Appearance: Eagle Claw Fist pours clear brown with amber hues when held up to the light. Eagle Claw Fist throws up a great creamy tan head of about two fingers that lingers like a bruise from a punch of a kung-fu master.

Smell: Eagle Claw Fist has a fairly mellow aroma, like a kung-fu master is subtle and sneaky. A little bit of hops and some smooth malt, but that’s it. It’s subdued...

Taste: Whoa! Eagle Claw Fist drinks so smooth you’d never know it’s an 8% abv beer. It drink like it’s 6%. Eagle Claw Fist goes down so easy (insert your own joke here). There is a great hop bitterness up front, but it’s smoothly followed by a luscious malt profile and finally some piney, slightly citrusy hop flavors. Clown Shoes nailed this one! The hops and malt go together great! This is an 8% hoppy, malty beer... it’s over 80 degrees outside and we still are digging it. Well done to the Clown Shoes Crew.

So if you haven’t noticed, we like the name Eagle Claw Fist. It sounds like the beer Rambo David Carradine would drink. Clown Shoes is four for four in our books!

It's still hot and it's still summer, which means it's still the Summer of Saison! This example of the style comes from Tarpon Springs, FL where they know quite a bit about needing a thirst quenching drink after being out in the hot weather. At 7.5% abv this one weighs in about average for the modern interpretations of Saison, but is higher than they traditionally were... but it's hot and we're thirsty so let's just see how this one stacks up!

Appearance: Upon opening the bottle, the beer overflows a bit... good thing we'd read about this happening and opened it over the sink. Saison Athene pours a light, clear golden straw color with an off-white puffy head that reminds us a bit of soda head. The head is quickly gone, but the beer still looks delicious. There's a bunch of yeast chunks from the overflow, but nothing too bad.

Smell: The smell is smooth and of orange and funk from the brettanomyces, which is a wild yeast sometimes found in Belgian-style beers. This wild yeast provides a light, musty aroma to the brew. The beer smells quite dry with a muted Saison yeast note... honestly the smell is more mild than we've come to expect out of this style.

Taste: The first, and predominant, taste you get is orange cream. The mouth feel is much fuller and creamier than expected... it's quite smooth. Somehow, it's still dry, though. Carbonation coats the tongue in fine bubbles, but the mouthfeel of the beer keeps the carbonation from being prickly at all. The funk is much stronger in the nose than in the taste, where it's very backgrounded by the strong orange cream tasete. It's full on the front, but a much thinner, drier and more refreshing brew on the finish. We like this one, but it's too full and not quite dry enough for the Summer of Saison. This is a fall or early spring Saison... perhaps even a good one for winter. The alcohol is, however, very well hidden so don't expect it to warm you on a cold winter day.

As a side note, past experience with this beer has shown us that, if you age it, the brett will continue to work on the sugars in the beer and dry it out. We highly recommend you do this!

Every year Samuel Adams does their Long Shot contest to allow home brewers to get their beer made in a commercial brewery and distributed throughout the Samuel Adams distribution range. It's a great idea, we think, and has resulted in some delicious beers! Speaking of beer, let's check out the Lemon Pepper Saison from the Samuel Adams Long Shot Series:

Appearance: The Lemon Pepper Saison pours a darker shade of clear gold than many traditional Saisons. The big, white, fluffy heady is totally expected, though. Looks like it might be a bit much for a hot summer day, but perfect for a warm spring day.

Smell: The aroma doesn't have a lot of the yeast character that we expect from a Saison. We get some papaya and fresh apricot. Obviously, there's some lemon and cracked pepper in there as well, but shouldn't that almost be assumed by the name of the beer? Well I guess we'd assume it would smell like a Saison, so that shows what assuming does...

Taste: A bit sweet for a Saison, but the pepper on the finish helps to dry it out at the end. It's a fruitier tasting beer with apricot and papaya in there. There's a hint of lemon in there, but it's definitely more in the aroma.

All in all, this beer is OK. Not a great representation of style, but still pretty good. We wouldn't seek it out, but we'd happily drink it!

A few weeks ago, on a hot summer day, we ventured up to The Tap at Haverhill Brewery in Haverhill, MA craving some Berlinerweiss. It was about 90°F and we were seated in the sun out on their beautiful deck. We needed some tart, refreshing, lower alcohol beer stat! We ordered a pitcher of Berlinerweiss, and here is the story... Actually, before we get to the beer, a quick history lesson. Berlinerweiss was traditionally brewed in German as a lower alcohol (this one clocks in at 3% abv) refreshingly tart beer. American Craft Brewers have recently begun to take up the style, much to our delight. Seek this one out on a hot summer day, it's one of the most refreshing beers made in our minds! Now, on to the Berlinerweiss!

Appearance: The beer pours with a light light light hazy body, like a translucent lemonade. A fine white head pops cascades up and then quickly recedes away to a bit of foam sitting on top of the beer. It sure looks light and refreshing!

Smell: When you pour this beer you get all sorts of aromas. A bit of lemon is there, along side the acidity one would expect from lemon juice... we're not talking the stuff you find in those plastic lemon containers, though, we're talking a fresh squeezed lemon! You can also smell a bit of lactic tartness, but it's light. Wheat rounds the whole thing out, that snappy, dry aroma that reminds you of unleavened bread.

Taste: Wow! The first thing you notice is the delicate yet assertive tartness of this brew. As we smelled, there's a bit of lemon in this as well. The Tap Berlinerweiss is almost like drinking carbonated, watered down orange juice that hasn't been sweetened. It's just so dry, tart and refreshing! This is one of a select few ultimate lawn mower beers for people who want flavor and refreshment. The wheat has a barely there characteristic that is almost imperceptibly felt in the back of the mouth, this beer really features the cool, crisp acidity of lactic acid that Berlinerweiss is known for. Oh, and that lemon we talked about? All naturally produced by the fermentation, there was no fruit added to this beer. Historically, Germans would add a bit of woodruff syrup or raspberry syrup to their Berlinerweiss... but that just leaves us asking "Why?" Why would they ruin such a perfectly refreshing miracle of nature?! We say enjoy this beer as it is au naturale, as in dry, tart and refreshing! The hint of lemon is all the fruit we need.

The Tap in Haverill is a brewpub and , while they bottle and distribute some of their beer, this one is still brewery only for now. At 3% abv, howvever, feel free to take a growler of Berlinerweiss home and drink it by yourself or share with friends on a hot summer day! Just get down to The Tap quick, they only brewed so much of it this summer. Ask the Brewer for The Tap on Twitter if the Berlinerweiss is still available. Even if it isn't, head on up as they have some other delicious craft beers!