My latest beer review is up at Drink Michigan: Bastone Brewery's Saison Noir.
I tried to write this one in the spirit of a film noir script, given the name of the beer. I hope it worked, I hope you like it.
I have yet to have a bad beer from New Holland Brewing Company in Holland, Michigan. Heck, I haven't even had a mediocre beer from them. They are somehow able to take any style of beer and not simply brew it according to specification. They make it come alive. Their beers just have that extra...something that make them stand out over so many other beers. Maybe it's the addition of a malt or a hop that nobody has thought of, or some new take on an old style. But I think more than that, it's quite simply that their brewers love their beers. As cliche' as it may sound, the love and pride these guys at New Holland have for the process of brewing comes out in beers that exceed my expectations every time.
We've established that I really really like New Holland.
Let's move on to summer. It's 80 degrees. It's sunny. Slight breeze. I'm on a patio. I used to love nothing more than a tart Belgian Wit or sweet and tangy German Weiss. But then, a few years ago, I was introduced to the Saison.
A French Farmhouse Ale (saison if French for season...this is a true 'seasonal' beer), French farmers would brew and ferment these beers very hot (80 degrees or so). At the end of a long day working the fields, they would quaff a bottle of the fine beer. Sweet, tart, citrusy, this is the ultimate summer refresher.
And now for the confluence of both things I love - summer and New Holland - I give you New Holland Brewing Company's Golden Cap Saison, available in your favorite beer mecca fridges right now!
Golden Cap pours a nearly-clear, slightly hazy crystal yellow in favorite pint glass (reserved only for the best beers). Loads of effervescence race to the surface and form a thick, fluffy pure-white head of foam, carrying with it all the best aromas this beer has to offer.
Delicious aromas of pepper, lemongrass and wheat dominate the nose. The interplay of sweet citrusy spice sits on top of a bed of floral hops making the whole beer a cornucopia of summertime scents. A slightly funky, yeasty character, just scant hints, gives the beer personality (and reminds you that this is a pure, unfiltered, true-to-style beer) so it's not all flowers and lemons. It's not a furniture cleaner, folks. It's a damn good beer.
Where lemons and spice dominate the aroma, a beautiful bready doughiness dominates the flavor. Biscuity malt gives way to tangy wheat tannins. The wheat then prepares your tongue for a stunning mix of soft fruits: pears, apples, peaches. Is that a tad of honey I taste as well? Honey-covered pears and apples? The alcohol bite yields a peppery spice, and the beer's flavor ends where the aroma started - tangy-sweet lemongrass. What an amazing journey through flavors.
Soft on the palate with a bubbly tickle from the aggressive carbonation, Golden Cap comes across as creamy and smooth. It's slightly dry in the back light body. What's not to love about a beer in the summer on a deck that tastes like this? Citrus, sweetness, bubbly, clear, and served cold, New Holland Golden Cap is the ultimate summertime refresher.
UPDATE
Title changed, for Bob.
Last weekend, I had the occasion to attend the World Expo of Beer in Frankenmuth, Michigan. I was supposed to have been attending a dinner with a group of Rotarians at the world-famous Zhender's restaurant. But...there was this big huge blue building. And it had all this beer in it...
My least favorite beer of the evening was an asparagus beer. It tasted like grilled asparagus. And that's it. Glad I tried it, and that's all I'll try.
I will try to intersperse, over the next few weeks, some reviews of some of the newer beers I had there. This week, in honor of Michigan's short burst of summery weather, I'll touch on New Holland Brewing Company's Golden Cap saison. I think I have made the statement before that I really like a good saison, and that as a "summer-time beer" I like saison better than a Belgian Wit or a German Weisse.
The tasting glass passed to me held a lazy, hazy, lightly yellow-straw colored beer with a thin but persistent pure white head. It looked inviting and refreshing, combining the best of summer sun and wheat-laden beer.
Golden cap had aromas filled with acidic and citrusy fruits, funky yeast, and a sweet malt character. Lemons, pears, pineapple, and tart green apples add the sweet-acidic aromas, followed by pepper and corriander to help give the hops a slight balance. It finishes with musty/yeasty notes of a nicely-aged saison.
Drinking the beer yielded the fruit flavors dominating the yeast and slight hop character. The beer is much more acidic and citrusy, with a hint of pepper over it all. Golden Cap is also pleasantly malty, helping cover over some of the funky yeast. As I sampled another (and another) Lemons and grapefruit flavors seemed to gain intensity.
Overall, Golden Cap walk a great line between dry and sweet, like a high-end white wine (for a third of the price!). Its medium body is balanced by a refreshing effervescence and while the citrus dominates, it still has enough malt to give it backbone and sweetness thus keeping it from being too tart. Overall, given the lean of this saison towards fruits and away from funk, I would say that Golden Cap is more approachable to a virgin saison drinker than the historic Saison Dupont. That said, a saison lover certainly won't be disappointed. I know for me, this beer will accompany many dinners this summer!
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