Brian Strumke (Stillwater) Jeppe Jarnit-Bjergsø (Evil Twin) Mitch Steele (Stone)

This Frankenstein-esque saison is definitely not the first black saison, but it is one of the first beers to use oak-smoked wheat malt, a new malt style that produces a flavor “eerily similar to a fresh oak barrel.”

Although I’m certain the brewers will tell me otherwise, the only semblance this beer has to a saison is its use of saison yeast. The Perfect Crime was brewed with a blend of 8 different malts, including dark malts and the aforementioned oak-smoked wheat malt. The hop profile comes from a mix of both noble and American hops – East Kent Goldings, Chinook, and Cluster. The end result is a black as night “saison” at 6.8% and 60 IBUS.

Tasting Notes, by Stone Brewmaster Mitch Steele

Appearance: Black with a long lasting head
Aroma: First aromas are of dark roast and mildly smoky malt characters. The saison yeast fights through with a fruitiness and spiciness that presents a nice side-by-side complement to the malt characters as the beer warms.
Taste: Light roast character and a blended smoky character up front. Again, the Belgian saison yeast comes through just after; contributing intense fruity and peppery spice flavors that linger after the dark, smoky impressions have faded. Hints of citrus and banana assert themselves late into the palate. There’s a very pleasant hop bitterness in the finish.
Palate: Dry, with a balanced bitterness and very light astringency. The complex flavor profile blends incredibly well. 
Overall: This is a beautiful beer, with just the right amount of smoke and roasted malt character to keep the beer interesting while you drink the entire glass. We brewed this beer with eight different grains, and although it was a difficult lautering day in the brewhouse, the end result more than makes up for those challenges. And one of the more interesting malts we used was the oak-smoked wheat malt from Germany. It has a wonderful flavor, reminiscent of a fresh oak barrel.

Suggested food parings, by “Dr.” Bill Sysak

Appetizers: Coconut shrimp, deviled eggs, smoked salmon blinis
Salads: Chinese chicken, antipasti, honey mustard pork
Main course: Caramelized fennel and apple flatbread, ramen, quail, roasted chicken or turkey, halibut cheek
Cheeses: Triple crème Brie, Cowgirl Creamery Devil’s Gulch, Muenster, Morbier
Cigars: Dunhill Aged Dominican Condados, La Aurora Puro Vintage, Arturo Fuente Magnum R Rosado Sungrown, La Flor Dominicana Air Bender

And, last but not least, for your watching pleasure…..

Ken, Me & Sam at the Life & Limb Release Party

Although Sierra Nevada has collaborated with a few other outstanding craft breweries, one can never forget one’s first. They have paired up yet again, further forging the bond between them with an East-meets-West Imperial IPA called Rhizing Bines.

“We had a lot of fun brewing the original dark and roasty Life & Limb in Chico with the Grossmans and Sierra Nevada’s extended family,” says Dogfish Head President and Founder Sam Calagione. “We are very proud of the way that beer turned out. Now it’s our turn to repay that hospitality and brew a very hop-centric IPA in Milton with our pals from Chico, incorporating innovative ingredients and techniques from both breweries.”

“Sam and his family and the entire Dogfish crew have been friends of ours for a long time,” says Sierra Nevada Founder Ken Grossman. “When we started talking about doing another collaboration we jumped at the chance, especially since this version will be the hoppy counterpoint to the last brews. We couldn’t say no! We’re looking forward to joining forces again. We’ve got one of our Hop Torpedos on a truck right now on its way to Delaware via North Carolina, and we’re eager to taste the finished product.”

ABOUT THE BEER

On the hot side, Rhizing Bines will go through Dogfish’s signature continual-hopping process with floral and citrusy Bravo hops. On the cold side, it will be dry-hopped with an experimental varietal so new it doesn’t yet have a name, just a number: Hop 644. A component of Sierra Nevada’s aroma-boosting Torpedo system will make a pit-stop in Delaware for dry-hopping duty before it heads to Sierra’s new North Carolina brewery.

To celebrate Sierra Nevada planting East Coast roots, Dogfish Head tracked down a Carolina heirloom wheat grown and milled at Anson Mills. The soft red winter wheat contributes subtle sweet and nutty notes to this hop-forward ale.

“It gives my wife and myself great comfort to know that although we’re leaving our home and friends on the West Coast, we’re joining our craft brewing friends on the East Coast,” says Sierra Nevada General Manager Brian Grossman. “Here’s to great beer!”

Rhizing Bines will be brewed at Dogfish Head’s coastal Delaware brewery. It’s expected to hit taps and shelves throughout Dogfish’s 27-state distribution network in February 2013.

Dogfish Head / Victory / Stone Saison du BUFF was born out of an ad hoc group formed way back in 2003. Sam Calagione (Dogfish Head), Bill Covaleski (Victory), and Greg Koch (Stone) got together to drum up some press for the little guys in the craft brewing world.

“We called it BUFF, an acronym for Brewers United for Freedom of Flavor,” explains Greg Koch, CEO Stone Brewing Co. “We wanted to protest the flavorless, mass-produced, fizzy yellow lagers that dominated the marketplace, and we thought if these three brewers from different parts of the country banded together, we could really get the media to notice the incredible revolution that was going on in the craft beer world.”

Just like the last time, each brewery will brew variations on the same beer, using the same base recipe with the same herb blend, with slight recipe tweeks distinctive to each brewery. Stone’s will be the last version to be released and will feature herbs organically grown around the brewery and from nearby Stone Farms.

FYI: this refreshing, herbaceous, and peppery meeting of the minds is here just in time for the hot summer, but it won’t last very long — so once you see in on the shelves, make sure to grab it cause who knows how long it will be out there.

For more information on the collaboration, check out the video here:

This is the first time I’ve gotten wind of the beer, which means that I’ve been a really bad Internet beer stalker. I’ve attached the press release below. Not sure what the distribution will be, but I’m really hoping to get my hands on some. Hopefully, it makes its way up to wine country … cause it would fly off the shelf up here.

– PRESS RELEASE –

New Belgium Brewing of Fort Collins, CO and Allagash Brewing of Portland, ME are pleased to announce the release of their collaboration ale, Vrienden (Flemish for friends). Brewed with caramelized endive and hibiscus, Vrienden is inoculated with lacto bacillus and brettanomyces, creating a slightly sour beer with a floral nose and a dry finish.

“We wanted a very simple sour so as not to compete with the hibiscus,” said New Belgium Brewmaster, Peter Bouckaert. “When we ran tests using our La Folie bretta, it was too intense and the hibiscus disappeared. The Allagash microbes bring just the right amount of sour and elevate the hibiscus notes where they belong.”

Allagash founder, Rob Tod, and brewmaster, Jason Perkins collaborated with New Belgium brewmaster, Peter Bouckaert, and Assistant Brewmaster, Grady Hull, at New Belgium’s Mothership facility in Fort Collins last September. They started the day sautéing endive in New Belgium’s employee kitchen to achieve caramelization. When asked what the endive would add to the beer, Bouckaert thought for a moment, shrugged and said simply, “endive.” The team later pitched endive into the mash and hibiscus into the kettle.

Vrienden is the second collaboration beer from New Belgium and Allagash and the first commercially available through New Belgium’s Lips of Faith Series. It is available on draft and in 22-oz. bottles now through February throughout New Belgium’s area of distribution where Lips of Faith beers are usually found.

About New Belgium Brewing Company
New Belgium Brewing Company, makers of Fat Tire Amber Ale and a host of Belgian-inspired beers, began operations in a tiny Fort Collins basement in 1991. Today, the third largest craft brewer in the U.S., New Belgium produces eight year-round beers; Fat Tire Amber Ale, Ranger IPA, Sunshine Wheat, Blue Paddle Pilsner, 1554 Black Ale, Abbey, Mothership Wit and Trippel, as well as a host of seasonal releases.  In addition to producing world-class beers, New Belgium takes pride in being a responsible corporate role model with progressive programs such as employee ownership, open book management and a commitment to environmental stewardship.  For more information, visit www.newbelgium.com.

About Allagash Brewing Company
Allagash Brewing Company started in 1995 in Portland, Maine. Allagash White, a Belgian style wheat beer, was the first beer brewed and the company flagship.  Today Allagash makes six year-round beers, a regular rotation of seven yearly releases and an ever-changing selection of one-off beers.  Allagash have dedicated themselves to brewing creative, distinctive and high quality Belgian-inspired beers. For more information, please go to www.allagash.com.

Mutinous Battle Chai will make its debut this Friday, September 17th at Falling Rock Taphouse in Denver, CO. There is no cover charge for the event and the cost is per beer. The beer will be on available until all the kegs are tapped. You can RSVP for the event on both RateBeer and Beer Advocate.

The entire proceeds from the sale of Mutinous Battle Chai will be donated to A Child’s Right, an organization dedicated to global water relief and bringing clean water to children in underdeveloped regions of the world.

Technically speaking, Mutinous Battle Chai does not fit the guidelines of any individual style category. The base beer was brewed with both pale and rye malts, spiced with an original interpretation of the traditional chai tea spice blend, and fermented with a Belgian wit yeast strand. This base beer was then primed with brown ale wort and underwent a secondary fermentation with merlot yeast on oak. The end result is a dry, amber-colored, medium-bodied Belgian-style spiced and oaked ale unlike any craft beer brewed before.

Other beers from New Holland Brewing Company, including Golden Cap Saison, Imperial Hattter IPA, as well as Hatter Royale Hopquila, a distilled spirit that has been steeped in hops, will also be available during the release party. This is the first time that New Holland beer will make an appearance in Colorado outside of the Great American Beer Festival.

For more information on the recipe and brewing process of Mutinous Battle Chai, check out Issue 13 of Mutineer Magazine, now on newsstands.