Barrel Aged Saison
With Orange Blossom and Wild Fennel

A collaboration with Georg’s mum.

‘I grew up watching my mum tend to our kitchen garden which was full of our favourite vegetables, fruits and herbs.  Throughout the year my mum would gather any excess produce and find a way to preserve it. Pickling, fermenting, or infusing allowed our gifts from the garden to be enjoyed later in the year.  One of my favourite preserved treats was an orange liqueur - my Mutti (mum) would make an delicious orange liqueur from the blossoms of the orange trees, a treasured treat enjoyed slowly through the winter.  For the blossoms to render their sweet flavours and aromas, they have to be picked at the right time and immediately infused to stopped them from browning and turning bitter. ‘

In the making of Melange, we enlisted the help of Georg’s mutti to reprise her orange blossom liqueur. We added this to 2 barrels of 18 month aged saison, along with the rind which was preserved in organic raw sugar. Then, over the course of a week, we gradually added crushed wild fennel seeds that we’d foraged up the road from the brewery.

The beer throws a beautiful golden straw color. Light aroma of fennel on the nose. Gentle acidity gives way to a vibrant citrus aroma which lingers.