December 13 - Goose Island Sophie (er Sofie) Belgian Style Farmhouse Ale (2013 Edition)

Yum! Saisons! Tonight's saison is the 2013 edition of Sophie Sofie Belgian Style Farmhouse Ale by the folks over at Goose Island Beer Co. out of Chicago. Anheuser-Busch and others are scared of the increasing popularity of craft beer and since their market share has gone down a bit, they've started to buy reputable microbreweries all over the United States in Canada. In 2011 Anheuser-Busch InBev purchased the brewery to secure territory rights and to help control even larger part of the beer market in the States.

Appearance: Sophie Sofie pours a very cloudy pale lemon-yellow with a bit of a soapiness to it. Insane amount of carbonation.. I can hear a bit of a fizzing taking place even a few months after the beer has been poured. Very minimal head, there's a light amount of off-white foam touching the sides of the glass but that's about it.

Aroma: Very citrus-focused on the nose. A nice lemon zest giving it a bit of a sour aspect to it, Belgian yeast, orange peel, light hay aroma and lightly peppered. More of a sour zest to it than most saisons I've had.

Taste: Very solid saison. Sour lemon citrus zest, orange peels, good abundance of yeast, some notes of champagne and a light grainy note to it for aftertaste.

Overall Thoughts: More of a sour saison than most saisons I've had. I've only had one saison that was anywhere near in sourness and that was at a brewpub in Quebec City. Nice light on-the-palate saison that has an abundance of citrus flavours and great for a chilly evening like tonight. Considering that Anheuser-Busch InBev owns this brewery, you would likely never notice. 6.5% ABV and Sophie Sofie can be aged in bottle for up to 5 years, which would be an interesting beer experiment.

Edit: April 2015, I incorrectly wrote Goose Island's Sofie as Sophie, I never even noticed until now. Also: Goose Island's Sofie & Matilda beers are now available in 765mL wine-like bottles all over Manitoba at Liquor Marts in Brandon, Virden, Neepawa, The Pas, Winnipeg and beyond!

www.gooseisland.com/pages/sofie/28.php

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