REVIEW: 21st Amendment Sneak Attack

So I've been looking at a lot of big hearty stouts lately. It's sort of the time though. It's awfully cold and big malty beers like that are prefect for cold windy nights like that. I love a good stout, that much should be apparent. But at a certain point, one stout after another can get a bit tiring. Apparently I'm not the only one who thinks that way because 21st Amendment has just released, in the dead of winter, Sneak Attack. A belgian style saison brewed with cardamom. Plenty of info about the creation of the beer, including the story behind the name and the can art, both of this are tremendous by the way, can be found here. Recommended reading. To the beer!

As Sneak Attack pours a tall, bone white layer of frothy rocky head forms atop a hazed over golden yellow brew. I can already tell that this beer is going to be a very welcome change of pace from all of those viscous black ales.

Breaking rank again from all of those roasty aromas I've grown accustomed to lately are the lemony, citrusy, spritzy aromas going on here. The fruitiness is accented by grassy notes of fresh grain, a peppery spiciness, and some herbal and floral hop notes. Pretty lovely all around.

Sneak Attack leads off with a creamy, citrusy, lemon flavor. It's also got a nice, peppery, spicy character both from the Belgian yeast and the "dry hopped" cardamom. It's got a powdery character and finishes pretty dry.

Man, 21st Amendment has been killing it lately. First with the excellent Marooned on Hog Island and now with this lovely little saison. It's drinkable, refreshing, and very very tasty. Also, it has to be said, the fact that I'm drinking what is ostensibly a summer beer on a day when the high temperature is just edging past freezing has a certain romance to it. I first noticed this phenomenon (? probably not the right word) back in the summer when I looked at the fabulous Wolfgang doppelbock from Great Divide. A big malty beer in the midst of summer is the opposite side to this coin. There is certainly something to be said for a change of pace, for something out of the ordinary. Perhaps we're seeing the beginnings of a trend?

HD