An unclear orange beer with a small white head. The aroma is sweet spicy combined with notes of yeast. The flavor is very sweet - and again with strong notes of yeast and spices, leading to a very dry end.

2005 bottle from Julios. Consumed 5/5/05. Pour is a dark brown, approaching black, but you can still make out some deep magenta tinges on the edges. Greyish-beige head, with light flecks of tan, is only one finger high, but remains for most of the experience. The head has a creamy consistency, with low lacing, as well. Aroma brings in oily roast, moderately dry chocolate malt, notes of salty smoke and plenty of caramel. Low on the vinousness, this one is. Which is fine with me, as an afterthought. Flavor begins with bacon-fat smokiness, moderately sweet, little bit of spice and flawlessly transitions in to a chocolate-roastiness. The flavors are delicious, though my main complaint is the relative lack of complexity here, not counting the smoke. I think the classy smokiness really bails this one out. It’s not too sweet, and has a smooth, even mouthfeel, but nothing really mind-blowing here, or so I thought. Medium-full body, lots of caramel and toffee in this one. But I chose to concentrate on the smoke at the beginning of every sip, and that was more than enough for me.

Rerate. Same vintage, about 4 months old. Horribly peppery carbonation, dry, bready texture, alcohol has begun to show through. Everything tastes more stale than it did 4 months ago. Light signs of oxidation already. This is why filtration is wrong, people!

2004 bottle provided generously by MartinT at the 4/17/2005 Montreal tasting. Deep sparkling gold body, lightly hazy, obviously unfiltered with a prominent white head, well-retained. Sounds like a five to me. Aroma of lavender, floral tree notes, scurvy grass (cochlearia officinalis, actually I just made that up, I have no idea what that flower smells like), rose hips, and some lilac-smelling hops. All in all, it’s pretty phenomenal and brings a new level of meaning to the phrase "flowery saison". Hints of very faint malt break in, with some lightly tart yeast and maybe some faint, yet tart tangerines. Flavor begins lightly sweet, with a spicy/peppery sort of flavor, not terribly drying or astringent, but sort of like rose water, mint, thyme and lilacs all mixed together. All the while, the Belgian yeast works its magic and there is a delicious honey sort of pils malt, light aromatic malts and maybe some special B malt?? I don’t know. I do know that I thorougly enjoyed it and will be attempting to trade for a bottle of it. Mouthfeel is rather wet and slippery, probably all of the flower oils, with a quickly receding carbonation and a medium body overall. No alcohol apparency, finishes floral and perfumey. The balance is certainly perfect, just needs a tad more body, and less wateriness on the end. 9/5/8/4/18

2005 bottle drunk on 8/12/06. Holy crap, this is some worty stuff. Just ridiculous amounts of sugars, uncomplex sweetness and very little yeast complexity. Some breadiness, tons of sticky honey, sweet, moist biscuits and only minimal, trailing bitterness, which is completely lost. No grace, no elegance, the flower notes just seem lost amidst a sea of sugars. Wow, hopefully next batch returns it to its former glory. Couldnt even finish my glass. 7/5/6/3/12 Rating is an average of the two years.

Opaque gold colour. Slight barnyard hint to the bready malt aroma. A funky take on the style - got to like that. Appley esters and dusty yeastiness along with that slight leathery note. I actually didn’t get much spice.

Deep copper-orange body, puffy off-white head. Grassy, cerealy aroma with a touch of toast and caramel. Crisp body, dominated by grassy, earthy hops and balanced by light toast, fruit, and caramels in the backdrop. Bitter finish with definite metallic "copper penny" notes. Not mind-blowing, but quaffable and dependable. Thanks Dan (jah noth) for the latest wave of beers!

2004 vintage. Rating #1000.
Many thanks to Larry (goldtwins) for providing me with beer #1000! Amber/light copper body, slightly hazy, thin off-white head. Lots of white grape and apple in the aroma as well as a touch of plum, orange, sweet breads and crackers. Yeasty mustiness in the background. Flavor was very sweet with plenty of candi sugar, apple, white grape, coriander, and spicy yeast esters, with a touch of prune and caramel at the finish. Reminded me a bit of those 8 oz fruit juice cartons that were popular lunch-time items in elementary school. Biscuity finish with hints of alcohol. The sweetness was unbalanced and a bit cloying; I find that beers this sweet are best when the sugars are balanced by chocolate and/or dark fruit character. Full-bodied and dense. A good beer, but not one of the best I’ve sampled. One thousand down; how many to go?

Clear rich copper color with a tall off white head. A bit of doughy malt aroma. Well balanced with a slightly bitter finish. Not really impressive, although being quite drinkable.