Dageraad Enology Series No. 1: Syrah Saison

Dageraad Enology Series No. 1: Syrah Saison Review

The inventiveness of breweries like Burnaby’s Dageraad Brewing provides a side benefit for the craft fan: for instance, the constant learning about topics like grape variants you can age beer on. In this case (as if that’s common) the varietal in question is Syrah, aka the dark grape better known as Shiraz. Dageraad decided that, as their first entry in a new series dubbed Enology (a sort of younger sibling to their Entropy tradition), they would age a saison on spent Syrah grape skins (known as pomace).

The result of this aging pours a brilliant dark fuschia. There is a modest yet tenacious pink head—for us, it lasted all the way down the bottle, making just a tiny set of lacy rings down the glass.

Syrah has a vinous, white wine-like aroma with sugary notes. In the glass, it strikes one as a fruit beer, but on the nose it does not.

On the palate, it’s gentle with only a modest funk. There’s a bit of juiciness and a very slight astringency. However the primary impression is the lightness of this easy-drinking beverage.

This isn’t like the many overtly Belgian beers you’re accustomed to from Dageraad. There are none of the classic, strong yeast esters like bubble gum, clove or barnyard. It’s more like a white or rose wine with notes of cherry and berry, as well as a lingering florality in the finish.

What that means is that this is a brilliant light brew that’s perfect for late spring or early summer consumption. At 8.6% ABV however, you’ll need to beware the quiet strength because Syrah isn’t going to remind you herself.

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Enology Series No. 1 – Syrah Saison