Beer of the Week - Driftwood Brewery Farmhand Ale

Sadly this is the last beer I have from Teena's recent west coast trip.

Driftwood Brewery is in Victoria, the capital of British Columbia, which is at the southern end of Vancouver Island about 100 KM (62 miles) away from Vancouver.

The brewery set up shop in 2008, buying "3rd hand" equipment from a brewery in West Yellowstone, Montana. Jason Meyer, Kevin Hearsum and Gary Lindsay did everything in the brewery from brewing the beer, to selling and delivering. They must have done it all well too as not only was the beer popular in Victoria but also across the Strait of Georgia.

By spring 2010, they were at full capacity and had a hard time keeping up. So they expanded staff, got a dedicated sales rep for Vancouver and ordered in more tanks.

Sounds like a success story to me.

The website describes the Farmhand ale as "Our interpretation of this Southern-Belgian farmhouse ale uses a partial sour-mash and the addition of freshly ground black pepper. We use a very unique strain of yeast from Belgium to add further layers of spice and complexity to this rare style of beer."

The label has the description "A traditional Belgian-style Saison. Originally produced on the farm for seasonal workers during the harvest. Tart malt is balanced with flavours of fruit and spice from our unique strain of Belgian yeast"

I love Saisons and ales made with Belgium yeast. I am excited about this beer and hope it lives up to my expectations.

The beer pours copper in colour with a small head. It is a clear, not cloudy beer. I mention this as the Saisons I have had (admittedly very few) have been unfiltered. Lacings do remain along the side of the glass.

The aroma is amazing. I can smell the added pepper and smell citrus. It has a powerful, fabulous fragrance. My nose is not the best for tasting and usually I sense very little which is why I make more than a big deal of it here.

This is a nice tasting beer. It starts with the citrus and then the pepper comes through. Citrus and pepper remain in the finish. It is a very refreshing beer but I feel I could have done with less pepper. Spice is a part of a Saison but I feel the pepper takes away from this.

Would I have one again? Oh definitely! It is a very nice beer. If you have a chance to try this one, you should.

Beer of the Week Stats

Beers Profiled 118
Countries 23
Breweries 102
Provinces 8