Odonata Saison (on tap) at Beer Revolution

We went to Beer Revolution for a "Meet the Brewers" event Saturday, May 22.  Those events are always a little weird, since it's hard to figure out what exactly to say to the brewers other than "hey man, this beer is really good."  I chatted briefly with Peter, the brewer, and Rick, the sales/marketing guy, and they were very nice as I told them that indeed, their beer is good.

REALLY good.

Odonata Saison (Saison, 6% ABV) is incredibly delicious.  It's foggy and honey-coloured, with a fluffy white head that dissipates pretty quickly.  It has a faint, dusty smell.  It feels great, syrupy and gentle, really soft in the mouth.  It's almost a little chewy, if that makes sense.  It tastes sweet (but not sugary) and lemony.  The aftertaste is lovely - it really fills up your whole mouth and is almost slightly peppery.  Overall it's delicious, and I like how complex it is.  Drinking it was very enjoyable, and I had a lot of different thoughts and impressions.  That's always fun.

Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of it.  So instead, here's the Lumberjack trying to fly my kite when we went up to a vinyard yesterday.  The Saison makes things feel rosy and summery like this photo.

(side note: locals should definitely keep an eye on this newish brewery in Sacramento - I'm super excited to see what beers are still to come!  Odonata Beer Company seems quite promising.)

We each ordered a Saison (even got the glasses to go with it!  yay glassware!), then both tried an additional beer:

I had Brasserie de Silly Scotch Silly (Scotch Ale, 8% ABV).  It had the strongest honey scent I've ever smelled in a beer - it seriously smelled like someone just poured a bottle of honey inside the glass.  It had a really pretty, dark ruby colour.  It mostly just tasted like water & honey - the honey flavour was so intense that it made any other flavours just seem watery and non-existent.  The aftertaste had a little more yeast/beer in it, which was nice.  But overall the honey was too overwhelming.

The Lumberjack had Eel River Triple Exultation (Old Ale, 9.7% ABV) which I thought was delicious.  It smelled strongly of bourbon/liquor, but was very sweet and pruney, slightly like raisins.  It was very smooth, and very tasty.  Quite drinkable, but a little high in the ABV to have too much.

Unfortunately it wasn't until our last few sips that we realized we each preferred the other's beer.  Oops.