Kim L.
Yelp
I caught wind of Sante Adairius, strangely, from the Instagram of one of my favorite beer emporiums in America - Monk's Cafe in Philly. They were visiting the area and if Monk's likes it then, likely, I will like it. Since then it was on my list. After a bit more Instagram snooping, I also noticed they're followed by one of my favorite Pennsylvania breweries - Tired Hands, also noted for their great, unique beers and bottles.
Decided to take the trip down to the Santa Cruz area one weekend and made a pit stop at SARA and I'm really happy we did! It's right off a residential/industrial street off Route 1 since they do all the brewing there. I knew that as soon as we looked at the tap list and saw four saisons (don't get me started about the bottles), we were in business. It's hard to find a place that does a saison well here. There's a handful of IPAs here but they're a dime a dozen in California and, while it was a good IPA, saisons is where SARA shines.
While I was there, we tried half pours of the following Prism Schism (IPA with 100% Mosaic), Capitola Sunset (rustic saison), Family Whistle (barrel aged saison with passionfruit), and As You Can See (cider barrel aged saison with Chardonnay Lees). Again, IPA is great and I love me some Mosaic hops but certainly not the highlight of the experience. The saisons have a great nose, just the right tartness, and a bit of complexity after a few more sips. If you like complex, craft brews, this is the place. I love their focus on Belgian styles and experimentation.
More than anything, I'm so happy to have found a brewery that's willing to make some bomb saisons and other styles that I don't think is as plentiful up in NorCal outside of Russian River. Extra kudos on the decor in the brewery as well! Love the stools, tables, lights, and the know-how to put tasteful ceiling sound deadening. Cheers!
Oh and if you were wondering, they're @rusticales on Instagram :)