Yazoo "Birthday Saison" Ale

This is 12 ounces. I know that, because the can told me. It also told me it was hand crafted. You know what it didn't tell me? The ABV is 5.5%. Why did they not bother? You'll have to ask them. I renew my call for the world of beer to come up with a generic label that all cans can have on it that will list the essentials all in one place. Do it before the government thrusts it upon you!

The light yellow beer isn't clear enough that I would automatically say this must be a low-calorie beer, but it's heading that direction. The head comes out just fine, but the thin ring and two tiny little islands are all that protect the top. At least it won't have to be protected from descending lacing, as there isn't any lacing to be found. The aroma is quite fruity; I think I put in my mind that this would smell like a pilsner, based on the color, but it is emphatically not smelling that way.

First sip is tart enough at first that I was afraid that this had become, like lambic, weisse, and gose, just a name for horrible sour beer. I've had a few saisons before, so I think that would have stuck in my nugget, but who knows what small breweries are doing these days? I've had enough brewers put coffee in their beer and not tell me about it on the label that I think there is some kind of conspiracy. The rest of the beer is muddled quite a bit, but it's not sour, so I don't know what to really expect in the swig.

Tip-in is quite tart with wheat and something almost akin to peppers sitting where I would normally find carbonation. The middle rocks with much harder carbonation burn as the fruits seem to be stuck in a quagmire of grains and bread, but the tart (while subdued) is not going away entirely.. The finish is a wash of grains and bitterness before an uneven trail-off.

Bottom Line: This is the kind of thing that gives Yazoo a bad name around here.

1.25/5