Illumination (Farmhouse IPA) - Enlightenment Ales

kojevergas

California

3.3/5  rDev -19.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

6.8% ABV confirmed. 1 pint 9.4 fl oz brown glass bottle with intriguing label art and standard brass pressure cap acquired in a trade with the gracious ICCULIS and served into a conical Samuel Smith's pint glass in me gaff in low altitude Los Feliz, Los Angeles, California. Reviewed live. Expectations are fairly high; I've not had a beer from this brewery yet but I find the label and description appealing. Batch number 7. Reviewed as a saison-come-IPA.

Served cold, straight from the fridge. Side-poured with standard vigor as no carbonation issues are anticipated.

As soon as I opened it, liquid began slowly surging upwards. Carbonation seems zealous.

A: Pours a healthy six finger head of beige colour. Soft frothy complexion. Good thickness. Light cream. Spotty uneven lacing as the head slowly recedes. Retention is quite good - around six minutes. Body colour is an unexpectedly murky hazy yellow-orange; I can see the "farmhouse" elements starting to emerge here. This is not your typical IPA in that sense. Appears unfiltered. No yeast particles are visible. Translucent but nontransparent.

Sm: Rustic lemongrass and estery lemon zest immediately betray its saison origins. Pale malts and light wheat lend it a light refreshing feel. Biscuity yeast notes are pungent. Lightly grassy. Little spice if any. No milky character. Hop character is floral but seemingly no more pronounced than most saisons I've had; I'm not detecting the alleged IPA hopping in this self-described saison-meets-IPA. Straw, fleeting graininess, light funk. A hint of pear fruit. Lemon is dominant. More a rustic aroma than a clean one. Mild in strength. Soft, approachable, and inviting. Alive and fleeting. I'm excited to try it. If you handed it to me blind and asked me to guess the style, I'd go with either saison or biere de garde - but I'd never guess IPA.

T: Lemon twang is nice here; lightly juicy without going overboard. The foundation is a rustic blend of pale malts, wheat, and more grainy malts. Some light residual sugars lend a bit more body without becoming overbearing or too sweet. Hop character is indeed a bit more pronounced than in most saisons - but still doesn't come off like the description suggests; this doesn't feel like half saison half IPA - more like 85/15. Some biscuity yeasty notes. No real spicy or milky character, nor any peppery character. It's quite tame in terms of conventional good saisons. I get lightly spicy rye when I look for it, but it seems quite limited. Balanced and enjoyable, but simple for a saison - and not really at all what you'd want out of a good IPA (Belgian style or not). It's nicely subtle. I quite like it, but I could go for more complexity and depth of flavour. Well built as an American attempt at a saison.

Mf: Soft and easy on the palate, presenting lightly yet subtly. Smooth and wet with some fizzy character from the crystal malt. Overcarbonated. Good thickness. Suits the flavour profile well. Clean and refreshing, if rustic.

Dr: A highly drinkable American saison from Enlightenment Ales. Make no mistake - this is no IPA. It's at best a somewhat highly hopped saison. I doubt any beer judge would dare call this an IPA of any sort. This is one case where the brewer's description seems more for marketing than for accurately describing the beer itself. I'd happily age this, for example - if I though it would develop with age (and I don't). But the hop character won't drop off noticeably; there's not much to start with. Hides its ABV well. I'd get it again. An interesting beer, and one that makes me more interested in the brewery. I look forward to trying more of their beers. I wouldn't recommend this to friends, but it's pretty tasty for what it is. Worth trying.

Low B-

Serving type: bottle

05-21-2013 04:57:25 | More by kojevergas

AlexFields

Tennessee

4.08/5  rDev -1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to Dope for sending this!

Pours an intensely cloudy golden yellow with a massive effervescent head, a steady rush of bubbles rushing up from the bottom of the glass.

Nose is dominated by an intense, zesty lemon and tangerine citrus, just tons of orange peel; some spicy yeast and pepper and lavender.

Taste is pepper and farmhouse yeast, citrus peel again, less hoppy in character than I expected and more like a particularly zesty Belgian pale.

Lots of carbonation not surprisingly, effervescent almost to the point of distraction. Good body too though, and good drinkability.

This beer is pretty unique stylistically, not exactly an IPA really but very good.

8.2/10

Serving type: bottle

04-05-2013 01:54:24 | More by AlexFields

NiceTaps

New Jersey

4.24/5  rDev +2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Bomber poured into a stemmed tulip glass.

A- Hazy, unfiltered looking dirty-orange color. The 3 pours from this bottle resulted in massive, fluufy white heads that revealed rings of lace as soon as it began to fade. The head woundup looking like a scoop of vanilla ice cream plopped down in the middle of the brew. Wow.

S- Citrus hop IPA up front. Some grapefruit and orange. Then, after a few minites, the Belgian wheat and light fruit esters come to life. The aromas do get along.

T- The citrus hop flavor hits first then the Belgian wheat ,barley and rye. Peppery.

M- Unmistakenly IPA, unmistakenly Belgian ale. Tart and tangy from the hops and good carbonation, not too bitter. Wet and dry, start to finish.

O- There's a lot to like in this beer, plenty of flavor and body. It works for me.

Serving type: bottle

03-10-2013 21:42:26 | More by NiceTaps

merc7186

New York

3.94/5  rDev -4.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Bomber into snifter.

A: Hazy Golden Straw Hue, Passes Some Light, White Head, Decent Lacing

S: Belgian Yeast, Citrus Hops

T: Belgian Yeast, Citrus Hops, Orange Rind

M: Decent Carbonation, Medium Bodied, Mildly Yeasty, Mildly Bitter

Overall, a nice belgian IPA, not anything special but nothing bad either.

Serving type: bottle

03-06-2013 05:36:48 | More by merc7186

MasterSki

Illinois

4.13/5  rDev +0.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle shared by Todd. Served in a taster pint glass.

A - Big white foam that eventually settles to a thick cap and splotchy lacework. Hazy peach flesh body.

S - Quite hoppy, with a hefty dose of tropical fruits and citrus, some zesty herbs, mildly peppery yeast, and some pungent catty notes. Some grain and wheat provide a malt backbone, but this is all about the hops and yeast.

T - Again, a mix of hops and farmhouse yeast, with tropical citrus, stone fruit, and herbal flavors. Finish is a mix of hop bitterness and spicy yeast notes, with no discernible alcohol. Perhaps a touch of wheat and grain husk. Farmhouse IPA is pretty much a spot on description.

M - Medium body, gritty and dry texture, pleasant moderate carbonation, and a clean, crisp finish. No alcohol presence.

D - A nice hoppy farmhouse ale that I'd happily drink again. It's perhaps a bit sweeter than I'd want from this style, but otherwise quite enjoyable. I'd never heard of this brewery, but I'll have to keep my eyes out for future offerings from them.

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2012 23:03:31 | More by MasterSki

jlindros

Massachusetts

4.28/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

My first from them since the brut was so expensive.

A huge fluffy head that takes up almost half the snifter glass, almost 3 fingers, fades semi quickly at first with lots of spotted lacing, hazy honey orange colored.

Nose is nice, plenty of farmhouse saison like funk, little barnyard like, earthy hay, straw, lemongrass, light lemon zest like, some light floral grassy hops, hint of pine, earthy grassy hops mostly with light bitterness it would seem, a light golden malt, chewy bready malts I think, plenty of Belgian yeast with light floral spices and citrus like, as well as the aforementioned funk.

Taste starts with more farmhouse funk, earthy straw and wet hay, plenty of grain flavors, a bit bready and chewy almost, with light sweet golden malts and a hint of wheat. There is plenty of citrus, lemon zest, lemongrass, light clementine from the hops I think. The hops bring a grassy floral hop flavor, some citrus hence the clementine and a light grapefruit bitterness, light lemony hops as well, little earthy and herbal but not much, with a touch of pine and fresh hop resin. There is a juicy fruity flavor as well, besides the citrus, a light pear like fruit flavor. Yeast brings light esters, plenty of that funk, and a bit of the saison like spices, fluffy and airy as well as there's plenty of carbonation and effervescence, and light bitterness with the esters. It's a little bitter but not much, although that picks up a bit on the finish. A long dry finish, with lots of saison funk, lemon rind grassy hops, lemongrass and straw, farmhouse funk and spices, all linger for a while.

Mouth is med bodied, plenty of carbonation. Very dry finish.

Overall quite nice, great farmhouse flavors as they presented that as the main ingredient instead of the hops, and the hops accentuate the farmhouse flavors well, nice lemony citrus, spices, funk, hay, straw, earthy flavors, etc, light but decent bitterness, drinkable and tasty. I don't mind finishing the entire 750ml by myself, and help myself to a bit of stinky cheese while I'm at it for a nice Sunday afternoon of work on the house.

Serving type: bottle

10-28-2012 19:55:37 | More by jlindros

Dope

Massachusetts

4.13/5  rDev +0.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

No date, just lists Batch #2. I believe this to be super fresh however.

A: Pours a very cloudy pale straw. Huge fizzy white head. Looks a lot like a witbier to be honest. Fades slowly, excellent head retention. Nice fluffy tufts of lacing on the glass.

S: Pungent and sharp citrus. Actually caught me by surprise. Lots of grapefruit, orange and lemon. Some wheat to boot and a touch of belgian yeast spiciness. Kinda smells like a hoppy witbier. Not super hoppy like a west coast style IPA, however.

T: Whoa, lot going on here. Smooth and sweet citrus up front. Not super strong and in your face, but it's there. Wheaty malt behind it continues into the middle and then there's a BIG hit of spicy rye and black pepper. It has sort of an astringent character to it. Lingering belgian sugar and citrus in the aftertaste. Big drying effect between sips. What an unusual beer.

M: Smooth and slick up front but astringent and drying in the finish. Medium bodied otherwise. Higher carbonation.

O: I'm not really sure how I would classify this beer. It's sort of a belgian IPA, witbier and saison hybrid. It's hoppy and sweet, yet wheaty and super spicy with rye and pepper. Smooth in parts and very drying in others. Great complexity at least, though balance of flavors seems a little sketchy. The spiciness of the rye and black pepper definitely dominates once it kicks in towards the finish. I give it bonus points for just being so unique.

Serving type: bottle

10-27-2012 04:42:46 | More by Dope

NEhophead

Massachusetts

3.65/5  rDev -11.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

25.4 fl oz brown bottle served in a chalice.
Batch #1; note alcohol by volume is listed at 6.8%.

Dirty straw in color beneath a carbonation-heavy, foamy, white head that holds for a few moments before thinning to an intact sheet. Condensed lacing with pretty good strength.

A variety of aromas going on here that match the Saison-American IPA hybrid description. Sweet Belgian candy sugar that just slightly outweighs the earthen must and spicy clove character. Wet, oily citrus hops; mild to moderate pine aromas as well.

The initial sweetness is assertive, yet short-lived. Almost immediately, the Saison-like flavors take over: earthen must with somewhat non-descriptive floral hops; mild pepper and coriander. The 'west coast' hop profile is present in its sweet-citrus flavors; however, it feels almost thin compared to the candied sweetness and muddy-earthen 'Saison'-driven flavors.

Medium bodied. Pretty delicate flavors propped up by a smooth, rounded body.

Overall, a pretty creative offering that just doesn't fire on all cylinders. Worth a try from such a small start up, but not a must buy.

Serving type: bottle

10-15-2012 23:55:13 | More by NEhophead

Dmuney15

Massachusetts

4.95/5  rDev +20.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Serving type: 1 pint champaign style bottle poured into tulip style glass
Appearance: hazy golden color with a thick and lasting white head.
Smell: wonderful grapefruit and citrus aromas all intermingling with the smells of a beautiful saison
Taste: like biting into a fresh juicy grapefruit however unlike most ipa's with similar quality the bitterness is subdued to the beginning if the sip and it finishes with a wonderfully fresh and crisp aftertaste reminiscent of some of the most decadent saisons I have ever had
Mouthfeel: the perfect amount of carbonation balance with a crisp mouthfeel that makes you long for more
Overall: up there with some of the most beautifully crafted ales I have ever had the pleasure of drinking. With the price being under $10 I would happily add this to my weekly rotation. I just hope it remains available!

Serving type: bottle

10-11-2012 23:45:08 | More by Dmuney15