Runestone Rhubarb Saison
Ribstone Creek Brewery

1L howler from Sherbrooke Liquor store - a Saison flavoured with rhubarb sourced from willing back yard contributors to the cause, which was created in collaboration with Camrose's Norsemen Brewing.

This beer pours a mostly clear, medium copper amber colour, with three fingers of puffy, rocky, and mildly bubbly ecru head, which leaves some random streaky and chunky lace around the glass as it lazily subsides.

It smells of semi-sweet, grainy and doughy wheat malt, a subtly spicy yeastiness, some faint rhubarb astringency, and very understated earthy, leafy, and floral green hop bitters. The taste is bready and grainy caramel malt, a lesser edgy wheatiness, some black pepper and coriander/clove spice, a slightly phenolic yeasty character, still hard to pick out green vegetal notes (rhubarb, I suppose), and more plain leafy, floral, and musty 'verdant' hoppiness.

The carbonation is adequate in its palate-supporting frothiness, the body a decent middleweight, and generally smooth, with a wee airy creaminess seeping in as things warm up a tad around here. It finishes off-dry, the mixed malt, spice, and hops really running the lingering show.

Overall - yeah, not much in the way of the ol' rhubarb on display here, other than in fits and spurts, which don't amount to much. Other than that, it's a pleasantly and capably rendered Saison, and not too yeasty. I have some left over strawberry/rhubarb crumble that I made last week that could use some pepping up - maybe I'll drizzle some of this on it to get the desired effect on both accounts.

Enjoyed on tap at Cilantro and Chive in Lacombe, AB. This brew is a collaboration between Ribstone and Norsemen Brewing in Camrose. This is definitely "saison" first and foremost - the rhubarb adds a mild flavour and lends a pinkish hue to the final product. It pours beautifully, with a frothy and enduring white head. The nose is what I like in a saison - a bit of clove, with a slightly sweet rhubarb essence. The beer tastes lovely - grainy malt, with a bit of spice and rhubarb joining the party. I am thrilled that I got the chance to sample this unique saison!