Name: Prairie-vous Français
Brewers: Prairie Artisan Ales (United States)
Style: Brett Beer (Base Style: Saison)
ABV: 3.9%
Review Year: 2020
Prairie-vous Français is a celebration of simple elegance. This “farmhouse ale” was brewed with barley, oats, wheat, Saaz hops, and Brettanomyces bruxellensis by Prairie Artisan Ales (Oklahoma).
STYLE GUIDELINES
This beer is being evaluated as a Brett Beer (28A) with the Saison (25B) (Strength: Table) as the base style in the context of the 2015 Beer Style Guidelines of the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP). The most current version of the guidelines can be found on the BJCP website.
TASTING NOTES
Fairly cloudy pale gold; foamy white head but dissipated quickly. On the nose: primarily leathery and hay-like with supportive citrus, baking soda, and fermented plum. Medium-bodied, moderately carbonated with a soft and “fluffy” mouthfeel. Hay/ dried grass, oats together with hints of ripe mango and oranges composed the palate. Very low grainy and oaty malt backbone. Bitterness and sourness were restrained; very dry finish (low-to-no sweetness). The aftertaste had very light bitterness, oat, and minerals-like characteristics.
THE VERDICT
Prairie-vous Français is a very light, refreshing, and dry Brett Saison that brought to the table some features the two styles are known for. Saisons are known typically for their dryness and the Brett seemed to have amplified this characteristic. Likewise, the leathery and hay impressions were likely from the Brett and these qualities gave this Saison a more rustic appeal.
At least three years of age when reviewed, this bottle of Prairie’s Brett Saison lacked the fruitiness of a young Brett Beer but has started to develop some of the sourness and funk typical in well-aged versions. The restrained bitterness and sourness gave way to a very palatable beer. Enjoy outdoors on a hot summer day. Excellent.
Recommended Readings:
- The Difference Between Saison and Farmhouse Ale (The Beer Connoisseur, 2019)
- The Many Faces of Brett: Overview (Craft Beer & Brewing, 2015)
- Make Your Best Brett Beer (Craft Beer & Brewing, 2018)
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