, honey, bread, herbal, grass, and yeast earthiness. Very nice aromas with good balance and complexity of fruity/spicy yeast, pale malt, and earthy hop notes; with good strength. Taste of lemon zest, orange peel, pear, apple, white grape, pepper, wheat, honey, bread, herbal, grass, and yeast earthiness. Good amount of earthy yeast spiciness on the finish; with lingering notes of lemon/orange zest, pear, apple, white grape, pepper, wheat, honey, bread, and herbal/yeast earthiness on the finish for a short bit. Very nice complexity and balance of fruity/spicy yeast, pale malt, and earthy hop flavors; with a crisp malt/yeast balance and zero cloying flavors after the finish. The finish is fairly dry, but still has some light lingering flavor notes after the finish. Medium-high carbonation and light-medium bodied; with a very smooth, crisp, and lightly prickly/bready mouthfeel that is great. Alcohol is well hidden with minimal warming present after the finish. Overall this is an excellent saison. All around great complexity and balance of fruity/spicy yeast, pale malt, and earthy hop flavors; and very smooth and crisp to drink. A very enjoyable offering.
Tried
from Bottle
on 13 Jan 2015
at 20:43
6.1/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 8
Overall 5.5
Has an interesting, somewhat alkaline aroma. Cloudy vanilla yellow. Very good sizzle on top of a quite interesting refreshing taste. Would like to try this without any hops, I bet it would be good. However, the hops that have been added are not really over the top. Easy to enjoy. Hides alky content well. Taste gets more acceptable as the session continues. Yes, at first I wasn’t sure if I was going to like this but it winds up being a good overall beer experience.
Tried
on 13 Jan 2015
at 17:10
7.5/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 8
Pours hazy gold into a tulip. Bright white head with excellent retention recedes to a crater. Sweet dusty caramel and pear aromas. Dry with biscuit and hay upfront turning to a dusty earth before the lasting sweet summer fruit finish.
Tried
on 07 Jan 2015
at 17:28
7.9/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
Bottle from Bine & Vine. Pours light gold with a creamy white head. Aroma is very fruity, including a citrus hint. Med body or better (firm carbonation). Flavor is lightly spicy, fruity, including citrus, and moves to earthiness. This is delicious.
Tried
from Bottle
on 03 Jan 2015
at 19:26
7.2/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 7
12 oz bottle. Pours a hazy light gold with a white head. Floral pear aroma. Flavor is light, slightly tart with pear flavors, tiny hints at yeast and pale malts. Quite tasty, but very light.
Tried
from Bottle
on 23 Nov 2014
at 19:07
7/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
Bottle. Pours a light good with a massive head and aromas of lemon, pepper and saison funkiness. Flavor is a mix of honey, lemon, a little estery pepper and a hint of funk. This is a sweet and sticky saison that is pleasant enough, but I would have liked it to be a little lighter.
Tried
from Bottle
on 22 Nov 2014
at 18:25
6.9/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Apricot, lemon zest, coriander nose. Cloudy golden, thick head. Lemony, but dry. Coriander accents. Mild peppery finish. Light body. Another beer from this brewery that tastes more like a wibier. I think they must all be wits than merely have some qualities of the labeled style. Good though.
Tried
on 13 Oct 2014
at 16:02
7.5/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 8
Pour is a milky blonde with a large white head. Aroma is herbal and a bit spicy with some fresh tropical fruit. Flavor is mango with some mild funk. Finish is a bit like some sweet whipped cream. The beer gives a very soft mouthfeel so that may contribute to the whipped cream finish. Pretty good beer here. Very fruity with some farmhouse aspects shining through.
Tried
on 24 Sep 2014
at 16:57
7.5/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
12 ounce bottle from Wine Warehouse Charlottesville. Pours a hazy yellow with a thin frothy white head. Decent head retention. Aroma of earthy, nutty notes, bready malts, spicy and herbal hops. Pretty dry. The taste is spicy hops, pale bready malt, spice, yeast, bubblegum. Pretty dry, medium bodied, strong lingering spice. Solid.
Tried
from Bottle
on 16 Sep 2014
at 20:49
7.8/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 8
Bottle from Elizabeth Station, Bellingham
Cloudy blond color; medium sized head. Strange aroma, original; bready, flowery, crackery, very deep; there is elderflower and passion fruit. Dry mouthfeel; nice spicy flavor, coriander, citrus peel (tangerine and cedar); a bit astringent in the end.
Very good.
Cloudy blond color; medium sized head. Strange aroma, original; bready, flowery, crackery, very deep; there is elderflower and passion fruit. Dry mouthfeel; nice spicy flavor, coriander, citrus peel (tangerine and cedar); a bit astringent in the end.
Very good.
Tried
from Bottle
on 12 Sep 2014
at 23:56