Here I am again, folks, your friendly neighborhood bruguru, ready to regale you again with tales of a beer I let hang around a bit past its purported “best by” date, yet still wowed me with its flavor and character. The beer in question is Upslope Blood Orange Saison, described on the can as ale brewed with blood orange and spice. I got this beer from good old Dale Roberts last fall and it’s been in my beer fridge ever since.

Now, the beer is stamped on the bottom with a best by date of December 11th 2015; I drank it on March 6^th of 2016.  This though is a beer that can certainly last longer, especially if properly stored, and I’m here to prove that to you. The spicing and saison yeast help make that possible.

From the website:

Blood oranges and Mandarina Bavaria hops seamlessly complement one another in this saison providing aromatic notes of citrus and bright, juicy flavors. The addition of pink peppercorns amplifies the spicy notes imparted by the saison yeast while balancing the beer’s natural sweetness and dry finish.

Ingredients:

Upslope Blood Orange Saison has an alcohol content of 6% by volume with 25 IBUs.

Upslope Blood Orange Saison pours to a bright orange color with a thick creamy head formation and a nigh irresistible nose of juicy pulp fruit and spicy peppercorns. Taking a sip, the beer has a moderate maltiness up front followed by spicy peppercorn notes (think corned beef), funky yeast notes and juicy, tart fruity citrus in the gently bitter hoppy finish.

I just loved the way all the flavors here work together, and I’ll add this should be a summer release as it would serve as a perfect hot weather refresher. If Upslope Blood Orange Saison were sold in my area, I’d likely sock away a few cans for the summer months just to test that theory out.

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