Leaves Of Grass: July 31, 2017
Hill Farmstead Brewery
- From:
- Hill Farmstead Brewery
- Vermont, United States
- Style:
- Belgian Saison
- ABV:
- Not listed
- Score:
- 90
- Avg:
- 4.13 | pDev: 7.99%
- Ratings:
- | reviews: 3
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- Jun 07, 2023
- Added:
- Apr 21, 2018
- Wants:
- 1
- Gots:
- 0
SCORE
90
Outstanding
90
Outstanding
This iteration was brewed in collaboration with students from nearby Sterling College using malted barley; raw and malted wheat; and foraged wood sorrel. The beer was fermented and aged in French oak and then further aged atop fresh Vermont blueberries.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Reviewed by GreesyFizeek from New York
4.48/5 rDev +8.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
4.48/5 rDev +8.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
This one pours a golden reddish-purplish color, with a small head, and lots of lacing.
This smells pretty jammy, even for the 6 years or so of age on this, with a pleasantly tart and mildly sweet blueberry character, oak, red wine, grassy and herbal funk, and some pear and stone fruit.
I’ve never had sorrel before, but it says it sort of tastes tangy and herbal like a green apple? I don’t know if I get green apple, but I do get pear, lemon, maybe even some peach, but I mostly get the obvious blueberry on this. There’s some oak, and a touch of vanilla sweetness, and a very pleasant acidity.
This is light bodied, with a very pleasant acidity and drinkability.
This is much better than any of the new Floras/Annas/Harvest Blueberry releases, surprisingly.
Jun 07, 2023This smells pretty jammy, even for the 6 years or so of age on this, with a pleasantly tart and mildly sweet blueberry character, oak, red wine, grassy and herbal funk, and some pear and stone fruit.
I’ve never had sorrel before, but it says it sort of tastes tangy and herbal like a green apple? I don’t know if I get green apple, but I do get pear, lemon, maybe even some peach, but I mostly get the obvious blueberry on this. There’s some oak, and a touch of vanilla sweetness, and a very pleasant acidity.
This is light bodied, with a very pleasant acidity and drinkability.
This is much better than any of the new Floras/Annas/Harvest Blueberry releases, surprisingly.
Reviewed by kevanb from Illinois
4.17/5 rDev +1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
4.17/5 rDev +1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
375ml bottle, July 31, 2017 on the front label, poured into a stemless wine glass.
The beer pours a medium amber color, copper and orange hues, lightly cloudy with a loose bubbly white head that offers no substantive retention nor any lacing. The aroma is nice, herbaceous and grassy, a nice floral bouquet opens up as it warms and there is plenty of funk with a nice amount of bacteria and bugginess, soft wine barrel and light blueberry skin. The flavors are good and echo the nose well, lots of floral and grassy character, more assertive blueberry flesh, lightly tart and funky with nice bugginess and a more distinctive wine character that is vinous and plays well with the tartness and offers some more balancing earthy oak. The mouthfeel is good, lively and crisp medium body that coats well with moderate tartness at the finish that is fairly dry.
Verdict: A nice Farmstead Ale from Hill Farmstead. Plenty of complexity and an unusual combination as the sorrel really shines as both a tart and herbaceous element that plays nicely with the blueberries. Unique but very enjoyable.
Jun 28, 2020The beer pours a medium amber color, copper and orange hues, lightly cloudy with a loose bubbly white head that offers no substantive retention nor any lacing. The aroma is nice, herbaceous and grassy, a nice floral bouquet opens up as it warms and there is plenty of funk with a nice amount of bacteria and bugginess, soft wine barrel and light blueberry skin. The flavors are good and echo the nose well, lots of floral and grassy character, more assertive blueberry flesh, lightly tart and funky with nice bugginess and a more distinctive wine character that is vinous and plays well with the tartness and offers some more balancing earthy oak. The mouthfeel is good, lively and crisp medium body that coats well with moderate tartness at the finish that is fairly dry.
Verdict: A nice Farmstead Ale from Hill Farmstead. Plenty of complexity and an unusual combination as the sorrel really shines as both a tart and herbaceous element that plays nicely with the blueberries. Unique but very enjoyable.
Reviewed by ScaryEd from New Hampshire
3.33/5 rDev -19.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25
3.33/5 rDev -19.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25
Poured from a 375 ml bottle into a stemmed tulip glass.
Pours a deep reddish pink color with a half-finger of bubbly pink-white head. No retention or lacing as expected, and a ton of sediment floating around the bottom.
The aroma is herbal and spicy up front, followed by notes of oak, grapes, blueberries, and a large amount of barnyard funk.
The flavor is funky and yeasty, bringing notes of vinegar and white wine, wheat bread, and earthy wood chips. The back end is subtly tart and fruity, like a gay Englishman.
The feel is light bodied with pretty good carbonation. Very clean and crisp with a dry finish.
Overall, a pretty good beer for what it is. It's definitely got an array of flavors and is clearly well-made. Just not really my thing. Too much funk and not enough fruit.
May 02, 2018Pours a deep reddish pink color with a half-finger of bubbly pink-white head. No retention or lacing as expected, and a ton of sediment floating around the bottom.
The aroma is herbal and spicy up front, followed by notes of oak, grapes, blueberries, and a large amount of barnyard funk.
The flavor is funky and yeasty, bringing notes of vinegar and white wine, wheat bread, and earthy wood chips. The back end is subtly tart and fruity, like a gay Englishman.
The feel is light bodied with pretty good carbonation. Very clean and crisp with a dry finish.
Overall, a pretty good beer for what it is. It's definitely got an array of flavors and is clearly well-made. Just not really my thing. Too much funk and not enough fruit.
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