Stillwater / Hof Ten Dormaal Bronze Age - Stillwater Artisanal Ales

BedetheVenerable

Missouri

3.9/5  rDev -1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Presentation: Collaboration between Stillwater and Hof Ten Dormaal, brewed with raw spelt and estate-grown barley. Poured into my Hennepin globe. Warning: As I was taking the cage, I noticed a hiss and I BARELY held down the cork before it shot out. This stuff is SERIOUSLY carbonated...

Appearance: Pours a hazy, dark orange/straw hue with a huge, fluffy white cap with great retention, not surprising with the high levels of carbonation.

Smell: Lots of pils malt with just a hint of earthy farmhouse funk and fruity hops. Not tons of depth, but rustic and pleasant.

Taste: Really nice pils-type malt backbone, medium-strong bitterness (not really surprising from a Stillwater-saison) and earthy hop flavors. There's a very "Belgian" character to this, though it doesn't have the vibrant fruity esters of a lot of the best examples (Dupont, Fantome, etc). Just a GHOST of citrus pith on the finish. Dry and bitter, but really pleasant.

Mouthfeel: Light to medium-light.

Overall: Not really sure what to expect from this one. I had my first Hof Ten Dormaal last week and that was good as well. Really cool little brewery, it seems. At $6.00, I might pick up another of these if it was released again. Light, crisp, and refreshing.

87-B

Serving type: bottle

08-25-2012 01:47:03 | More by BedetheVenerable

Andreias21

Florida

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

06-15-2013 00:25:42 | More by Andreias21

DaveBlack

Virginia

3.68/5  rDev -6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: For starters, the cork flew out of the bottle with very little provocation from me, evidencing the high level of carbonation. The beer pours a hazy golden color with a huge three-finger, fluffy white head. The head is fed by a never-ending stream of bubbles from the base of the glass, making me think that it will probably last until next week.

S: Incredibly earthy and yeasty smelling brew, with a bit of funk. Cracked wheat adds a great deal of graininess to the aroma as well. Smells like a solid saison.

T: Yeast is definitely the prominent flavor on the front end of the beer, mixed with the cereal grain taste that was present in the nose. The finish is exceptionally dry, with a good deal of bitterness present.

M: Light body and tons of carbonation make this a very crisp brew.

O: Not the best saison that I've had. I find the bitter finish to be a little less than pleasant. The flavors are good, I just wish that it had a little more malt character, and a little more funkiness to it. Still very drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

06-12-2013 21:45:57 | More by DaveBlack

dbrauneis

New Jersey

3.96/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Pours a hazy medium golden yellow in color with light to moderate amounts of visible carbonation, some light to moderate amounts of small white yeast particles in suspension, and some faint lemon yellow highlights. The beer has a pillowy three finger tall white head that slowly reduces to a thin film covering the majority of the surface of beer and a thin ring at the edges of the glass. Moderate to significant amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Light to moderate aromas of pale malts, earthiness, and peppery yeast spiciness. There is a light hint of grassy hops and just the faintest note of citrus/lemon.

T: Moderate flavors of pale malts with citrus/lemon hops and a light to moderate amount of black pepper spiciness from the yeast. Light hints of earthiness and that distinctive flavor of Belgians that my wife refers to as "paste." Light amounts of bitterness which fade pretty quickly.

M: Just heavier than light bodied with moderate to heavy amounts of carbonation. Moderate amounts of dryness in the finish.

O: The best single word description that I can come up with to describe this beer is zesty - it is an enjoyable beer and I detect aspects of both breweries in the collaboration.

Serving type: bottle

06-08-2013 18:44:06 | More by dbrauneis

metter98

New York

3.94/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

A: The beer is hazy yellowish brown in color and has lots of clumps of yeast near the bottom of the glass. It poured with a finger high off white head that died down and consistently left a thin layer of bubbles covering the surface.
S: Aromas of Belgian yeast are present in the nose along with hints of lemony hops.
T: The taste very much follows the smell, except that the flavors of lemony hops are a little stronger and there also notes of earthy yeast and hints of spices.
M: It feels a bit shy of medium-bodied on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This is an interesting saison that also shares some of the properties of a bière de garde.

Serving type: bottle

06-08-2013 18:40:59 | More by metter98

Sludgeman

District of Columbia

3.76/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

$7.99. Poured into a fluted beer glass.

Saisons/Farmhouse Ales are a favorite style of mine, so I might drink this no matter waht but in my opinion this beer is not a good representation of the style. This beer is still refreshing, but grading based on style, there are much better Saisons.

A - Pours a cloudy golden/orangish color (sediment at bottom which I did not pour), well carbonated, a huge fairly dense white head.

S - First wiff was sour, the some slight spiciness, some faint citrus, but not the heavier spice and fruit typically expected from this style.

T - Dry, a bit tart, no alcohol at all, some low bitterness, higher maltiness than typical for the style.

MF - Light bodied, high carbonation with an accompanying prickly feeling, refreshing.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2013 00:58:32 | More by Sludgeman

facundoCNB

New Jersey

3.76/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

a hazy copper pour with 3 fingers of detergent like head. smells of skunked beer.. lemongrass, vienna style malts, not a huge fan of these smells. the flavor is a mix of vanilla, almond, lemograss, an oaky flavor, bread, black pepper. really interesting flavor profile. medium body with very high carbonation.

warning, do not open this one up in the middle of the night while your wife is sleeping.. quite possibly the loudest cork i've ever popped. a really delicious beer, definitely didn't know what to expect from this one, and well, i got a completely unique beer. definitely worth trying.

Serving type: bottle

05-14-2013 02:21:13 | More by facundoCNB

pixieskid

France

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

05-13-2013 16:01:51 | More by pixieskid

spycow

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

05-02-2013 05:02:36 | More by spycow

Dweedlebug

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +1.5%

04-29-2013 20:22:04 | More by Dweedlebug

GeePee

Wisconsin

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

04-20-2013 02:29:17 | More by GeePee

jmilo64

Maine

3.5/5  rDev -11.2%

04-07-2013 17:14:29 | More by jmilo64

BEERchitect

Kentucky

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

Going back to the roots of traditional farmhouse roots. The clever minds of Hof ten Dormall hosts the collaborative efforts with Stillwater Ales to create a distinctive, dry, and spicy Saison Ale.

Like most Saisons, the beer pours with a bright straw color and casts a yeasty haze upon the beer. Well headed with a creamy white cap- the beer retains persistently and speckles the glass with lace.

Its funky-fresh aromas start with raw grain, bread-like sweetness, and sod. Spicy notes of fresh cut grass, straw and hay rise to overtake sweetness and morph into a cork-like woodiness.

Grainy-sweet to start, the malt and bread character is short lived as the beer dries out nearly on impact with the tongue. Light wine-like tartness is accompanied with earthen dry botanical herbs, dried oranges, lemons, white grapes, green apples, and lime. Peppery with the taste of coriander, crushed white pepper, clove, and a touch of cumin- there's plenty of room for balance. Firmly bittered, the finish grips the throat with spicy hops and a tinge of boiled tea leaves.

Medium-light in body, the ale is turbulent with high carbonation that pushes the beer from the tongue. But as the carbonation dispells, so does the sweetness- leaving the dry malt textures and spice to carry through to a warm and earthy finish.

Perhaps a tad more on the bitter side than most conventional Saisons, this collaborative effort is rustic, zesty, dry, and highly rewarding. Authentic in every way!

Serving type: on-tap

03-30-2013 02:16:48 | More by BEERchitect

ortie

Kentucky

4/5  rDev +1.5%

03-29-2013 01:23:13 | More by ortie

shawnrjohnson

Alabama

5/5  rDev +26.9%

03-20-2013 20:48:21 | More by shawnrjohnson

wesley14

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +1.5%

03-17-2013 17:53:49 | More by wesley14

jkermitj

Mississippi

4/5  rDev +1.5%

03-15-2013 00:40:14 | More by jkermitj

popery

California

4/5  rDev +1.5%

02-27-2013 03:45:39 | More by popery

t0rin0

California

4/5  rDev +1.5%

02-21-2013 03:05:53 | More by t0rin0

Kreizler

Connecticut

4/5  rDev +1.5%

02-17-2013 18:08:50 | More by Kreizler

DrunkinYogi

Connecticut

4/5  rDev +1.5%

02-10-2013 23:28:16 | More by DrunkinYogi

hoppymcgee

Pennsylvania

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

02-10-2013 00:01:02 | More by hoppymcgee

Googs

New York

4/5  rDev +1.5%

02-04-2013 19:18:19 | More by Googs

Mattias

Sweden

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

01-25-2013 20:26:59 | More by Mattias

swimfire

South Carolina

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

01-20-2013 03:52:38 | More by swimfire