4th Anniversary Ale
Prairie Artisan Ales

StoutElk_92 from Massachusetts

4.71/5  rDev +20.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

Pours amber orange with a creamy frothy white foam head. Smells like sweet medicinal fresh candied ginger, ginger soda, ginger root, juiced ginger, honey lemon ginger, sweet, candied, almost fruity, healthy, invigoratingly fresh, so much pungent ginger, with some floral earthy herbal spice. Tastes like sour lemons and ginger, sweet, spicy, sour, almost salty, floral, zingy, bright and tart, ginger 5 ways, candied, pickled, fresh, juiced, honey lemon ginger tea, slight malty honey base, with a touch of floral earthy spice. Feels medium bodied, creamy with smooth moderate carbonation. Overall a really great sour ale aged on ginger.

Apr 01, 2020

SHODriver from North Carolina

4/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Poured into a Duvel tulip to a deep golden orange topped by a half finger of white head which fades quickly to a collar around the edge of the glass with minimal lacing.
S: Smells of ginger and light sourness with some sweet malty notes
T: Taste is ginger up front with some nice clean sourness throughout. Hint of maltyness as well but just plenty of ginger and that clean sourness. Swallow is more ginger and sourness with a hint of funk at the very back end.
M: This beer has a moderate amount of body with a hint of an oily feel on the palate. Carbonation is light and effervescent while the beer has a drying finish from the acidity.
O: Overall kind of a basic ginger sour beer. It's interesting but the ginger comes across a little too strong which makes it a two note beer. It isn't bad though but if you don't like ginger you won't like this.

Aug 20, 2018

brentk56 from North Carolina

3.6/5  rDev -7.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: The liquid pours out clear and a dark shade of amber; the head is rather skimpy and fades to a ringlet; dotty lacing

Smell: Overwhelming ginger aroma with some funky Brett tones

Taste: The ginger overwhelms from start to finish, with some funk in the mid-palate; the tartness builds, after the swallow but it is the ginger that dominates the finish

Mouthfeel: Medium body with low to moderate carbonation

Overall: An interesting experiment that really didn't work for me

Jul 24, 2018

Stevedore from Oregon

3.69/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

750ml bottle, served in a stemless glass. Pours a hazy golden body, one finger white head, decent one finger white head, decent retention, not much lacing. Smell is heavy on the ginger, dry and cleansing, spicy with a hefty acetic acidity in the backend, some salt, clean spices. Flavour is a clean dry salt presence, spice, acetic acidity, and a heavy amount of ginger. I love ginger with just about everything, so that isn't a problem for me, so I think it is reasonably hefty. Mouthfeel is lighter bodied, dry, good carbonation, dry finish due to the ginger. Enjoyed drinking this one, good presence, nice lemon dryness on the backend.

May 02, 2018

MinerBob from Oklahoma

3.26/5  rDev -16.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

Not a fan of sours. Beer pours a beautiful golden color with a small white head. The smell is ok with some ginger. The flavor is sour with a hit of ginger it reminds me of champagne. Overall not one of Prairies best.

Mar 31, 2018

mynie from Maryland

4.23/5  rDev +8.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

"Prairie" is the easiest word that's hard to spell.

Okay, so apparently this is a bit aged. But it's undated, and so I consider that fair game.

Nice pour. Hazy yellow, heavy fizz, nice white head.

Smells like brett and ginger. The age has allowed the ginger to sharpen and most likely has dulled the tartness a bit but I have to say this gels together real well.

Tastes good, but not as good as it smells. Sharp brett on the very beginning and then ginger and yeast dominate the rest of the way with a bit of tartness on the finish. It's still very solid, even in spite of its age.

Jan 06, 2018

josanguapo from Spain

2/5  rDev -48.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1.75

From Degustasur. In Teku glass. Playing Custome Quest 2. Lemony, with ginger and sour notes combined in not excessively strong fashion at first but becoming overwhelming as warms up

Nov 27, 2017

VeganUndead from Virginia

3.19/5  rDev -18.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3

Waaaaaay too much ginger. This isn't really a sour beer anymore, but a ginger beer with a bit of tartness. Yes I'm biased, but not a ginger person and that's all this is

Sep 09, 2017

StonedTrippin from Colorado

4.15/5  rDev +6.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

color me among the skeptics when it comes to ginger in beer, especially in our beer, where it always seems to be paired with so many other things, fruits, spices, barrels, whatever, but this is one of the best i have had, and it has to do with the ginger being super authentic, fresh, spicy, without a juiced intensity or a candied sweetness, this is the best of the prairie anniversary beers i have had, and a great ginger wild beer, as funky as it is sour without a doubt, brett and bugs together, wonderfully refreshing and drinkable for what it is. hazy pale straw colored, looks like so many other wild beers these days, nothing remarkable there, although its not mucky, and its lively in the bubbles and head. spicy fresh ginger in the aroma, but not overdosed and nostril burning like some can be, plenty of fruity funky yeast to balance, and a somewhat substantial grain complexion too, which i think both unites with, and settles the ginger a bit. perhaps a light dry hop in the nose? a bit of citrus there, making my mouth water together with the obvious acidity. ginger is great in the flavor, forward, but not runaway, and really well balanced with the other elements. a cleaner bacterial sour here too than i am used to from prairie, still with the wild funk element as well, subtle lemon, shaved ginger root, genuine, champagne notes, hay, light clean oak. excited carbonation and a drier conclusion, this is awesome beer, great to have it on draft too, a nice format for this one, and some of the better ginger spiked beer in the market.

Mar 15, 2017

tobelerone from New Jersey

4.08/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Has a ginger ale and lime vibe going on, fairly high sourness, mostly dry, paired well with Thai food. Effervescent feel just shy of being prickly, fairly light body and a lingering aftertaste. Not super complex as the sourness tends to obscure any subtler characteristics. Enjoyable.

Mar 13, 2017

metter98 from New York

3.89/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

A: The beer is crystal clear yellow in color and has a light amount of visible carbonation. It poured with a quarter finger high white head that quickly settled down, leaving only a narrow collar around the edge of the glass.
S: Light aromas of ginger are present in the nose.
T: The taste has sour flavors of ginger.
M: It feels light- to medium-bodied on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This is a very unique wild ale that has a very good balance between the sourness and ginger. In some aspects, it's almost like a ginger ale, except that the sweetness has been replaced by sourness. The beer is very easy to drink and has some refreshing qualities.

Serving type: bottle

Mar 07, 2017

razordm from Texas

4.16/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Not been a great fan of wild sour ales, but always willing to try a new beer. I am a fan of ginger as well, and this was marketed as a wild ale with hint of ginger at the local Whole Foods Beer bar. Ginger was not overpowering but definitely noticeable. Sourness was moderate as well. Was very surprised how well the ingredients blended. This was my third beer by Prairie Artisan and all have been very nice.

Jan 28, 2017

Thomas_Wikman from Texas

3.61/5  rDev -7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

I love Prairie Artisan Ale but this one was not as good as the 3rd anniversary ale in my opinion. The label features a dog and a rainbow, and it has a connect the dots puzzle, and that’s fun.

Look: semi-clear golden to amber hue with a thick bubbly white head.

Aroma: Citrusy aroma with some ginger

Taste: The taste is slightly bitter hops, some tartness lemon/green apples, some ginger, a bit funky-yeasty, a bit fizzy. I think the 3rd anniversary one was a tad better, but it is good.

Feel: Light and crisp with significant carbonation, easy drinking.

Jan 16, 2017

TruePerception from California

3.15/5  rDev -19.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

Prairie Artisan's 4th Anniversary, sour ale aged on ginger. 6.5% ABV. Not sure what to expect with this one...

A: Less than a finger of slightly pillowy, white head. Opaque yellow-orange in the glass. Light yellow-gold in the dimple. Light lacing, and it doesn't stick. Very faint sheeting, though it lasts incredibly well.

S: Hmm. I'm not sure sour and ginger are a good combination. It smells faintly medicinal. Faintly cool. Lime peel. Aloe. Nothing very appetizing.

T/MF: Okay, it's not so bad taste-wise. Not very sour. More of a crisp, refreshing wheat. Ginger is slight, and more along the raw ginger root angle. Dry.

It's not bad, but it really doesn't need to exist. A nifty idea for an experiment, but a terrible one for an anniversary beer. I wonder if it would work with sushi, though I'm not buying a second bottle to find out, and I highly doubt the local sushi place is open tonight.

Dec 26, 2016

IRONRakkasan from California

3.89/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

The beer was billed as a sour brewed with ginger, so I was essentially expecting a...sour ginger beer. While not heavy on the sour, it was not heavy on the ginger either. In fact, the light sourness was complemented by the fact the ginger was a background flavor without ginger's characteristic bite.

A worthy beer to try. Very drinkable.

Dec 14, 2016

Premo88 from Texas

4.16/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

16.9 oz. bottle poured into tulip

L: dark gold with plenty of amber in it, not quite copper but darker than gold; clear with hundreds of bubbles everywhere ... some of the bubbles are bunching and stopping about mid-glass ... the overall number is incredible, as many bubbles as I've seen in a beer; 90% clear and clearing ... in fact, it's hard to say if it has a mistiness or if all those bubbles are giving it a misty look because it's hard to see through them; pushes up relatively small head, about 1/2-inch of white foam; keeps a thick collar and most of thin skin; no sticking and little lacing, but short of having sticky foam, this is as cool a show as I've seen in a while

S: can smell fruit or something sweet as you pour it; lemons ... sour apple .. very sour but relatively "clean" with nothing overly funky or earthy, just a ton of lemon; the ginger punches through at times; hints of fingernail polish/remover, but over time that seems to be the ginger coming through, not a standard "sour" note found in a lot of American-made farmhouse/wild ales; sweetens as it warms and has a ginger beer aroma

T: quite sour and almost bitter to begin, very earthy/dirt bland flavor pervades, then the sour takes over, loads of lemon, like the nose a "clean" sour, maybe just a bit of wet hay or horse blanket; as it warms and as your palate adjusts, the ginger mixes in more and more until it becomes an equal note side-by-side with the sour lemon juice; earthy bitterness shows up often and balances a sweetness that is almost fruity ... sour apple

F: fantastic ... classic Prairie Artisan farmhouse/wild style with tons of carbonation filling out a relatively lightweight brew

O: great beer and another cool twist by the good brewers from Oklahoma; if it were summer I'd run out and grab another bottle or two ... in fact, I might grab one and see how it handles a few months sitting in the fridge; the ginger works very well and is deftly used -- the ginger aroma and flavor show up over time without overtaking the notes from a very good base beer; hard to say where the sweetness is coming from (malt? ginger? something "wild"?) but it helps tame down the opening dirt-earth blandness and gives it a nice mix of sour-ginger-sweet notes

Dec 12, 2016

Franziskaner from Missouri

3.79/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Copper to brown in color with excellent clarity and excellent clarity. Later pours brought out serious haziness. There's no visible head. The ginger overwhelms the nose, but I'm getting faint tart Brett in the background. I'm tasting a very aggressive amount of bubbly and earthy ginger with some tart Brett notes in the back of the palate. The mouth is moderately carbonated and dry.

Dec 11, 2016

lordofthewiens from New Mexico

3.99/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Gold color with a faint haze. Small, quickly disappearing, white head.
Aroma of ginger, fruit, and spice.
Taste of ginger up front. Orange and pineapple. Faint pepper.
Light bodied, slightly tart.

Nov 12, 2016

avalon07 from South Carolina

4.47/5  rDev +14.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

L: Poured from a bottle to a tulip glass. Had an orange color and a hazy texture. There was an inch of foamy head that quickly dissipated. Below average lacing. Word of warning: The moment I opened this it started gushing everywhere. It's a little volatile.

S: A big, sweet, powerful aroma of ginger, light fruit, spices, and a slight funkiness.

T: Tasted of a bit of citrus fruit (lemon, orange especially), a tinge of funk in the finish, a lot of the advertised ginger, some pepper, yeast, pineapple, and a little bit of malt. An extremely vibrant, fruity, and complex flavor with lots of character. Quite well balanced, with the ginger making a fantastic addition.

F: A highly carbonated beer with a lively finish. Light- to medium-bodied.

O: A somewhat unusual and interesting beer. Very drinkable.

Nov 01, 2016

superspak from Ohio

3.9/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

500 ml bottle into tulip glass, bottled on 9/7/2016. Pours slightly hazy golden amber/light orange color with a 1 finger dense white head with decent retention, that reduces to a thin lace cap that lingers. Light spotty lacing clings around the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big tart lemon, lime, ginger, berries, pineapple, apricot, green apple, white wine, light pepper, biscuit dough, hay, grass, light funk, and yeast earthiness. Very nice aromas with good balance and complexity of fruity/earthy yeast, ginger, and moderate bready malt notes; with great strength. Taste of big tart lemon, lime, ginger, berries, pineapple, apricot, green apple, white wine, light pepper, biscuit dough, hay, grass, light funk, and yeast earthiness. Moderate fruity tang/tartness and ginger/yeast spiciness on the finish; with lingering notes of tart lemon, lime, ginger, berries, pineapple, apricot, green apple, white wine, pepper, biscuit dough, hay, grass, and yeast earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Very nice complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/earthy yeast, ginger, and moderate bready malt flavors; with a great malt/tart/spiciness balance, and zero astringent flavors after the finish. Moderate dryness from tart/spiciness as well. Light carbonation and light-medium body; with a very smooth and fairly grainy/acidic balanced mouthfeel that is great. Zero warming alcohol for 6.5%. Slight ginger heat builds through the glass, but is subtle. Overall this is very nice ginger spiced wild ale. All around nice complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/earthy yeast, ginger, and moderate bready malt flavors; very smooth and refreshing to drink with the modest tartness and acidity. A very enjoyable offering.

Oct 16, 2016

BigGold from Mississippi

3.93/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

First had poured from 16.9-oz. bottle, acquired in Norman, Okla., stamped "250 16," into hotel water glass. Not a big fan of ginger in beer, but it balances out this 6.50 ABV ale rather nicely.

Oct 10, 2016

tbryan5 from Louisiana

3.96/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

A- Slightly hazy golden with almost no head.
S- Barnyard funk and sweet candied ginger.
T- Tart and funky up front followed up and smoothed out by the ginger.
M- Low carbonation, and light body.
D- The ginger makes this beer unique. Very enjoyable.

Oct 06, 2016

zeff80 from Missouri

3.99/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On draft. Poured out a clear, golden color with a small, white head of foam. It smelled fruity with some tart lemon and caramel. Sweet fruity taste with toasted caramel and a tart finish.

Oct 02, 2016

BEERchitect from Kentucky

3.83/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

For their forth installment of anniversary flavor, the Prairie brewers set their sights on a sour and spice interplay with copious ginger additions in the foreground.

Pale gold and hazy to its core, 4th Anniversary Ale is redolent of the sharp ginger scent with a floral perfume, an exotic spicy tinge and a faint drift of grain. With no hint of sourness in the nose, its taste resonates soundly dry bread and douqh with that candied ginger and scant soda sweetness.

As sweetness dissolves on the tongue early, the hallmark biscuit, bread, and confectioner's sweetness soon gives way to a spicy and sour interplay; one that brings a strong lemon-lime brine and one that's of exotic flowery ginger. Associations of ginger ale sodas are dissected as the sweet soda flavors are replaced with tart, tang and sour sensations of lemonade, cider and white wine.

Finishing zesty, racy and highly refreshing, the mind can't get around the idea that there's two different beers living in the same glass. Complex yet conflicting, a spicy and dry finish looms with an aftertaste of pickled ginger and muddled citrus peel.

Oct 02, 2016

russpowell from Arkansas

4/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 2 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Pours an effervescent amber with a sliver of cream colored head. No head retention or lacing

S: Ginger, lemons, white melon

T: Ginger, lemon, & sourness up front, a little lemongrass as well. Dryness, tartness, lemon & a little ginger as this warms. Finishes dry, lemony with tartness & wisp of ginger

MF: Light carbonation, light/medium body, very dry, very cocktail like

Super refreshing & different, reminds of a cocktail in many ways

Oct 02, 2016