375 ml bottle poured into a Spiegelau tulip. Cork labeled 2.014. Hazy orange/yellow with 3 fingers of off-white head. Aromas of herbs, citrus fruit and peel. Tastes of citrus, barnyard funk, floral notes, herbs and spices. Medium body with a dry finish.

On tap at Buskers pub in Rome-Italy with mortlach. Pours golden color, bright and cloudy with a huge and creamy yellowish cap. Cool sight. Nose: a bit of a rough veggie feel which is reportedly more a farmhouse orientation than a flaw (I can’t believe it is a flaw considering the great reputation of this beer). Malts essence, some spices and flowers too. Mouth: again that veggie or even yogurt sensation in an otherwise more than good saison in style. Need to re-test it when I will get a more open mind towards this style.

Lys brun farge med hvitt skum. Lukter banan, alkohol og noe sitrus. Ganske mild i smak. Og også mild bitter avslutning.

Originally called Saison Dupont Vieille Provision, this classic beer can be regarded as the archetypical saison; fell in love with it more than a decade ago, so time to revisit. Hazy orangey blonde colour under a dense, moussy, off-white, extremely stable head - I recall leaving a glass unattended for over an hour, coming back and finding its head still firmly sitting over the beer, as if nothing had happened. Aroma of all the ’barnyard’ things one would expect from the style: wet hay, rotting grass, fried egg, green pear, damp cellar, yoghurt, prosecco, vanilla, bitter honey, sweat, lemon zest, fish fumet, peanuts, green beans, weeds, apricot, gooseberry and - to my surprise - a faint hint of H2S. Vivid, crisp and complex onset of sour berries, crabapple, refinedly sweet melon, vanilla and mango, with a sharp, minerally carbonation and a relatively strong sourish flavour of dried lemon peel; apart from the shy, brief honeyish sweetishness opening the palate, this is dry from the start, evolving into a rich and complex ’Belgian’ yeastiness with white pepper and dried ginger all around (though no spices have effectively been used). Towards the finish, it becomes even more dry, when the drying sourishness from the onset gets the assistance of a firm, drying, leafy, herbal, peppery hop bitterness and a slight hint of warming, ’jenever’-like alcohol. Generally speaking, this is the climax of quenching, drying, appetizing summer ales and in that sense this does embody the essence of the saison style, which American craft brewers are apparently trying to master. I do not like to reduce a whole beer genre to just one brand, especially in this case, but anyone claiming to understand the saison genre without being familiar with this, is simply talking crap. Saison Dupont, using its own yeast culture since the 19th century, remains a landmark on the Belgian beer map. I have admired this brewery ever since I got to know it and so far, it hasn’t let me down. In short: crisp, sourishly dry, yeasty with a hint of sweetness at the start and bitterness in the end. A Belgian monument, and a must taste if you’re into craft beer culture.

Botella .de @Señor Lúpulo. Despacho de cervezas. Casa18/01/2014 On Tap. @Cimmeria, Oviedo 21/04/2017. Color amarillo opaco, sabor agrio rica

Re-rate: Poured from 750mL bottle @ ABC bottle share. Lightly hazed gold with small white head and a bit of sediment. Earthy, floral, saison yeast, light coriander, very feint skunk note. Dec 28, 2014 (7/3/7/3/13=3.3): Poured from 750mL bottle [bb 07/2017]. Fairly active slightly hazy pale-to-golden yellow with full white head. Aroma has a slight lager-ish quality to it; some very subtle Belgian yeast and mild spice of coriander. Taste is similar with some mild grain, very subtle grass, and a dissipating funk sourness. Carbonation is quite high with a finish that disappears quickly, yet leaves a light yeasty aftertaste.

33cl bottle at Rataskaevu 16, Tallinn. Hazy golden to orange with a large and lasting white head. Fruity and yeasty aroma with spicy notes and hints of citrus. Moderate sweet with nice fruity and yeasty flavours, balanced acidity and a slightly dry finish. It was certainly about time to try this one again. Refreshing and quite delicious!