Smuttynose Farmhouse Ale

Brewed by Smuttynose Brewing Company
Style: Saison
Portsmouth, New Hampshire USA

Bottle. Aroma of fairly rich caramelly malt, typical spicing, fresh dirt, pineapple, lime?, unusual fleshy fruit notes somewhat like avocado, melon rind. Flavor quite sweet and malty with some bittersweet fruit. Dry, earthy, somewhat heavy/syrupy. Something just seemed a little off to me here.

Bottle. Pours a deep orange with a small, fading white head. Aroma of melon rind, Flavor is light and fruity (melon, apple, pear) with lots of spices (pepper, clove). Not very exciting although certainly drinkable. I would have liked a little funk, seeing as this is supposed to be a saison.

This is not the most distinctive beer I’ve had in recent memory, but I thought it pretty good. And at $4.89/22oz, in this day and age it was not a bad "value." Pours a pretty rich and translucent amber with a less-is-more head which fades quickly to a scum. Aroma is light, lightly fruity and sweet, but not at all funky as you might expect from a farmhouse ale. Flavor is quite light and champagney, with some fruitiness and a pretty good Belgian-spice tang. Mouthfeel is quite light, closer to thin than to cloying, but still not watery. I’d recommend this beer. After a hot, exhausting day it really hit the spot. I got this bottle at Discount Liquor in Milwaukee.

Tap Capital Ale House Midlothian 08/29/2008. Spicy Belgian yeast notes with caramelized malts and candi sugar. Mostly clear amber golden with small white head. Spicy yeast character with lots of candi sugar and no sourness. Tastes more like a Belgian specialty than a Farmhouse. Medium body with light fizzy mouthfeel. Dry finish slightly peppery.

A drinkable, if a bit sweet farmhouse. There is a bit of funk, as some have noted. Otherwise the aroma is spicy with some sweet fruit, like orange, or banana. Body is pretty sticky. Something bitter, salty in the taste. I don’t know if I see as much fruit as others have said, but its defitenely fruity. Not as much carb as other belgians. Nice smooth, a bit bready and yeasty too. Overall its pretty good saison for the few that I’ve had so far.

Bomber, bottle conditioned in 2008. Copper/orange color, nice head. Tastes primarily fruity -- apricots and peaches -- and secondarily spicy. Slight funkiness to it as well. Wonderful soft carbonation, and though not heavy bodied, had a ribcage filling effect. Possibly a tad too fruity, but still very good.

Bottle. Pours clear gold with a white head. Aroma is a bit citric with honey and spices. Spicy flavor with yeast and a bit of citrus, followed by a dry finish. Quiet good.

Sampled at Flour City Brewers’ Fest, Rochester NY. AU15/08.

App.: Slightly greenish golden with a fair white head with yellow-green highlights. Aroma: Bright and slightly funky, some tart fruits, some green bitter herbs. Palate: Medium+ body, almost no carbonation. Flav.: Way off! Sweet and syrupy and fruity – not Saison.