Victory Helios

Origonaly Published August 2010

This week I was craving a refreshing ale, and settled on Victory Brewing Company’s Helios Ale. This is a saison style beer, which is generally found in the United States as bottle conditioned beer in corked & caged 750 ml Belgian bottles, and Victory originally sold it that way under the name V-Saison. Recently, however, Victory renamed the beer Helios and began selling it in 22 oz bombers and kegs to increase availability and decrease costs.

The saison name means “season” in French, and is used to describe a group of beers served during the harvest season in parts of France and Belgium. These beers were brewed on local farms and given to the workers, which resulted in a huge variation within the style as well as the nickname “Farmhouse Ale”. These ales were typically of low alcohol, often below 3%, since they were used as a potable source of liquid that was safer than water in that time period. This purpose makes the beer similar to that of English Ordinary Bitters and other session beers. The original recipes for this style vary widely in ingredients, but generally don’t contain actual spices, instead deriving their spicy character esters produced by the local yeast. American versions of this style, however, are typically much stronger and use a more standardized yeast, so spices such as coriander, ginger and pepper are sometimes added.

According to the Beer Judging Certificate Program style guide, saison beers should pour amber to pale orange in color and are typically hazy. The head should be dense, white and long lasting, lacing the glass as it finally dissipates. The aroma should be very fruity with a moderate spicy or floral hop aroma. Generally citrusy esters should dominate, often like orange or lemon in character, and any phenolics should be peppery instead of clove-like. This style may also have a moderate sourness, especially in some of the blended versions. The spice, hop and sour aromas should scale with the alcohol content, which should be soft and spicy. The flavor of this beer should be fruity and spicy, with a soft malt character, tart sourness and relatively low alcohol flavor. The flavor from the hops should be moderate, with spicy or earthy notes, and spices are often mixed into this beer to add complexity and balance. The carbonation should be very high, which combines with the medium body to give an effervescent quality with a dry finish. Overall this should be a dry, moderately strong, fruity and spicy ale with high carbonation and a significant amount of hops.

The Helios Ale poured a surprising clear golden color, but left virtually no head. What little head formed was composed of very large bubbles and dissipated quickly, leaving little or no lacing. The aroma was moderate in intensity and quite sour, but had a lot of citrusy notes and no immediately identifiable hop character (although the hops used certainly could have contributed to the citrus character). The taste had a hit of bitter hops up front, which quickly gave way to a sourness with some spicy, peppery flavors as well. The carbonation was quite low, but seemed spritsy, like it all came out at once around the edges of my tongue.

This beer was quite drinkable, and could serve as a good introduction to sour beers. Helios doesn’t track with the BJCP style guidelines, but I think its suitable given the historic broad range. My biggest disappointment with this beer is the carbonation, but I think that could be solved by cellaring the beer a little bit. Given enough time, the fine particulates in the beer will hopefully drop out, resulting in a less spritsy carbonation and a better head. Overall I enjoyed the beer, and will drink it again, but I also will try to find some saisons that are closer to the style’s roots