So get this, I’m just finishing up a great batch of Odd13 beers I got from Dale Roberts when what do I find in the back of my beer fridge but a can of Odd13 Doctor Cougar Saison with Brett. Now, this sucker has to be about a year and a half old, but before we go any further let me tell you it was amazing, and yet another example of a beer holding up well with age.
Conventional wisdom says beer is best drunk fresh, and I agree with many styles that is true. A beer like this, however, packed with spicy Brett funk and grassy herbal hops ought to age gracefully, even if I didn’t intend to age it. We’ll see about that, shall we? But first, from the website:
A petite Saison, pale in color and without much cover for its delicate yeast and hop flavors. Highly drinkable, with low alcohol content but assertive character. A hint of Brettanomyces causes this beer's flavor to evolve continuously.
Ingredients from the website:
Fermentables: Castle Pilsen, Acidulated, Dextrose
Hops: Czech Saaz, Styrian Goldings
Odd13 Doctor Cougar Saison with Brett has an alcohol content of 5.1% by volume with 28 IBUs. I decanted my can of Doctor Cougar from my Fizzics draft beer system. This is the second saison I’ve enjoyed from Odd13, the first being Master of Unrelated Science Dry Hopped Saison.
So, into the Fizzics goes Odd13 Doctor Cougar Saison with Brett! Cans work as well as bottles and the device was able to decant all the contents of the can perfectly. This was the first can, in fact, that I used with my Fizzics. I got the same intensification of the aroma here that the system usually delivers; indeed, the nose was exploding with funky Brett character. Taking a sip, the beer has a crisp biscuity maltiness laced with spicy rye, think funky Brett notes, and at the last a long lingering herbal grassy German hop bitterness. Green peppercorns and coriander like spice abound here, too.
Aren’t cougars in popular culture supposed to be older anyway? Maybe I’m onto something here…..
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft