Second Saison

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Slid

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Brewed this using 2 cans - a Coopers APA and a Wilko Cerveza, plus the Belle Saison yeast (washed yeast from the first 9% Saison) and a hop tea. This was bottled on the 6 Dec - so 9 weeks ago into 12x2L + 1x500ml PET bottles from a starting 26L.

Had the first two large bottles of this over the last couple of nights (using up holidays this week) and am pretty amazed. I think saison is a bit of an acquired taste, but I seem to have acquired it quite quickly :-D.

A really clean, refreshing taste and a very clear beer - the yeast goes down to 1005 or so and so it has the same sort of mouthfeel as a light lager styled brew, like the Coopers Aussie Lager.

Taste is hard to describe, even though this never went higher than 23C, it is really quite different. Closest thing would be the Wherries I did (in error) when it was just too hot in the August heatwave (24-25C). The saison tasts good, the wherries sadly still taste of carbonic acid after being bottled too early.

If I do any high summer brewing this year, Saison seems to be the way forward. I think Belle Saison is a sort of conservative strain of these yeasts, so goodness only knows what a Saison done at higher temps and with a less conservative yeast might be like.
 
Now drinking the last few bottles of the 3 "daughter" Saison style beers done from kits towards the end of last year. The warmer weather of spring seems to have woken the Kraken that is the Saison and there is yet more fizz, even after refridgeration.

The "mother" Saison is a huge 9% effort with 3x 1.5kg cans and 1kg homemade Candi Sugar.

The esters seem to have diminished further and the taste is more rounded and mainstream now. So the good news is that the Saison yeast can be used for attenuation and not just funky flavours. But it takes the best part of 6 months and it is a bit distinctive, to say the least.

I will be doing this style again for sure.
 
I have youngs new world season brewing at the moment and glad I have read this today as I had thought about bottling it today but decided to leave it till my day off. Reading this reminded me I have to hop it so I'm going to do that now.
 
try putting saison in to a secondary fermenter for a couple of weeks with gooseberries or any other fruit. It just gives it that bit of fruit flavour. Really nice
 

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