D'rye Field Stout
The Farmers' Cabinet

A dark saison at the Farmers' Cabinet.

A: In a sampler glass, the ale takes on a rustic brown color. In a larger glass, the brown turns nearly black. All of it is underneath a lightly off-white head.

S: Sweet fruits, pears and apples, mix with caramel malts, a contrasting pairing of sweetness and roasted grain. Rye spiciness fits in well with the spices that the yeast offers.

T: The darker malt base does well, caramel and lightly toasted bread, and manages to hold its own as the rye and yeast come onto their own. The rye is chewy and spicy; the yeast brings fleshy fruit flavors. The whole package occasionally is at odds, sweet then dark and then back again. A good saison noire.

M: The ale is well-carbonated, the bubbles very cleansing. The malt-yeast interplay is interesting, the selling point for the ale.

 

Pours a dark chestnut brown color with faint dark ruby edges when held to light and a 1.5 finger light beige head that slowly settles into a lasting ring.  Spotty lacing left behind.

Slightly roasted malt aroma that's counters by a decent amount of sweetness. Faint hints of roasted coffee along with some dark chocolate and rye. Slightly earthy saison character with some grass and straw but the roastier notes are most prominent.  Some faint spice as well.

Medium bodied with a balance of roasted malt, sweet rye, zesty spice and earthy funk. Slightly toasted with faint hints of coffee, toast and dark chocolate quickly countered by sweeter chocolate, rye and toffee.  This is really a saison and the funky, earthy character shows mid-palate with hints of grass, straw and bready yeast. There's also a good bit of peppery spice that lingers troughout into a lingering dry finish. Kind of a weird hybrid of styles. Think malty saison with tons of spice.

On tap at the farmers' cabinet served in a pint glass. A little uncertain about the beer style listing for this one since it is fermented with belgian yeast but has stout in the name. This brew pours a dark brown color with a creamy tan head that maintains a thin ring around the top. Very hazed with some clarity around the sides when held to the light. A finger and stringy pattern of lacework sticks around the glass. A light swirl revives the cap back to nearly a finger's strength.

The smell of this brew is very dark and roasty to an extend that is almost meaty. It has a familiar aspect of some bready malt character that is roasty with some hints of semi-sweet bakers powder/chocolate with a hint of coffee.

The taste is pleasantly dry and roasted with a bready element of the rye. Some dried aspect of fruit is present that is mildly musty. Herbal hops are modest imparting a nice bitterness that compliments the dark roasted quality of the grain.

This is a medium bodied brew with a modest level of carbonation. There is little to no alcohol impact aside of a light dark fruited quality. This is a very easy drinking and enjoyable brew. My pint emptied much quicker than I would have liked. I could have drank several of these with no issues.