Prairie Artisan Ales ‘Merica

Andrew: Tonight I had my first beer from a relatively new brewery Prairie Artisan Ales called ‘Merica. They are based in Oklahoma, making this the first beer I’ve ever had from Oklahoma, too … I think. This is a farmhouse saison, and by farmhouse, I think they mean “entire farm,” because it is unbelievably funky. This saison is made with two strains of Brett yeasts, one type of malt (malted pilsner) and one type of hop (Nelson Sauvin). I don’t think I’ve ever had a beer that is this funky both in aroma and taste.

The pour leaves a frothy thick head that dissipates slowly. The first smell is potent barnyard funk. Tasting it cold wasn’t quite as intense as the smell, but as it warmed up the funk got very strong. At the end you get the bitterness from the hops, but not much else, since the funk is so heavy. I won’t complain about that, since I’m always up for a lot of funk.

This is a sipping beer—there’s no way around it—the funk is so strong, it’s like having a hay-filled horse stable in a glass.

What’s that you say? You don’t like to sip beer? Well, try gulping down some stanky horse juice … yeah, that’s what I thought … you can’t. Sip it and enjoy.

I mean, I guess “stanky horse juice” doesn’t sound so appealing to some, but to beer nerds it’s like heaven. There’s also a nice citrus lemon flavor, but there’s also … funk … oh, I mentioned that several times already. This is one of the best saisons I’ve had and I hope to find it again.

One more thing: The label is also awesome/hilarious—designed by the head brewer’s brother.  You know the Brewboyz approve of that.

Cool label

Dear Prairie,

Please start distributing regularly in NYC. This beer is amazing. I would also like to try Bomb!

Thanks,

NYC Beer Nerds