The Lost Abbey Carnevale
It’s not too often that I cross paths with a Lost Abbey beer. In fact, I bumped into this bottle of Carnevale during a trip to North Carolina earlier this year. This 8% ABV saison is brewed in celebration of Easter and employs Brettanomyces, as well as Simcoe and Amarillo hops, to create a flavor that goes beyond the traditional.
The warm April afternoon during which I cracked this open once back at Barley Blog headquarters was just the right type of day for this light bodied and crisp saison. Plenty of barn funk, soft fruits, a mix of spices, herbal notes, grass, hay and a fairly potent hop bite all come together smoothly with every sip. The flavors not only work well fresh, but with the Brett should continue to develop and change the longer the brew sits in the bottle.
Carnevale may not be your traditional saison — what with that wonderful hop bite — and I’m fine with that. The big beer is earthy, funky, hoppy and just flat out tasty. Perhaps it’s a good thing Lost Abbey doesn’t show up in Virginia. I’d probably end up spending more money than necessary on their products.