New Glarus Wisconsin Belgian Red, ’08 (Batch 1, I think?) Boulevard Saison-Brett, and side-by-sides of Southern Tier Jahva, Deschutes Black Butte XXI, and Nectar Ales Black Xantus. The winner? My dear friend Jen, aka the Champion of Everything. Thanks to the Bautistas for hosting this epic beer sesh and bestowing onto me a Saison Dupont, which I will most likely be opening this weekend.
Notes:
WISCONSIN BELGIAN RED
5.10%ABV
Bottle courtesy of a trade with BA soulforpeanuts. I was blown away by Raspberry Tart and was really looking forward to this one.
Appearance is not what I’d expect from a Belgian. Very cloudy rubies and purples and reds, which makes the body absolutely gorgeous. But the head is minimal and there’s not much retention to speak of. Aromas are all cherry…it’s very prominent and in your face, but the flavors reveal something a little more subtle. It’s actually a lot sweeter on the palate than expected. At the tasting, I said the aromas were freshly picked and ripened cherries, but the flavors were more on the maraschino cherries side of the spectrum, just really sweet and tons of residuals covering the mouth. Each sip revealed a varied level of tartness, which I suppose kept things interesting. Not much “Belgian” in here that I could discern. The cherries really take this one over.
All parties agreed that this brew would be best for either a hot day or a brunch. It was really great for what it was, but I couldn’t drink more than one goblet of this in one sitting, whereas I happily drank the entire bottle of Raspberry Tart in a relatively short amount of time.
Belgian Red – B+
SAISON-BRETT
8.50%ABV
Massive frothy white head at the pour. Body is translucent straw golden. Aromas were musty phenols with spice. Flavors were the same, with bitter herbals and a mellow earthiness characteristics balancing out the Brett, which at this point was heavily medicinal (lick a band-aid and you’ll see what I’m talking about). The body and carbonation are right on, making this a refreshing ale, true to its style. I’m surprised at the lack of alcohol/solvency in the flavors. 8.5% is significant in my mind, but the balance of herbals and earth (as well as age) did well to cover up the potential heat.
The highlight of this beer was pairing it with a 3-year cheddar. The cheese seemed to mellow out the phenols, and bring out the slightly funky/dirty flavors. What a treat! Daniel, you treat me well. 
Saison-Brett – A
Other notes: I loved the Black Butte XXI. It’s clearly a Deschutes beer, and my favorite porter (Black Butte) is clearly its influence. The Black Xantus was clearly a Nectar (Firestone-Walker) brew, and tasted very similar to the Abacus I had at the tasting room recently. Jahva was good but “subtle”, which was the way Dan described it. Fitting and spot on, as the stout was balanced but just lacked a certain “oomph” to it. Mokah was much better, in my opinion.
