Smuttynose Farmhouse Ale

Date: 08/12/08, 22 oz. bottle

Aroma -Inviting fruity aroma of peaches and apricots, giving way to some earthiness and finally a hint of peppery spice

Appearance - Pours a foggy orange with a fluffy white head that settles to a small layer that persists to the last swallow. Lace is spotty and slippery.

Flavor - Fruity sweetness hits early, a twinge of sourness follows, and finally a tangy and palate drying bitterness presents itself.

Palate - Medium body and carbonation, satisfying and palate coating mouthfeel

Overall- This a very nice saison, full of flavor, well balanced, and very refreshing.

Just the right amount of spice, not overwhelming. A little sweet with a great aroma.

Golden pout with healthy white head. Spicey, sweet fruit aromas. Yeasty, sweet malt and spicy mouthful. a little bit of fruit funk at the end combined with a nice mouthfeel makes this pleasant indeed and not your average saison.

On tap at Max’s in Baltimore. Dark golden color, thick white head. Nose is sweetish, bready and malty, more reminiscent of a German bock. Flavor is fairly sweet, caramel-malty, a little spicy, a bit sticky and lacking much bitterness or dryness. Not bad but bot my cup of tea. As an aside, I worry that this could give some people the wrong idea about saisons.

22oz bottle from Canal’s, 2006 bottle. Cloudy light orange pour with some still impressive carbonation. Strong yeasty aroma is very appealing right off the bat, and there are some spices evident there as well, giving this brew a nice and appropriate character. The spices aren’t quite evident enough in the taste, but they are detectable. Mostly there’s some bite from the hops, a pleasantly full body, and some delicious funk. Comes across almost like a danker version of Hennepin.

Pours a crystal clear light orange snowglobe of active carbonation....head laces well after three-finger snowfall settles... fresh-mowed grass and spring farm scents--fresh but not piney or sprucey...herbal, flowery presence...complex and warming taste, pushing hops to the roof and floor of the mouth; mellow maltiness with a zesty lemon finish... soft, almost apologetic mouthfeel that lacks the usual "beerness" to a beer... need I say refreshing? "Lip smacking" is what the label denotes, but I find the beer mellow and at ease, yet less clean or flavorful as some others I’ve sampled within the genre...

Aroma: Complexity of hay, spicy coriander notes, and fruity esters. Appearance: Good clarity, dark gold, low head retention. Flavor: Spicy complexity with good pils malt base. Finishes sweet, making this very drinkable but a little too sweet for style, should be more dry. That being said, very flavorful brew. Palate: Medium bodied with adequate carbonation. Overall: Nice saison, bursting with appropriate flavors (spicy/fruityhoppy) for style.

From the 1 pt. 6 fl. oz Big Bottle series conditioned in 2008. Pours a cloudy pale golden-yellow. Heavy foamy off-white head. Aroma of yeast, overripe fruit, and alcohol. Medium mouth feel. Yeasty, spicy and sour taste. I wasn’t overwhelmed but then again, Saisons are low on my wish list.