Frances Farmer
Aslan Brewing Company

everything about this is wonderful, worthy of all the hype i hear about this brewery, and i am so glad i picked it up when i found it at a neat little shop in spokane. the label art is awesome, and the beer is simple but very complex and mature, the kind of saison i love so much, and just a fine example of it, one of the highlights of my recent trip to washington for sure. its lightly hazy and a shade more orange than gold in the glass, but still very pale, and with a lovely and lasting tight white head from the bottle, and visible carbonation popping through the whole drink. lots of funk in the nose, definitely some oak tannins, a well developed but somewhat mild brett strain or two, notes of white wine, almost ripe peach, and even kiwi fruit, along with some minerals and even a light brine aspect to me, mouthwatering for sure, not real acidic but slightly bacterial too, nice. the flavor is definitely fermentation forward, funky and farmy, raw and rural and rustic and old worldy, but just so calculated and well refined. subtle notes of mango and meyer lemon give it a summery complexion, but the malt is earthy and kind of rugged and autumnal, even though its pale and dry, so its kind of an all season saison, if that even makes sense, a beer i want to drink anytime. the carbonation is on point, there is only slight acidity, and there is some texture from the malt, really awesome beer all around, i love the funk, and i need to track down some more beers in this wild and farmhouse range from aslan when i am back in washington next month! truly fantastic.

Had on tap at the Church Key Edmonds, WA

After I popped the cap I went to get a glass and found the bottle was very gently gushing a puddle onto the counter. Big glass of foam before it settled down. Cloudy yellowish brew. Not much aroma with a tart nose.

Frothy in the mouth and light bodied. Kind of buttery and sourish. Dry and yeasty, and a bit murky with bitterness increasing as you sip. Astringent aftertaste. Still, it's an interesting attempt. Rather pricey for the 500 ml bottle.

 

This is one of those "almost made it" beers. Generous cream-colored lingering head and lacing, slight haze. Clean, without any off or atypical flavors. Funkiness is pleasant and appropriate, as is the generous carbonation. What holds this beer back is an inappropriate and unpleasant sweetness. This combined with its thin body and watery mouthfeel makes me think the batch I had was rushed to serving, and would have really benefitted from further attenuation. If the yeast had a few more weeks to do its work, I bet this would be a great saison. I will be giving it another try down the road.