Although many knowledgeable beer aficionados will be familiar with sahti, the indigenous beer of Finland, few have had the pleasure of its enjoyment. The reason for this is simply that sahti doesn't store or travel well, and should ideally be consumed within two weeks of the completion of fermentation. Drinking the beer from the traditional, two-handled, juniper wood haarikka is another positive addition to the sahti experience.
While in Finland, it was my pleasure to meet sahti traditionalists Sirpa and Pekka
Kääriäinen and enjoy their wonderful Lammin Sahti, both at the small brewpub and store they run in a local shopping mall and at the main brewery's "smoke sauna." In the former instance, I was impressed with the beer's complex fruitiness and interesting tannic structures, while at the sauna, drinking from a haarikka, I was blown away by the accentuation of the sahti's juniper notes and delighted by a character that is at once curiously refreshing and richly satisfying.
Of the quartet of sahtis I sampled in Finland, the Lammin was without question the one which best presented the beer's interesting fruit and spice character, the latter coming mainly from the 5% of the mash that is made up of rye. If a way could be found for this unusual brew to be sold beyond the borders of its immediate neighbourhood, I for one would line up for the chance to purchase it.
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