Wheat Blanc
Hill Farmstead Brewery

Pour at de Garde 10th Anniversary event. Pale golden pour with an ample white head. Aroma is very bready, fruit scone, light sweetness. Taste is brings a mild tart edge to the graint, malty brew, sweet, fruity and floral.

Fun little blind side by side tasting with Florence to really get a sense of the impact of oak barrel aging and dry hopping with fruitier New Zealand hops. Very evident which one was which: compared to Florence, this was much more vibrant, musky, and fruity with a bit of that rubbery hop character I sometimes get with HF dry hopped farmhouse ales. There is also this aroma that is almost like the inside of an antiques shop. Flavors were also more vibrant and lively, with a distinct pickle juice character that melded well with the base wheat beer tartness and astringency from the oak. Overall really nice, a noticeable improvement over Florence (although at a noticeably higher price point as well)

89/100

 

 

 

375 ml bottle.

Pours a cloudy pale straw color with a finger of white head. Minimal retention. Leaves some random splotches of lacing.

The aroma is very white wine forward, with lighter notes of lemon, apricot, pear, oak and funk.

The flavor is grainy up front, followed by plenty of citrus, namely lemon and grapefruit. There's some white wine, pear and apricot with some grass, damp hay, funk, and oak chips.

The feel is light bodied with lively, crisp carbonation. Lightly dry on the finish.

Overall, this is a great oak aged saison. It hits all the notes you expect from a HF "Farmstead Ale", but doesn't really stand out amongst their cheaper "shelfie" saisons.

 

#82 unique Hill Farmstead beer.

750ml bottle poured into Durobar Charente (wine stem bulb style) glass. According to my research this would be batch 2 of Wheat Blanc.

Beer label says "bottle conditioning since August 27, 2019 "

Appearance: straw pale yellow bodied beer with bone white head. Thick two fingers tall head are the results from a hard pour out of the bottle. Thin cap remains the entire drink.

Smell: citrusy. bright. lemonhead candies. tart. oaky. lemonade. white grape / white wine.

Taste: Lemon zest, lemon grass, and melon rind. This beer also tastes "juicy". Minimal tartness though the aroma made you think this would have some decent tartness to be had. Light earthy funk. Dry oak barrel and musty / dusty cob webs. Well water with heavy mineral content. Floral and herbal hop notes that impart light bitterness from the hops. Light tartness finally appears in the finish as a Meyer lemon and a Key lime. An interesting aftertaste of a Margarita mixed with Chardonnay.

Mouthfeel: Light bodied saison. soft carbonation. delicate body. Light dryness. High drinkability levels here.

Overall: Wheat Blanc is reminiscent of a bottle of Florence that was intentionally aged for a full year with some additional complexities / layers. Wheat Blanc still has a different flavor profile about it, but "Florence on steroids" is what immediately comes to my mind when I drink this Hill Farmstead saison. It has a bit more of a hop kick and also some neutral oak barrel presence compared to Florence. Wheat Blanc is overall a really complex saison with a delicate texture that is very very nice.

Wheat Blanc (2018) from Hill Farm. Received from @Roy_Hobbs in BIF #14. 12.7 oz capped bottle. Stored at home at 38 degrees. Reviewed 16/12/21. Note that I use DD/MM/YY protocol.
Stamped on end of label “BOTTLE CONDITIONING SINCE APRIL 25, 2018”. Served at 47.1 degrees (Label suggests 46 degrees) in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter. Final temperature 51.6 degrees.
Appearance – 3.5.
First pour – Lighter than straw, nearly colorless (SRM

 

 

 

Mostly clear yet lightly foggy straw yellow after a full pour, the tall and dense white foam head dies to a fine film with a curled ring that leaves some arms of lacing on the glass.

The medium body's firmly delicate carbonation delivers a very unique lemon sorbet doused white wheat flavor to the front palate. In the middle is a mild funk of hay brushed oak pairing with a hint of grapefruit spritzed bleu cheese hops.

Wheat Blanc becomes more lively yet nuanced with a swirl and expansion of its carbonation, finishing just semi-dry. Over time the aroma gives off hints of fresh tortilla.

Bottle enjoyed onsite and shared with my beautiful wife.

Golden yellow body , mostly clear with only a slight haze. Bone white yellow head that leaves minimal lacing in its wake.

Aromas of melon, Chardonnay, lemon zest.

Tart and refreshing. Lingering floral, herbal, and grassy notes.

A delicious beer enjoyed in a serene and gorgeous landscape.

 

 

 

A tart oak aged ale with malts of 90% wheat and 10% barley. This was hopped with Hallertau Hops from Germany. Very good beer and very fresh and crisp.

 

 

Pours a golden, hazy color. The nose provides good funky and sedimenty elements.. Citrus, lemon, and sedimenty hill funk dominate the palate. Good mouthfeel and the flavors linger. Perfect pour for either yourself or to share with one other. I had one solo, then at a share after drinking some stouts and it certainly threw off the taste.

Bottle, 375ml

Look: golden, unfiltered, light. Good layer of foam.

Smell: grapes, lemon, pear

Taste: lemon and lime with some sweetness and grapes lingering in the back. Has some funk too.

Mouthfeel: nice round body, good carbonation

Overall: very soft, good body and easy drinkable. Perfect beer for a hot summer day.

375 mL bottle. Cloudy orange. Smells of strong white wine, lemon acidity, and wheat grain. Tastes of wheat grain up front, lemon tang, white wine takes over. A little oak in the finish. Light body. Simple, pleasant, a touch aggressive on the wine.

 

Bottle courtesy of chesco.
L: Golden deep coloring. Thick meringue head with lacing.
S: Brett, oak, lemon, yogurt, wine.
T: Very Tart, lemon, peppercorns, brett, funk, yogurt, stonefruit, white wine, grapes. As expected, more flavors keep showing up as it warms.
F: full bodied wheat qualities, mouth-coating, dry finish.
Overall: another winner from HF. Didn’t intend to rate so highly but the taste is so damn complex.

this is absolutely incredible stuff, huge thanks to my friend back east for sending this out totally unsolicited, along with a mess of other baller brews. we cracked this last night for my wifes birthday, what a treat! a couple of years in the bottle seems wild for something thats hop forward, but as we have seen in others and now definitively see in this one, brett and wild yeasts somehow preserve hop quality, even enhance it over time it seems, there is no fade or anything to this, i am assuming it was dry hopped after it was aged on oak, but that doesnt account for the freshness after all this time in the bottle. its a stunning specimen, as light yellow as can be and immaculately clear through the first half of the bottle. sparkling and holding an inch of white head, wow. it smells and tastes the same, insanely bright hop character immediately identifiable as hallertau blanc, and honestly, perhaps the finest expression of it my senses have ever known. its so juicy and fresh to me, herbal and bright, meyer lemon, legitimate sauvignon blanc notes to the extent that this almost seems like it had to be aged in white wine barrels, melon and kiwi fruit too, just amazing. there is enough tartness in the nose to make my mouth water, but its not sour really when i drink it, less sharp than wine, i think all the wheat in the mash softens it some, although this still seems really light in texture for being 90% wheat malt. some oakiness here but the beer is so light and delicate and effervescent that its more taste less feel on the wood. some nice farmy funkiness to this too, not just the tang but some real rustic saison character in the ferment. the hops still do show noble characteristics here, grassy and a little bitter on top of all the fruitiness and vinous character. there is a lot going on for such a little beer, and again hill coming through with the proof that time, knowledge, and attention to detail makes all the difference. i love everything about this, its dynamic and bright and incredibly drinkable, cannot believe its been in the bottle so long, unique and special use of these hops. truly stunning.

 

 

 

That’s exceptionally good. Unfiltered light golden body. White grape must, light lemon, bit of oak, light grain, soft lighter medium body and good carbonation. Grape skin, oak on the finish. Way too easy to drink, one wants to savor it

 

 

 

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

This smells like wheaty funk, lemon, pear, white wine, straw, nectarine, and white grape.

This is awesome stuff - that long bottle conditioning seems to have led a really complex flavor profile. There's lemon/lime, pear, and some sweet nectarine, along with acidic wine and white grape type flavors, with some wheaty and straw-like bitter funk. It's a little bit more acidic than the typical HF saison, but that works to its advantage in this case - it helps make the other flavors pop a bit more.

This is soft, nicely tart, and very drinkable, with a clean and smooth level of carbonation on the finish.

I absolutely wish I had more of this one. I hope they have plans to make it again.

 

 

 

beautiful looking beer, glowing straw color with a densely carbonated bright white head that fizzles away quickly. aromas bring bright fruity and floral qualities, some mellow earthy funk, hint of hay and some grainyness. the taste is pungent funky fruits, big fuzzy nectarine skin, bright lemon and funky pineapple, sour peach candies and a strong hit of acidity. this one is a bit more aggressive than many of the other BA saisons from hill in that it is a lot more tart and acidic, less delicate as a result.