Table Dorothy - Wine Barrel-Aged
Hill Farmstead Brewery

A 375ml bottle, bottle conditioned since November 24, 2020. Poured into a Tilquin stemmed glass.

Appearance: A hazy golden straw yellow colour with a very nice one finger white head that had good retention and left some nice lacing.

Aroma: Tropical and citrus fruit mix. Mango, peach, lemon zest, calamansi, yuzu, oak, light funky notes, and a touch vinous.

Taste: Lightly sour, citrusy, calamansi, yuzu, lemon zest, oak, yellow stone fruit notes, white wine vinous, a touch funky, and a touch bitter.

Mouthfeel: Crisp, clean, light bodied with moderate carbonation.

Overall: Really enjoyable and easy to drink with great flavours and complexity. I could just keep drinking this again and again and again.

 

Bottle conditioning since nov 2020.

White head with lace. Clear (mostly) golden color.

These wine barrel pale ales are amazing. They drink like what a wild ale should be. Not acidity or over the top citrus. Lots of hops. Earthy and bitter. Floral and a little weedy. Beautiful wine notes and wet oat. Grapes. Lime and grapefruit citrus blend. Light bodied, full of flavor.

This is fantastic.

A chill haze dissipates to a clear gold under a bubbly white head clinging at the ridges.

Simcoe is readily apparent right up front with a little catty must, but then funk and acid add their complements, bringing straw, horse blanket and pear via a frothily light body that yet fills out before a semi-dry finish.

At times it has flashes of champagne.

 

 

 

 

 

Lucked out at the Farm. Never quite know what you are going to get when you are there. This is exceptional. Kind of sour”ish” and I like that style.

 

 

 

Bottle: Poured a clear light-yellow color ale with a large pale white foamy head with OK retention and light lacing. Aroma of vinous notes with some light funky ester and oak presence is also perceptible. Taste is a great mix of vinous notes with some light funky ester and oak presence with a dry finish. Body is about average for style with good carbonation. Nice barrel-aged saison with great balance of flavors and complexity.

 

 

 

poured from a 375mL bottle into a perennial wine glass. pours a hazy light yellow with minimal head that fades to nothing instantly. nose is that typical HF soapy yeasty oak wine barrel smell with a slight bit of hops that adds a floral element. taste is lemony, floral, somewhat hoppy and extremely mellow. feel is very light on the tongue. not as carbonated as expected and kind of feels like nothing on the finish but it is a low abv table beer. overall, very drinkable and extremely well done table pale.

bottled dated november 8, 2018, and generously shared by my brother. this is some special stuff, a cool version of one of their classics, and a beer i could drink gallons of if i had my way, its a shame thats not an option, but gluttony with this one would be a fantasy. its so light, crisp, interesting, and drinkable. the hops are crazy fresh still almost a year later, the white wine elements are huge, and the now familiar hill farmstead yeast is in full swing here. there is something special about opening one of their beers, especially one of the little ones, thick glass, iconic labels, a feeling just sets in even before the top pops. this is blonde and fizzy and humble looking, like so many of their beers, but it sings in the nose and taste. honeydew melon, lemongrass, bee balm, white tea, limey citrus, and soft notes of wet white flower petals, rose hip, white sangria, and peach. the hops have almost no bitterness but there are tannins and acids here, despite this being more rustic and funky than sour on the fermentation side. the hops are super fruity and fresh, and the brett element pops the hops right off. its refreshing at the same time that its complex, and so few beers can do that. there is a lot to be excited about in this delicate but interesting session saison thats both old world and new school in each sip. monumentally cool, thanks to my brother for sharing on a special occasion. this is a nice hybrid of what they do best, hoppy and wild, its really killer stuff. do the hops change from batch to batch? was this a one off? how do i get more?

 

 

Poured out as a subtle hazed golden beer with a thin white head on top. The smell of the beer has a nice mixture of wine-like funk and oak tannins on the nose. The taste has a nice slightly tart flavor with some hops in the mix. The feel of the beer is light and nicely carbonated. Overall it's a very nice beer.

375 mL bottle at the brewery. Clear golden. Smells of Brett, lemon, bright white wine, and oak. Tastes of white wine, lemon and citrus zest, oak. Brett throughout. Light grain flavor. Brett spiciness and wine linger. Light body. Delicious.

 

 

Received via CANBIF - this is an incredibly complex, subtle, and satisfying beer. The barrel treatment means that each sip brings a different layer of flavour. Highly recommend.

 

 

 

L - barely a trace of head atop a translucent yellow body.

S - white wine, funk, cheese.

T - funky blue cheese. Orange zest, lime, pine, white wine, oak, cracker malt. No bitterness. Low sweetness. No booziness.

F - medium-light body with minimal carb.

O - not at all what I was expecting for a Table beer. Full of flavor.

375ml bottle, bottled on Nov 8, 2018, poured into an etched Hill Farmstead tall wine glass.

The beer pours a pale golden color, straw hues, lightly cloudy with a foamy finger of white head that has great retention and lacing. The aroma is great, very floral and grassy, citrusy with a nice bitter hop character, a bit of resin with some nice wine barrel character and soft biscuit base with some peppercorn and mineral water. The flavors are great, a nice dry wine character that is fruity and refreshing leads to citrusy and earthy hops, light peppercorn, mineral water, cracker malt with a light oak flavor that lingers nicely. The mouthfeel is great, coating and very lively with a lighter medium body that finishes easily with a very light dry kick.

Verdict: A very good table saison from Hill Farmstead. Dry, light, refreshing and very balanced, really what one would expect for a table beer.

375ml bottle. HF stemmed glass. Pours a cloudy bright yellow body, one finger frothy white head, fair retention, not a ton of lacing. Smell is big grapefruit, mildly spicy resin, citrus peel, light oak, mild leather. Flavour follows- a bit more nuanced- dry grapefruit and citrus zest, light spice, grapefruit flesh, a nice dry oak barrel all the way through to the end, which is delicious. Mouthfeel is medium lighter in body, mildly soft carbonation but carbonated more than enough. Grapefruit zest and dry oak all the way through. Good combination which makes for a delicious round of drinkable flavours. Overall- I enjoyed drinking this beer a lot- it's greater than the sum of its parts. Don't be fooled by the "farmstead pale ale" moniker- think of this as a drier, more resinous Juicy.

 

 

 

 

 

This one pours a nice light straw yellow color, with a small head, and lots of lacing.

This smells pretty hoppy - with fruity, grassy, and piney hops galore, some kiwi and pineapple, along with funky grapefruit, light wine barrel, and lemon.

The bottle is pretty young, so the hops are still poppin' here. That's not a bad thing, but I definitely would want a little bit more wine barrel. It was only in barrels for 6 months, so the light barrel is not surprising, anyway. It's crazy refreshing, with an herbal funk, filled with tropical fruit, and a dry grassy bitterness on the finish.

This is light bodied, drinkable, refreshing, and oh so delicious - with a nice soft pillowy finish.

This is a very fun little beer. It doesn't have quite the depth of the big and legendary Farmstead ales in the HF catalogue. That doesn't detract from how delicious it is though.