Cape Ann Brewing Company, Sunrise Saison

A new Summer seasonal for us but one that stands out from the crowd. What caught our interest was the Saison brewed with fresh strawberry and rhubarb. This sounds like it could be the perfect combination of sweet and tart.

The brewery elaborates on the inventive style saying they took "... a cue from a home brew recipe from Mr. Jumpers Home Brew club, we gave it our own spin and came up with the Sunrise Saison. Our first foray into Belgian styles of beer, Saisons were pale ales originally brewed in the farmhouses of Wallonia, the French speaking region of Belgium. Giving it our own twist, we’ve added 150 lbs of rhubarb and 250 lbs of whole strawberries. The result is a light pink hue and flavors that wonderfully compliment the natural tartness of a traditional saison." We normally don't carry much in the way of this brewery other than their pumpkin stout, but they do seem to have some interesting seasonal beers.

This brew clocks in at 7% which is similar to my other farmhouse saison Colette by Great Divide. When you pour this beer out you get a nice whiff of fresh strawberries. I clarify that statement with "fresh", because you don't get a fake, syrupy strawberry flavor. You definitely get that super ripe, juicy and slightly tart natural strawberry flavor. The aroma also has the classic farmhouse spice of lemon, coriander, clove and slight farm funk. I'm not quite sure what rhubarb smells like, but with the complexity of aromas coming out of this beer are very enjoyable. The flavor in the mouth is very tart and refreshing with just a ghost of sweetness at the end. A perfect beer for Summer that is both flavorful and easy to drink. I would highly recommend picking up a 6 pack especially at the $9.99 price while it is still in stock. I highly enjoyed this beer so I gave it a 9.5 rating, but I took a half a percent off the style rating simply because of the liberal addition of strawberries and rhubarb which while delicious are not normally found in farmhouse saisons. Cheers!

Personal Rating: 9.5 /10
Style Rating: 9 /10

Wanna try it now? Order it online at: 
https://www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=892480000072

Terrapin Brewing Maggie's Peach Farmhouse Ale

A new addition to Terrapins' Seasonal lineup arrived at our door yesterday and was calling our name with the warm weather that hit us this week! As Terrapin says "This refreshing summer offering  has all the flavor and aroma of a freshly picked peaches (to the tune of 1,000 pounds per 100 barrel batch!) combined with the complexity of a well executed farmhouse ale.  Some of you may remember Maggie’s older sister, Side Project Volume 7, one of Spike’s first first foray into  farmhouse ales. This newest version is just as lovely, should age just as well and has the uniquely GA flavor of fresh summer peaches!"

When you open this brew, the first thing that hits your nose is the aroma of fresh peaches and light sweet spice. It also has hints of citrus, mild hops and a touch of malt. This beer smells like a fresh peach, but can the taste live up to the aroma. I poured it into a glass and it has a nice light golden color. It looks incredibly refreshing but looks can be deceiving. The taste is a nice farmhouse style ale. It has a nice light citrus base with just enough sweet peach flavor to be refreshing without making it one of those "sweet" fruit beers. This is a great Summer beer, light, refreshing and eminently drinkable. A must try on one of the upcoming hot Summer days we will be having. At 5.3% ABV, it is not to heavy nor to light. Enjoy! 


Personal Rating: 9.7 /10
Style Rating: 9.7 /10

Wanna try it now? Order it online at: http://www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=899539000717