The Farmhouse Ale

The Dupont Brewery, Brasserie Dupont, sprang up in Wallonia, a French-speaking region of Belgium in 1844 on the site of a farm that had it’s own spring, the farm itself dating back to the 1700s. Dupont at Tourpes-Leuze is world famous for brewing a special style of beer, Saison. This particular variety of ale was only made by six or seven breweries in the world, and Dupont is known as the standard.
Saison means season in French, and this old world beer was brewed strong by farmers in the winter and subsequent months running up to spring to be consumed and last through the hot days of summer. The key to a successful saison was making a beer that was robust enough to make it up to and during the summer season, yet be refreshing. While typically fruity and spicy, fruity from the esters, spicy from the hops and yeast, these beers should have enough malt to give a foundation to the other flavors, yet are often tart and can be quite sour.
The Dupont Brewery specializes in top fermenting beers that undergo a second fermentation in the bottle through the addition of extra yeast before being corked or capped. It is this active yeast, visible in the bottle and possibly in the glass, which is often daunting to the uninitiated. However, a high carbonation should keep these beers sharp, and from becoming overly creamy or thick.
The classic of the style is, of course, Saison Dupont. A slightly strong ale, cloudy, dark yellow and fluffy, it is not only well hopped, but also fruity, dry and refreshing. The yeast is distinct and perfectly suited to satisfy a thirst. Moinette Brune is more similar to an Abbey ale, and proves stronger and more flavorful, while Moinette Blond is in the vein of a Belgian pale ale. Malt has a stronger presence in both of these. A completely 100% organic offering, the first ever in Belgium, Foret is Dupont’s blonde beauty of a beer.
Dupont’s website claims that Foret “has a fine balance between mellowness, fruitiness and bitterness.” I agree. Most saisons hover around 6% alcohol by volume (ABV), and while Foret checks in at 7.5%, the alcohol is cloaked beautifully.
The almost sad sized 11.2 oz. bottle is remedied by the great artwork on the label. Foret is apparently French for forest, as can be seen in the rendition. Clearer than most saisons, possibly due to the organic nature, some yeast is present, and a huge mountain of white sits atop the beer.
The aroma is a mix of hops, spices, oranges and yeast. Full is a good word, which goes for the flavor as well. Every sip delivers a different or changing taste. Lemons and oranges give way to pears and yeast, which segues into pepper and flowers and maybe even clove, with a touch of hops and a bitterness at the swallow. The yeast and malt in this beer are so classic, rustic and old world, yet so perfect for the beer. The finish is dry, just what you want from a saison. Give this little Belgian ale with a twist a try. Enjoy the brews … Cheers.
Gene’s Haufbrau has at more than 200 beers in bottles or on tap. While they don’t have every beer the Beer Snob writes about, they probably have most. Gene’s is located at 817 Savannah Hwy. 225-GENE. E-mail the Beer Snob at publisher@westof.net.