7.8

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

Draught at the brewery, 10/21/16.
Dark mahogany, with moderate clarity and a beige head atop that shows moderate retention.
Very light on the herbs/spices (this is an unhopped gruit with saison yeast), only a bit of soft sage and pepper character, with light roast notes easily giving way to base malt honey-caramel. Very nice acidity, which seems to be the highlight of the beer. It’s not mixed ferm-like yeast/bacteria character (this isn’t a sour/tart saison) but rather acidity mostly from the herbs/spices, I assume, with some from the dark malt and Belgian yeast, as well. Very even, balanced, easygoing beer with great minerality/plaster-like character and no clove/bubblegum/banana/peach. No alcohol or flaw.
In the mouth it’s surprisingly drinkable. Most black saisons go overboard on the specialty malts, making it heavily bready, grainy and roasty. Not so here, as the base malts do most of the work, adding a soft texture and pleasant honey-vanilla sweetness. Light roast and chocolate sits on the end with easygoing spice/herb additions creating earthy, spicy, herbal notes and moderate acidity. Tight carbonation and no alcohol or flaw. Very nice stuff. Who needs hops...