Farmhand Ale
Driftwood Brewery

Farmhand AleFarmhand Ale
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From:
Driftwood Brewery
 
British Columbia, Canada
Style:
Saison
ABV:
5.5%
Score:
89
Avg:
3.97 | pDev: 9.57%
Reviews:
68
Ratings:
183
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Nov 24, 2018
Added:
Dec 20, 2008
Wants:
  11
Gots:
  25
Our interpretation of this Southern-Belgian farmhouse ale uses a partial sour-mash and the addition of freshly ground black pepper. We use a very unique strain of yeast from Belgium to add further layers of spice and complexity to this rare style of beer.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by andrenaline:
Photo of andrenaline
Reviewed by andrenaline from Canada (ON)

3.9/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
A - Pours a nice hazy golden orange colour, thin finger of head with little retention, leaving some lacing throughout.

S - Scent is largely bready, wheat scented malts, with a bit of a sweet kick on the finish consisting of apricots and honey.

T - Quite delightful! Although I found it a bit bland in the mouth, the flavours really come through on the finish. Fruits are bananas, oranges and apricots, while the spices (not noticeable on the scent) finish nicely with cloves, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg that linger on the palette.

M - This one is poundable! Goes down silky smooth, perfectly carbonated, though it was noticeably dry on the finish.

D - Quite impressed by this offering. Full of flavour, very drinkable and an excellent take on the Saison style. Highly recommended to anyone who can get their hands on this stuff!
Aug 15, 2010
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.77 by Bf_89 from Canada (ON)

Nov 24, 2018
Photo of thehyperduck
Reviewed by thehyperduck from Canada (ON)

4.14/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5
Bomber purchased at the LCBO with no discernible freshness info; served slightly chilled. I've had a few bottles of this previously, going back to May (when it first started rolling out across this province), which means I've had some added time to refine my thoughts on this one.

Pours bright, clear and effervescent; its golden-hued body is crowned with a layer of creamy, white, meringue-like head, which is nearly an inch thick and lasts on and on. The lacing is a bit scant, but it looks great otherwise. I'm loving the peppercorn spiciness on the nose - it's subtle, blending in sublimely well with notes of clove spice, banana ester and bready, grainy pale malts; there's also a few light, fruity suggestions along the lines of apple skin and pear. Not only is it exactly what I expect from a saison, but that black pepper also gives it some added punch.

A quality brew all around; flavours of coarse grain and bready pale malt sweetness supply the backdrop, with peppercorn spiciness also being a sort of permanent (albeit faint) presence throughout the sip, peaking towards the back end. In the meantime, hints of apple, citrus peel and banana flit across the taste buds, followed up by a grassy, slightly spicy hop finish - a beautiful complement to the peppercorn and clove spice it accompanies. The aftertaste dries out quickly. Light-medium in body, with moderately low carbonation levels that weakly agitate the palate; honestly, this one could use a bit more of a bite, because it mostly feels smooth and soft - though that peppercorn spice does help fill in the void.

Final Grade: 4.14, an A-. Driftwood's Farmhand Ale is a pleasing, approachable, highly thirst-quenching saison that leans toward the lighter, more 'traditional' side of this style's spectrum. Bear in mind, this saison's abv is actually pretty low compared to most modern interpretations - thus, this brew more than makes up for its slight complexity deficit with its extraordinarily high drinkability. Not a mind-blowing beer, but still high-quality stuff that I wouldn't hesitate to recommend.
Sep 07, 2018
 
Rated: 3.75 by byronic from Canada (ON)

Jul 30, 2018
 
Rated: 3.61 by spokenwheels from Canada (BC)

Jun 12, 2018
 
Rated: 3.52 by polloenfuego from Canada (NB)

Jun 02, 2018
 
Rated: 3.94 by kier from Canada (ON)

May 28, 2018
Photo of taxandbeerguy
Reviewed by taxandbeerguy from Canada (ON)

3.82/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
Review from notes after some lawn work. 650 ml bottle was $6 CDN, glad to see more Driftwood offerings out this way. Served cold into a chalice.

Appearance - Hazy, rich golden color with lots of bubbles. Capped by just over a finger of dense and foamy white heas. Really good staying power and great looking beer.

Smell - Quite fruity with apples, pears and a hint of citrus. Some bready grains and candi sugar in behind as well as a distinctive Belgian style yeast.

Taste - Clean and crisp flavors with pear and peach and candi sugar sweetness most apparent. Some yeasty bits and definitely floral tasting leafiness mixed in. Perfumey but on the tastebuds. Just a touch too sweet.

Mouthfeel - Fairly crisp, medium bodied, good carbonation and more sticky than dry in the finish.

Overall - A tasty if slightly too sweet take on a Belgian Classic. Has a little La Fin Du Monde light going on with the peach and pear and perfumey flavor combo. Not as good, but similarities to that beer are never a bad thing.
May 19, 2018
 
Rated: 4 by Simon212 from Canada (ON)

Apr 30, 2018
 
Rated: 3.38 by nullbort from Canada (ON)

Apr 20, 2018
Photo of Perry_W
Reviewed by Perry_W from Canada (ON)

3.4/5  rDev -14.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3
Very disappointed in this beer. The marketing is strong but the payoff is not there. Tales on the label of a special funky beer being made for seasonal workers leaves you anticipating some nifty flavours

Unfortunately this beer is basically just a run of the mill belgian ale type beer. Not bad.....very session-able (though not at $6 a pop)...but also very forgettable.

The look is okay. Slightly pale but nice and murky. If it's murky you know there's some good flavours goin' on. The smell is nice...perfect bouquet of a belgian wit or ale. The mouthfeel is great...nice body on this one. The flavour is where this beer drops the ball. The pale appearance was an indicator because the taste is just watered down. This is clearly a beer for normies who would rather be drinking some shite macro brew but every once in awhile go out to some gastropub
Apr 16, 2018
Photo of Smakawhat
Reviewed by Smakawhat from Maryland

4/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured from the bottle into a globe/tulip glass.

Tangerine orange and slightly clear with a touch of haze. Very fine carbonation, real hard to see that rises to an off white two finger head that dissolves and snaps out pretty quickly.

Aroma is quite nice if subtle. Mild sensations of brett, but a nicer almost juicy citrus orange like quality. A touch of floral and citrus mix and soft malt quality on the nose. Flirts with a bit of baby aspirin flavor also.

Quite a juicy palate for a saison. Peppery feeling and somewhat tasting mid palate, but more of a juicy tangerine citrus note than anything. Light bodied but a bit of malt depth with more fruity tones and quality than expected. Doesn't seem to have much classic Belgian character, and even the funk is small, but this almost has a bit of IPA like West coast fruityness mixed in.

Pretty unique tasting saison, if a little off character, but quite tasty I must admit.
Dec 27, 2017
 
Rated: 4.25 by StormAles from Canada (ON)

Nov 08, 2017
Photo of pootz
Reviewed by pootz from Canada (ON)

3.39/5  rDev -14.6%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25
On tap - pours a hazed burnished gold with orange tint - 2 finger off-white cap. Bight spicy-peppery character, med-light body - aroma is fruity-spicy with solid cereal notes and some funk from the Belgian yeast. The flavor profile uses these elements but they hit the palate with different timing - light pastry malting p front is balanced by a bright peppery spiciness then fruity esters emerge - clean increasingly bitter-spicy finish - refreshing and well made.
Aug 13, 2017
 
Rated: 2.86 by ILOVEHAM from Canada (BC)

May 23, 2017
 
Rated: 4.02 by Tpop1005 from Canada (BC)

May 01, 2017
 
Rated: 4 by FadetoBock from Canada (AB)

Oct 15, 2016
 
Rated: 3.75 by SmithyAlan from Canada (QC)

Sep 26, 2016
Photo of DucksFan16
Rated by DucksFan16 from Tennessee

3.54/5  rDev -10.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
07/05/2016
Jul 08, 2016
 
Rated: 4.51 by SithDarkLord11 from Canada (AB)

May 21, 2016
Farmhand Ale from Driftwood Brewery
Beer rating: 89 out of 100 with 183 ratings