Name – Saison Du BUFF
Country – United States
Type – Saison

Collaborations are often talked about topics in craft beer and 2010 has had no shortage of them.  A lot of people are talking about all the collaborations that Sierra Nevada did this year for their 30th Anniversary but I think one in particular caught the community’s attention even more.

Three of the countries most on the rise breweries decided to get together and make a beer.  Not once, but three times.  Once at each brewer’s facilities.  Those brewers were Stone, Dogfish Head and Victory.  The result is today’s beer, Saison Du Buff.  And I will be having the first of the three versions, the one made at Stone’s brewery.

I poured the beer into my Bruery tulip glass.  Yes I could have used my Dogfish Head snifter but I just think saisons look so much nicer in a tulip.  It is a very cloudy golden straw yellow color.  There is big bubbly white head that is left and it does take a bit of time to subside.

The herbs and spices really come out in the nose.  I can pick up the rosemary definitely in there.  I get some citrus hints along with the yeast.

The taste is again pretty herbal and spicy but they are not in your face.  They all blend well with a citrus taste and makes it a very refreshing beer.  And as with most saisons you get a slight yeasty funk to it.  But you know it’s the good kind of funk.

All in all this is a pretty good beer from three awesome brewers.  I find it especially cool because none of them really have a saison in their normal lineups besides maybe Victory with Helios.  So they did a style that they don’t commonly work with.  And the challenge paid off.

I know we didn’t get this down here in South Florida despite having distribution for all three breweries.  Each version was limited.  I got mine in Colorado.  But if you can get your hands on one and enjoy your saisons then go ahead and get this.

Grade – B