Premium - Stillwater Artisanal Ales

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

3.55/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The farm smell is right there wafting through and after the pour. Really funky. Above average mouthfeel. Nothing exceptional taste wise, a little pepper, drinking of hay, but drinkable. Some rice as in saki, as in roast and toast rice. Worth a try for something different.

Serving type: bottle

09-19-2012 13:03:54 | More by northyorksammy

Thorpe429

Illinois

4.18/5  rDev +8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

On tap at Churchkey. Served in a snifter. Reviewed from notes.

Pours a slightly-hazy straw color with a really nice white head and some good lacing on the way down. The nose brings a slight bit of grain along with some faint floral hops. Light earthy notes as well. The flavor has a nice grainy base along with good hop and yeast notes. The Brett shines through in the finish, which is quite dry. Light, crisp body. Really nice.

Serving type: on-tap

02-10-2012 03:12:42 | More by Thorpe429

brentk56

North Carolina

4.15/5  rDev +7.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Batch 1

Apppearance: Quite the gusher indeed but after cleaning up the mess, the beer poured a cloudy honey color with a beaten egg white head that left multiple strands of lace

Smell: Vague hints of lemon and chalk with undertones of an adjunct lager (more rice than corn)

Taste: Starts out chalky dry, with lemon pound cake undertones; in the middle, there is a vanilla and pepper character that contrasts with the rice flavors; the rice actually adds a bit of sweet rice pudding to the malt profile as the beer settles into the finish

Mouthfeel: Light to medium body with moderate to high carbonation

Overall: Intriguing and probably a bit better fresh, this is still a nice example of what Brett can do to the American Blonde style to make it interesting and appealing

Serving type: bottle

03-09-2013 23:08:56 | More by brentk56

drabmuh

Maryland

4.05/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Served in a Stillwater glass? You bet your ass that's what I did.

Beer is yellow and hazy with a nice white head, small and medium bubbles, some lacing, moderate lacing.

I guess I didn't realize until this point that this was a brett beer, big yeast character. Funky, a little esters / phenolic.

Beer is light in body and effervescent. A little dry finish, pretty bretty, Brett c or b character. Interesting. A pretty good beer I'd have it again.

Serving type: bottle

02-15-2012 15:29:08 | More by drabmuh

metter98

New York

3.96/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.25

A: The beer is clear light straw yellow in color and has a moderate to high amount of carbonation. It poured with a two finger high bright white head that took a very long time to die down but never completely faded away, consistently leaving a thin head covering the surface as well as lots of lacing down the sides of the glass.
S: The Brettanomyces yeast imparts light amounts of sourness to the nose.
T: Like the smell, the taste is a little sour and also has notes of lemon citrus and grassy hops. Hints of peppery spices are noticeable in the finish.
M: It feels light- to medium-bodied and a little clean on the palate with a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This would make for a really easy to drink beer for someone that is just getting into sour beers because the brett is not overdone. I really liked how the brewer used a little sourness to make a beer brewed with adjunct malts that doesn't taste bland. It's extremely drinkable given its low alcohol content.

Serving type: bottle

02-24-2013 22:08:19 | More by metter98

zeff80

Missouri

4.08/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - Poured out a hazy, pale golden color with a one-finger, bubbly white head of foam. It left thin rings of lace on the glass.

S - It smelled very phenolic and funky with caramel notes.

T - Good funky flavor with a nice spicy bitter bite. Nice funkiness, too.

M - It was crisp, sharp and smooth. A light to medium bodied ale with a very dry finish.

O - This is a pretty tastier beer. It reminded me of a lighter version of Rayon Vert.

Serving type: bottle

09-06-2012 21:28:09 | More by zeff80

Knapp85

Pennsylvania

3.85/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

This beer poured out as a lightly hazy looking yellow color. The head was white and a little on the fizzy side. The smell of the beer was made of mostly corn aromas and bready yeast. Smells very much like a very generic ale. The taste is sweet with some corn and grainy flavors. The mouthfeel was well carbonated with a decent body to it. Overall this beer was pretty good, I understand the style that was being attempted here and I think it's pretty good. I found this beer to be pretty refreshing actually.

Serving type: bottle

02-07-2012 04:52:08 | More by Knapp85

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.94/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

22oz bottle. More ornate, withered Victorian manuscript label imagery, very 'artisanal'.

This beer pours a very, very, very pale cloudy, almost white straw 'colour', with a tumultuous rising mass of thinly foamy, whipped cream head, which leaves broad swaths of chunky, splattered fuzzy lace around the glass as it genially abates. It is blonde, in the American sense, this much is certain.

It smells of funky, sort of cheesy yeast, a sour lemon and cherry fruitiness, grainy pale malt, soft earthy spice, and a sassy grassy hoppiness. The taste is tart lemon and mild white vinegar, a paler Brett funkiness than that of the nose (but still kickin' it), gritty pale malt, a touch of cornmeal, some understated black pepper mill detritus, and still prominent wet hay and grassy hops.

The carbonation is obviously quite the showman up front, and mostly keeps at it with a sharp, sometimes fizzy nature, the body medium-light in weight, maybe a smidgeon thin, but generally smooth for such a hoppy, modulated acidic brew. It finishes off-dry, the sweetness of the rice/corn kind of shouldering its way in, while the bitter hops and sour/funky combo just sit back and smirk.

A tasty enough pale wild ale, I don't quite grok the insistence on placing this in the Blonde Ale classification, even if said category, as a whole, is loosey-goosey at best. So a few niggling points off for that. And did pre-WWII beers in America really rely on wild yeast and bacteria for their fermentation? Maybe I've got some further reading up to do.

Serving type: bottle

04-03-2013 02:00:00 | More by biboergosum

akorsak

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A 750 mL capped bottle; from the Wine Source. In a DuClaw snifter.

A: Light, pale, golden, and straw-like. The haze gives the ale a post Prohibition Belgian look, somewhere between a saison and a tripel. A white head, not much lacing, follows.

S: One thing you can always count on: Stillwater bringing the intense saison nose. This is no exception, musty and fruity with the brett adding a lively dirtiness. Pepper and lemons provide spicy heat. Smells very nice.

T: The brett brings depth to the ale, dirty and funky without acidic tartness. As the brett fades, the pale malts and and saison yeast kick in. The breadiness is soft; the saison is spicy. In particular, freshly cracked peppercorns, lemons, and pale candi sugars. The light malt brings a sweetness that comes through at the end of each sip. The brett sucks much of the moisture out of the ale, leaving it dry (but not jarringly so). The first glass was very bubbly, effervescent to the point of brut. It has since settled down but was worth noting.

M: The late-sip pairing of sweet malts, Belgian spices, and Brettanomyces is a game changer, sweet and funky and lively. Not quite a full-on saison, although it is this close {indicates mere millimeters with thumb and pointer finger}. The ale feels heavy though, perhaps my only significant complaint.

Serving type: bottle

03-11-2012 02:14:41 | More by akorsak

rhoadsrage

Illinois

4.23/5  rDev +9.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

(Served in a chalice)
Batch #1
A- This beer is just a bit of a gusher pouring a thick rocky white foam that takes up most of the glass. It slowly settles down to a slightly hazy bright yellow body with a violent carbonation of tiny bubbles.

S- The earthy wet rice and strong grapefruit aromas of brett give way to some pithy green notes in the finish that could be hops or brett. There is an interesting lavender soap hint that comes through as the beer opens.

T- The touch of malt sweetness is followed by grapefruit brett character and a full pungent pithy hops in the finish. The green grapefruit flavor lingers for a bit after the dry finish. As it opens up there are some hints of slightly over ripe fruit.

M- This beer has a medium mouthfeel with a gentle scrubbing fizz and compliments the hops nicely.

O- This beer really has a beautiful brett character that is full in the aroma with some nice bright flavors supporting it in the taste. There is a touch of tartness that grows and more depth comes with each glass.

Serving type: bottle

08-20-2012 14:18:38 | More by rhoadsrage

mdfb79

New York

3.78/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

From 02/11/12 notes. Poured into a tulip.

a - Pours a murky yellow color with one inch of white head and moderate carbonation evident.

s - Smells of citrus, spice, Belgian style yeast, brett, and earthy notes. Lightly funky nose, pretty nice.

t - Tastes of pepper, Belgian yeast, spices, citrus hops, floral hops, earthy notes, grass. More pepper then the nose, a step down.

m - Medium body and moderate carbonation. Pretty easy to drink.

o - Overall a pretty nice beer from saison. Taste had a little too much pepper for me, but the nose was very nice. Would try it again.

Serving type: bottle

02-17-2012 03:21:34 | More by mdfb79

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

3.5/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

First had: on tap at ? (I think TJ's, Paoli, PA)

Not a bad beer for a style I'm not a huge fan of. Poured a light, golden yellow, pale and slightly hazy, with a small cap of white bubbles for a head; minimal retention and lacing. Aromas of pale malts, musty grass, and a distinctive Belgian yeast quality that puts this on the border of a saison (typical Stillwater fare). More of the same in the taste, bready pale malts, yeast, grass, light herbal hops. Light-medium body and quite good for the style.

Serving type: on-tap

07-25-2012 20:15:37 | More by Rifugium

stakem

Pennsylvania

3.58/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Bomber into a tulip. Thanks go to wishuwerebeer for the share. The brew appears a clouded golden yellow color with 2 fingers of frothy white head. Patchy to webby lace sticks to the glass. Rising bubbles maintain about a finger strength across the top.

The nose has a nice lemony snap of fruity aromatics. Somewhat tropical as it warme and opens up in the glass. Hints of pineapple blend into more of a wheat-like grain inclusion. It smells somewhat tart but with hints of sulfur and grass.

The taste is pale grain blending into a bit of wheat sweetness. There is a mild indication of saison yeast and a touch of clove, spice and sulfur. A bit of exaggerated lemony oil quality like coriander is mid-palate blending to grassy and earthy qualities. The finish goes back to the straw character with a bit of perfume-like lemon.

This is a light bodied brew with a modest to effervescent level of carbonation that is lightly prickly on the tongue. It is interestingly enjoyable at times but it does have some distractions that make the brew fall apart a bit as the experience continues. The blend of saison character and tropical hints was brilliant, the sulfur and oily lemon - not so much.

Serving type: bottle

10-23-2012 15:16:22 | More by stakem

thagr81us

South Carolina

4/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle signed by the brewer! Batch #1! Served from bottle into a Duck-Rabbit nonic. Poured a slightly hazy pale golden yellow with three finger pure white fluffy head that subsided to one finger very slowly. Maintained nice lacing throughout the glass. The aroma was comprised of sweet malt, earth, banana, fruit, spices, earthy funk, and horseblanket. The flavor was of sweet malt, fruit, spices, earth, and massive funk. It had a light feel on the palate with high carbonation. Overall this was a good brew. The brett going on in this one definitely took a front row seat in both the aroma and especially the flavor. The brett plays a really nice role in this style as it can stand out and dominate the brew. The aroma is quite nice on it as well. An absolute must try if you have not done so already. You won’t regret it at all.

Serving type: bottle

10-02-2012 11:49:00 | More by thagr81us

Huhzubendah

District of Columbia

4.18/5  rDev +8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

The beer appears a hazy, straw yellow hue with a lasting white head. The aroma is enticing, offering a bouquet of floral notes, citrus, earth, yeast, grass. The flavor has all of the aforementioned characteristics, as well as a pleasant spice character. The feel is smooth on the palate, finishing dry with a crisp hop character. Light bodied, easy to drink, complex, delicious. I would happily have this again. Recommended.

Serving type: bottle

02-15-2012 02:09:56 | More by Huhzubendah

avalon07

South Carolina

4.08/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: Poured from a bottle to a pint glass. Had a pale yellow color and a cloudy consistency. There was a big, creamy, long-lasting head. Good lacing.

S: Not what I expected from the aroma: Grainy, with traces of malt, hops, and citrus.

T: Tasted of malt, corn, grain, rice, light hops, and a little bit of citrus thrown in. Definitely an unusual flavor - a bit more corn than I normally would like, but still fairly tasty.

M: A well-carbonated beer with a sharp, prickly finish. Light-bodied.

O: Certainly not your typical blonde ale, but well worth trying.

Serving type: bottle

01-18-2012 13:37:40 | More by avalon07

gford217

Georgia

4.1/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22oz bottle, batch 2 presumably.

Pours a hazy straw yellow with a soapy white head that leaves some streaks of lacing. There is a thin cap on top throughout.

Aroma is crisp and clean with some spicy saison yeast as well as plenty of straw and light brett funk. There is also quite a pronounced lemon character and apricots.

Light lactic sourness up front, though very subtle, with some underlying fruity sweetness, grapes maybe. Spicy yeast and lots of grass and a very dry finish.

Mouthfeel is lively and light, almost fizzy, which makes it very drinkable. Dry finish.

Another excellent beer in the long line of Belgian-style brews from Stillwater. This is probably the lightest and most drinkable I've had from them even if it's not quite a complex and "meaty" as some of the other.

Serving type: bottle

07-06-2012 00:16:29 | More by gford217

Tone

Missouri

3.88/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Pours a cloudy amber color. 2/3 inch head of a white color. Good retention and great lacing. Smells of grapes, hops, yeast, hint of floral, hint of grass, and a hint of sweet malt. Fits the style of an American Blonde Ale. Mouth feel is smooth and thick, with an average carbonation level. Tastes of slight alcohol, grapes, slight grass, hint of yeast, slight floral, and a hint of sweet malt. Overall, good appearance, decent aroma, feel, and blend.

Serving type: on-tap

05-15-2013 16:50:19 | More by Tone

kylehay2004

Florida

3.5/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Half finger head wit excellent lacing in a cloudy banana yellow body. Aroma of clove, Belgian yeast, garbage and lemon. Flavor has a lot of corriander and clove with Belgian yeast funk and light lemon custard sweetness. Moderate carbonation and light to medium body. Lots of Belgian yeast and funk character. Drinkable but comes across very simpe. Not overly dry.

Serving type: bottle

12-20-2012 18:26:41 | More by kylehay2004

nickfl

Florida

3.98/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - Pours with one and a half fingers of white foam on top of a hazy, straw colored body. The head sinks down slowly and leaves decent lace on the glass.

S - A slightly sulphury aroma of yeast, grainy malt, and earthy Brett.

T - Clean, earthy malt up front with notes of hay. The Brett comes out in the middle with notes of wet dirt and lemongrass. The beer finishes with lots of earthy hops and matching funky straw and dirt yeast character.

M - Medium body, high carbonation, and a dry finish.

D - Really interesting. The funky notes play perfectly with the earthy European hops and make for an odd but endearing little beer.

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2012 08:55:39 | More by nickfl

woosterbill

Connecticut

4.35/5  rDev +12.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

750ml bottle into a 25cl Duvel tulip. Big thanks to JAHMUR for sharing this one.

A: Cloudy straw body with a finger of delicate, dense white foam. Ok retention and lacing. Solid.

S: Brett dominates, with huge floral character and some light grass and hay behind. Spicy, aromatic, and great.

T: Follows the nose, with huge, delicious Brett. A touch of dry graininess under the herbal, floral, grassy yeast. Dry, lightly spicy finish with some minerality.

M: Frothy, lively, and light. A bit too bubbly, but not bad at all.

O: This was a real winner, delivering tons of funky complexity in a fresh, vibrant, refreshing package. Highly recommended.

Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

05-21-2012 03:43:23 | More by woosterbill

lordofthewiens

Maine

4.03/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A fun beer.
It was a hazy pale yellow color with a thick white head that lasted quite a while. There was a little bit of lace.

Funky brett aroma, lots of floral hops. Also some citrus.

Yeasty taste, some sour lemon. Very floral.

Crisp and tasy. I could drink this beer all day (and at 4.5% ABV probably could).

Serving type: bottle

05-23-2012 00:05:49 | More by lordofthewiens

ngeunit1

California

4.33/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours a cloudy golden-yellow with a big finger of frothy white head. The head fades down very slowly leaving behind some nice lacing.

S - Aroma is a mix of sweet grains with some corn, citrus hops, some lemon peel, some funky Brett, and some tart green fruits.

T - Starts off with a mix of sweet corn and other grains with some citrus hops, some mild bitterness, and some tart lemon zest and other green fruits. Through the middle, more funky Brett character comes through with some more tartness, with just a hint of spice. The finish is a mix of sweet grainy malts, funky Brett, and tart lemon zest and green fruits.

M - Medium-minus bodied with moderate carbonation. Feels smooth with a dry, tart, and funky finish.

D - Very drinkable. Nice crisp finish with good Brett character throughout. Well balanced.

Serving type: bottle

12-11-2012 06:44:22 | More by ngeunit1

oline73

Maryland

3.48/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

I had this on-tap at Max's. Served in a sample glass.

Appearance: Pours a cloudy yellow with a layer of off white head that fades to a ring around the edge of the glass.

Smell: Light malt and a slight tartness. The overall smell is rather yeasty.

Taste: Light and slightly bitter. I'm picking up some herbal and yeast flavors, especially in the finish. Mild and rather refreshing.

Mouthfeel: Medium body with tingly carbonation and a dry finish.

Overall: There is a ton of flavor in this beer given the abv. I thought it was interesting and would have more.

Serving type: on-tap

02-27-2012 00:46:24 | More by oline73

CrazyDavros

Australia

3.8/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 2 | overall: 4

Pours pale straw with a large head.
Nose shows funky, goaty Brett, soft lemon, light malt, grassy cow shit. Smells like a bloody farm. Intriguing.
Some of the farm characters transfer through as flavours, along with dry saison notes and grainy malt.
Massively high carbonation.
This one grew on me, despite the cow shit.

Serving type: bottle

05-13-2013 02:30:44 | More by CrazyDavros