Q: What’s a great spring seasonal beer style?
A: I look forward to Belgian Saison in the spring time. It’s a great food-friendly pale ale that is bright, low bitterness and highly effervescent. Saison translates to season’, which was originally brewed on French/Belgian farms during the winter for workers to enjoy in the warmer months working in the fields. The brew was low in alcohol back then (3% ABV) and provided the farm workers much needed hydration due to the lack of safe potable drinking water. Workers drank around a gallon of the wild beer everyday! Currently, Saison averages around 6-8% ABV.
The style differs greatly from brewery to brewery with varying degrees of alcohol, funk, aromatics and mouthfeel. The de facto of the style is largely considered to be Saison DuPont from Belgium and many local craft breweries use that particular DuPont yeast strain as it produces some unique aromas, particularly fermented at higher temperatures.
