OnTap Magazine

IT’S THE TIME OFTHE SAISON TIM GODFREY TIM GODFREY DELIVERS A MASTERCLASS OF ONE OF THE FINEST BELGIAN BEER STYLES: THE HUMBLE SAISON. S pring is here and it’s probably as warm as a Belgian summer. In this issue we’re unpacking Saison (“season” in French), traditionally a farmhouse-brewed seasonal ale. This style was traditionally brewed and stored in barrels over winter to be consumed by thirsty seasonal farm workers, or “saisonniers”, during the warmer sowing and harvesting months. Wallonia is a French-speaking region in the south of Belgium, and has a close historical connection with France. It’s from here that the “Biere de Saison” beers originated in the early 19th century, often using unmalted and left-over cereal crops, such as spelt, an ancient grain subspecies of wheat, sometimes flavoured with herbs and spices if hops were in short supply. Notably the beers were produced in a variety of gravities, from “children’s strength”, “family” to the more regular “dubbel” and “royal” versions with the “royal” being brewed to a relatively modest 11.2 to 12.5 Plato (1.045-1.050) starting sugar concentration. These early versions were beers to be served at family meals, emphasizing the need for the low alcohol in some versions. Likewise, it would be counterproductive for the farmer to give his workers strong beer, but they needed to be hydrated, and the water treatment systems weren’t what they are today. After the region became divided in 1831 with the formation of the Belgian state, following the French and Belgian revolutions in 1830, the French farmhouse ales brewed just across the border evolved to favour the more malty, higher alcohol, earthy STYLE GUIDE 30 | Spring 2025 | ontapmag.co.za