Saison Rue - The Bruery, Placentia

I try not to seek out breweries or specific beers. I know that, in most cases, it will just lead to frustration when I can't find a beer I really want to try. Even worse is when I finally get my hands on a bottle of something I've really been looking forward to and it just doesn't live up to expectations. The Bruery is one brewery I've been wanting to try for the longest time and have been trying to find bottles of their beer while on vacation for a while now. It seems like their beers just don't stay in stock very long, which is great because their beers must be really good... but it doesn't help when I'm out of town and looking for a bottle to bring back home. I was finally able to pick up a few bottles of Bruery beer a few weeks ago and I'm hoping they can now live up to the hype that has been built up in my head.

The Bruery Saison Rue pours a warm golden straw color and develops quite the head. The bottle itself shouldn't sit for too long after you pry the cap off because it will start foaming over quite vigorously. The head on this beer sticks around for a while though it isn't terribly thick. There's a little lacing left behind as the head fades out, but nothing crazy.

The aroma in my glass is very Saisony... there's pale malt, tart citrus and a little brett funk. Nothing out of the ordinary, though it seems a bit more forward and strong than other Saisons I've had.

The flavor of the Saison Rue is solid and unsurprising at first. When I first take a sip of this beer I thought to myself, "This is what a Saison should like." It tastes very familiar, but updated for modern beer drinker tastes. What I mean by that is, at least for me, Saisons just aren't that interesting anymore. I've had my fill of light, fizzy and spicy yellow Saisons, it's a style that some do well and others just try to imitate. Saison Rue, on the other hand, is a robust rye and brett flavored Saison that contributes a lot to the debate about what makes a great Saison.

The Saison Rue lists rye and brettanomyces on the label but I don't see this beer as being a rye beer or a Saison that has been spiked with a remarkable amount of brett. The Saison Rue has a heartiness that I attribute to the rye but I wouldn't call it a Rye Saison, and the same goes for the brett. There's a funky brett twang to this beer but it doesn't define the beer in and of itself. The rye and brett add a level of complexity that I often find lacking in other Saisons.

I had a great time drinking this whole 750 of Saison Rue by myself. I enjoyed the complexity of this beer, with its layers of sweet, twangy and spice. It's all balanced together fantastically well. I can definitely see why this beer is always out of stock when I try and pick one up.