Today's review is Le Merle, a 750ml offering from North Coast Brewing Company. Saison, or farmhouse ales, are an old style, meant to be brewed in the winter and enjoyed in the summer. I couldn't resist this one when I saw it on the shelf. Tall, corked beers are hard to resist, plus the bottle said "exotic aromas of tropical fruit". I was sold.Le Merle pours a cloudy, apple juice-yellow. A nice bit of fast-popping white head forms. It lowers quickly, but a mostly full film of it stays the whole drink down.
The smell has a bit of green apple, a bit of dough, a "creamy" smell... perhaps like porridge & milk, and some plantain (more plantain than banana, I think). Hmm... nothing too exotic or tropical.
The taste is pretty much the same as the smell. Unfortunately, I was expecting something fruitier / hoppier, and ended up getting something that is one of my least favourite flavours of beers.
The feel is very smooth and creamy, but with lots of fizz, too. It leaves a chewy yet dry kind of feel in the mouth. It also leaves a bit of sharp sweetness (it feels/tastes more sweet than bitter) that lingers for a bit that I don't care for... probably one of the main things I don't like about this kind of beer.
It's not a bad beer, and it's pretty drinkable. It's just not my type of thing.
