SPF 8 Belgium Farmhouse Ale
Pizza Port Bressi Ranch

SPF 8 Belgium Farmhouse AleSPF 8 Belgium Farmhouse Ale
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From:
Pizza Port Bressi Ranch
 
California, United States
Style:
Bière de Garde
ABV:
Not listed
Score:
90
Avg:
4.07 | pDev: 7.86%
Reviews:
13
Ratings:
16
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Nov 11, 2014
Added:
Apr 06, 2004
Wants:
  6
Gots:
  1
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 4 by WillCarrera from Ohio

Nov 11, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by Beertracker from Oklahoma

Jan 27, 2012
 
Rated: 3.5 by ygtbsm94 from Utah

Nov 15, 2011
Photo of hopdog
Reviewed by hopdog from Pennsylvania

4.15/5  rDev +2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Thanks to cquiroga for this sample.

Poured a deeper and cloudy brown color with an averaged sized off white head. Aromas of dark fruits and yeast. Tastes of lighter yeast, cherries, dark fruits, some citrus and light caramel. Lively body.

Notes from 5/4/06
Nov 15, 2008
Photo of weeare138
Reviewed by weeare138 from Pennsylvania

3.53/5  rDev -13.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Thanks for hopdog for this hand filled bottle...
Appears a hazy brown with a small light tan head, and spotty lacing. Gotta love the Special B in the Saison.
Smell is of mild tartness, caramel, and vanilla in a pils base.
Taste is of tart cherry, raisins, caramel, toffee, and mild horse blanket funk.
Mouthfeel is tart with some sweetness melding in the mix.
May 04, 2006
Photo of Crosling
Reviewed by Crosling from Colorado

4.2/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Very dark in color, displaying its dark brown hues. Aroma of very interesting spices (ginger, raisins, allspice, coriander) with hints of dark chocolate and tall California redwoods. Notes of dried fruits, dark chocolate and black licorice in the flavor with again, those weird spices (coriander, raisins) and perhaps a touch of ginger. I don’t know of any other saisons like this. Very unique and very good.
Apr 12, 2006
Photo of francisweizen
Reviewed by francisweizen from Washington

4.5/5  rDev +10.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Dark caramel coca cola brown with ruby red grapefruit highlights. Head is foamy and leaves adequate lacing as well. Aromas of caramel and fruit, lots of malt complexity and a small hop push in the background. Impressively integrated and together for such a young brew. Taste is fruit with chocolate and caramel in the mix and some lovely spiciness as well. Zesty would be a good one word descriptor, although this one is no wimp and it is quite filling in the mouth as well. Drinkability is great as well. Just a great flander style winter dark ale. Tomme is a real pro and a hell of a smart and nice guy as well! I can't wait until the 750's of this bust out as part of the lost abbey beer series...hopefully! I can't wait!
Apr 07, 2006
Photo of OStrungT
Reviewed by OStrungT from California

4.55/5  rDev +11.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5
This beer pours a cloudy brown, with a thin brown head. The head fades fast, leaving sparce laces.

This beer has a plesently spicy aroma. I can detect an earthy, yeasty aroma. It smells slightly of lemon citrus. I can also detect some cloves. There is a slight hoppy aroma.

This beer has a sour citrus flavor. It is spicy, with a nice earthy yeast flavor. The hops make a slight appearence in the flavor.

This beer is very smooth and refreshing. It is highly carbonated. It leaves a spicy aftertaste.

I think this beer would make a great session beer. I am sure it is not too high in alcohol. Also, the flavor is great. I think I could have an entire pitcher to myself. I hope they keep this beer around for a while. It is great.
Feb 04, 2006
Photo of UncleJimbo
Reviewed by UncleJimbo from Massachusetts

3.7/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Sampled at the Solana Beach location 4/21/05. Listed as "SPF 8 Belgian Farmhouse Ale".

This beer poured a clear, deep garnet red-brown color with light brown foam that settled. The smell was sweet and malty, almost like cola. The taste was sharp and sweet with notes of molasses, cola, and sugar. The initial flavor was malty but then a hint of wildness came through. The mouthfeel was sharp with medium body and good carbonation. The malt and sweet flavors lingered on the tongue together with a touch of yeast. This was an interesting brew, but it seemed a bit too sweet overall.
May 21, 2005
Photo of ManekiNeko
Reviewed by ManekiNeko from Virginia

3.87/5  rDev -4.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Sampled on tap at the brewpub while watching mid-to-late afternoon traffic zoom by. All while smelling the pizza being made.

Appearance: Dark brown with crimson highlights (akin to coke). Slightly murky. Scant offwhite head. No real retention.

Smell: Licorice and raisiny goodness. Maple syrup and brown sugars. Lotsa clovey phenols.

TAste: Rich bittersweet caramelized brown sugars heavily loaded with licorice/anise phenols. Very malty. Slightly tart on the finish.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied. Rather solid/thickish.

Drinkability: A little heavy on the phenols to my liking, but this is a rather nice dark Belgian-style ale. Those liking anise/licorice heavy beers will love this.
Mar 30, 2005
Photo of RBorsato
Reviewed by RBorsato from Virginia

4/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Dark brown bordering on black with a decent light brown head... a bit dark in my mind for the style. Dark fruits and raisin aroma with hints of chocolate. Sweet and syrupy alcohol soaked raisins with chocolate. Medium-full bodied with a smooth creamy finish and alcohol warmth.

A decent Belgian Strong Dark Ale .. certainly not what I'd consider a Saison and not one I'd buy more of...

Per MJ Rare Beer website:

Grains: Pilsner Malt, Roasted Wheat, Briess Flaked Barley, Weyerman Caramel Malt, Weyerman Melanoiden Malt, Special B, Debittered Black Malt
Hops: Amarillo, First Gold, German Tettnanger
Fun Stuff We Threw in the Boil: Caramelized Raisins, Sweet Orange Peel, Buckwheat Honey, Fresh Organic Rosemary
4 Hour Boil
Alcohol Volume: 8.75% abv
Original Gravity : 1.077
Terminal Gravity: 1.010

(750ml corked and caged green champagne style bottle)
Jan 10, 2005
Photo of Rastacouere
Reviewed by Rastacouere from Canada (QC)

4.38/5  rDev +7.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Deep dark brown body. Thin light brown head is rocky. Aroma explodes with roasted malts and dark chocolate. Spicy (ginger) and incredibly malty. Dark fruits, which are all over the place, appear inferior to the coffee notes which appear inferior to the smokey notes which appear inferior to the roasted caramel suggestions. Multi faceted malt layers fight for the king of the hill title under the supervision of the highly compatible pizzaport yeast which ensure the almost impossible task of balancing it all. This is an angry crowd that makes no trouble. Soft carbonation, medium body. Complex and lovely. I don’t seem to have as many things to say as I wish or think, but this beer deserves every bit of fuss it may obtain. Huge cheers to hopsrus for bringing a plethora of world-class beers.
Aug 01, 2004
Photo of aracauna
Reviewed by aracauna from Georgia

3.75/5  rDev -7.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Dark cola brown with a good light khaki head that fades quickly. Bubblegum and pine tree hops in the aroma. The flavor brings in a little lemon zest, slight mocha and toffee. The aroma is a little surprising with that hefty dose of American-smelling hops. I’m really digging this Saison that seems to be in the spirit of Saison if not exactly what you’d expect from the style.
Jul 13, 2004
Photo of Gueuzedude
Reviewed by Gueuzedude from Arizona

4.18/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Pours a nice, fairly clear brown color. It is topped by a brown head, and is not nearly as explosively carbonated as the SPF 45 that I just tried. The aroma is a mix of spices and caramel. This is rich smelling and not as spicy as the 45, overall it has a much smoother nose to it. There is a spicy cardamom note in the taste of this beer. It is sweet up front, but has a dry finish, that is astringent and mouth-coating in character. This beer is quite light on the palate, and the malt character is nice and clean with out the astringent huskiness that one might expect from a beer that is this dark. As this beer warms up I do get a hint of dark roast malt in the finish.
Jun 26, 2004
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Reviewed by Gusler from Arizona

4.12/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
The beer pours very deep amber, almost brown, the head frothy and modest in size, off white in color with the lace a thin sheet to hide the glass. Nose is crisp and clean, somewhat spicy, tad bit of yeast, sweet and tart at the start, top is middling in its feel. Finish has a brisk acidity, the hops delightful in their spicy presence, very dry aftertaste, a darn fine beer, should have brought a bottle home, but my bag was busting at the seams the way it was thanks to all my BA brothers and sisters.
Jun 14, 2004
Photo of Hex92
Reviewed by Hex92 from Virginia

4.26/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
I obtained this beer through Michael Jackson's (not that MJ the other one) Rare Beer Club. Wow! Interesting bottle (750mL). It has a cap on it, but then it has a real wine cork underneath - you need a corkscrew. I've never had a corked beer without a champagne style cork. Pours nicely into the glass with a good thick head that leaves a nice lacing on the glass. Very dark beer. Hard to see any light through it in a goblet style glass. The smell is very faint which is suprising given its powerful flavor. Definite taste of chocolate, coffee with all kinds of other flavors. Very smooth, very good. I wish I had paid extra to get 6 bottles instead of only 4.

Very drinkable. I finished the first one far too quickly.
Apr 06, 2004
SPF 8 Belgium Farmhouse Ale from Pizza Port Bressi Ranch
Beer rating: 90 out of 100 with 16 ratings