The saison. Typically, a crisp and refreshing drink of bright flavors and fruity tartness. Rockmill’s Saison Noir completely obliterates that notion, creating a potent concoction of earthy darkness and luscious complexity. Truthfully, this is what would happen if a stout and a saison got hammered one night and did the nasty in the back of a car (also assuming that beer could mate).
This brew begins with a massive aroma of toasted sesame seeds, laced with a touch of black licorice. Hickory smoke arrives soon after, coloring everything that follows. Next up, saison notes of apples and lemons arrive, followed by some burnt grass, and a hint of wood char. From here on out, the dark scents sink down to the base of the bouquet, while cherries, a hint of banana, and dried hay round it all out.
In your mouth, it all starts off with a massive cloud of smoke, contributing notes of bacon and smoked brisket. Following that, the curious flavor of sweet potato arrives as if out of no where, but compliments that smoke to perfection. Not to be held back, the saison flavors arrive with apples and lemon juice leading the charge, as well as a hint of clove and bananas, adding some tartness before rich and roasted malts show up and take over your entire mouth. Burnt crackers and bread crust team up with caramel and a hint of Grape Nuts to draw out every ounce of darkness. Meanwhile, an underlying brown sugar sweetness counters the potency, without diminishing the strength in any way. By the time you take your second drink, all of these flavors will have shifted amongst one another, forming a completely different taste profile. Mine went from smoke and malts to something akin to a glass of Syrah, consisting of dark redfruits, tobacco, and a touch of barrel char. After that, it was toasted sesame seeds and apples. You’ll definitely need more than a few drinks in order to nail down all of the flavors. Luckily, this beer is so tasty, you won’t need any more motivation to keep drinking.
Rockmill’s Saison Noir is a wonderfully sexy example of creativity and pushing boundaries. There are other black saisons, and smoked saisons, and “avant-garde” saisons, but most tend to focus on one specific component, like smoke, or baked apples. This one, however, goes all out, and loads as much flavor as possible into each bottle. And, believe it or not, it works splendidly. The combination of some of these flavors might not be for everyone (I’m thinking of you, tart-smoke and clove-steak). But, if you’re feeling adventurous, or if, like me, you love delicious and controlled chaos across your tongue, Saison Noir is where it’s at.
