Foundation Wanderlust

There is a gas station/convenience store in the center of the small town where I grew up. It was a place where I pumped my first tank of gas after passing my driver’s test, where I would stop to grab a soda or a candy bar in high school and where I bought scratch tickets and Swisher Sweets on my 18th birthday. They always sold beer (this is Maine, where pretty much every grocery and convenience store sells beer), but I would have never guessed that it would become a draw for craft beer fans. When I was up in Maine last month I stopped to grab a 6 pack on the way to visit some friends, hoping the store would have something decent and I was blown away by their selection. They had the full line of Maine Beer Company beers and many other high end and hard to find local brews. One of my buddies who lives in the area said the owner had become a big beer geek and kept track of the most popular local brews to stock in the store. I grabbed a few things including a 4-pack of Wanderlust from Foundation Brewing Company in Portland. When I first visited Foundation a couple years ago, before they created a craze with Epiphany, I was very impressed by the beers I tried and one of my favorites was a hoppy saison named Wanderlust. I was excited to give the beer another try, and a proper review.

foundation-wanderlustFoundation Epiphany pours a clear golden yellow with a moderate white head. The scent is a mixture of fruitiness from the expressive Belgian style yeast strain and citrus aroma from the hops. The yeast leads the flavor, notes of green apple, apricot and peppercorn. This is complemented by touches of lemon, mango, cut grass and tangerine from the hops. It’s not a hop-bomb beer, but there is significantly more hop flavor than the average saison. The beer is rounded out by a light malt backbone which contributes hints of whole grain bread and crackers. Wanderlust is light bodied and very easy to drink, sessionable at 4.5% ABV. The finish is dry and crisp with some lingering hop and yeast flavors. It was great to revisit Wanderlust, it was no surprise that the first time I tried this beer I left impressed by the growing potential of Foundation Brewing. Hoppy Boston score: 4.25/5.

Previous Foundation Reviews:

Foundation Epiphany

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