Cornucopia Farmhouse Ale

Thanks to Justen Parris for bringing these to the MUGZ (Quad-cities homebrewing club) Christmas party. Accompanied with a range of other hand crafted productions (I brought Kombucha and an 8 month aged apricot mead) and delicious food and inviting company. Bottles are short stout 12 FL Oz vessels similar to the Jamaican Stripe lager. This is a local brewery out of Iowa that I haven't heard of before.

Appearance: Straw color with complete unfettered transparency with no visible carbonation or particles drifting. Head looks very light and soapy creating a loose bubbly film with no lacing to speak of.

Aroma: Very sweet and sugary with light tropical tartness at the nose. Straw and hay undertones are emitted along side an accompanying corn sugar note.

Taste: Very delicate and buoyant with a pilsen-malt flavor and a crisp alcohol finish. Slightly starchy with a splash of citrus and lemon zest. Complementing this are insubstantial notes of apricot and peach diacetyls that further enhance the drinkability of the beer. The only thing I can think of by way of bitterness are perhaps the additions of the corn husk and the tannins the produced along with a grainy earth flavor.

Mouthfeel: Mouthfeel is light but doesn't take away from the robust flavor. A nice fizz carries the flavor on through the palate. Finishes relatively clean. Body is airy like a lager.

Overall Impression: Definitely an interesting beer, far out from the stouts and IPA's I've come to be so acquainted with. I enjoy the unique combination of a light lager based malt with a Belgium ale yeast and the corn husk addition really helps contribute something unique to this beer, while maintaining a really palatable and refreshing flavor.


85/100