12 Feb Saint Arnold White Noise by Tony

Saint Arnold White Noise

Saint Arnold

Houston, TX

Belgian Wit

ABV: 5.3%

IBUs: 25

Packaging: Draft, 12oz. Cans, 12oz. Bottles

As per usual with my intros, Chris grabbed some of this for me as soon as it came out. He and I swap beers literally by the dozens when we see one another. He ended up getting a very patriotic haul that day! I intended to write about White Noise right away, but there was lots of other stuff going on at the moment, like our write up for SpindleTap and our Top 5 Houston IPAs (phase 1) as well as Cycler’s and 11 Below (coming soon-ish), so it sat in my fridge for a little bit.

Saint Arnold White Noise is pretty good, and it’s appropriately titled a cheeky “winter seasonal.” Since it doesn’t get too cold here in Houston, the light, crisp, summer-nature of this beer would work year-round. It can be found from December to February, so whatever’s on the shelf is all you’ll see for a while. I’ve never been, but I’m told White Noise began as a special beer Saint Arnold did annually for Free Press Summer Fest and that it was well received, so they put it into the seasonal rotation. Pretty cool.

Saint Arnold White Noise starts off clean and citrusy with some spices on the nose and some subtle banana notes. The flavor follows suit. The flavor starts off super crisp and lemony, and then there’s a mild hop flavor and the banana-like finish takes over to end it.

While Saint Arnold White Noise is definitely a little different, I think Buff Brew’s Great White Buffalo is a safe comparison. Both are good beers.

I’m gonna give White Noise a solid 3 stars. It’s a good beer. I enjoy it, and I can see myself recommending it to someone that enjoys Belgian wits. There’s a difference between I like this, I don’t like this, and I don’t prefer this – I don’t prefer Belgian beers over others, so sometimes I’m a bit reluctant to try them. Glad I tried White Noise, though.

Saint Arnold White Noise poured a slightly hazy witty-yellow, perfectly on point. There was a fizzy, chalk-white head on the pour, but it died quickly and left nearly no lacing to speak of. The mouthfeel is sort of light and almost creamy with a lively carbonation to round out the crisp flavors and aromas. It’s kind of a complex beer for something so light.

I expect great beer from Saint Arnold, and I don’t think they’ve ever disappointed me. White Noise is no different.

Saint Arnold White Noise got a makeover like many of their other beers. The imagery is the same, just the style is updated. Saint Arnold White Noise comes in cans and bottles, and they both feature the patron Saint in front of a gray circle housing what appears to be sound levels doubling as the Houston skyline. That’s all flanked by literal white noise on the background, taking up most of the label. The white noise background reminds me of the composition notebooks we coveted as kids, but more white and less black.

Saint Arnold White Noise is a winter seasonal, and you can find it in cans, bottles and on draft anywhere good beer is sold, but hurry up because once these last kegs run dry, that’s it ’til December.

White Noise was pretty darn good to me, despite my reluctance. What’d you think? Was it the kinda beer you wanted to crank up, or did you end up wanting to unplug and find a new jam? Let us know in the comments below.