Brewery Vivant Farm Hand

Farm Hand: French Style Farmhouse Ale
5.5% abv
16 oz Becher glass
There was a time in old world France when nearly every family farm had a brewery. A necessary part of farm life was to provide a ration of beer to sustain and nourish the laborers and beer was safer to drink than the water of the time. Farmhand is our interpretation of what these rustic beers must have been like. It is slightly cloudy from being made with raw un-malted grains a nd a simple single infusion mash procedure.

3.2

174 reviews

Grand Rapids, United States

Community reviews

2.7 Can sampled @ Hopishop #3. Clear golden with no head. Nose is weird, oily metallic dull corn, sugar, white sugar, hay sweet grains. Taste is dull metallic oily corn, touch of butter, white sugar, apple, oily grains. Oily, soft carbonation, touch of butter. Wow this one is weak, almost flirting with pale lager territory notes. Weak man.

2.6 Pours a cloudy golden color, white head that dissipates quickly. Aroma is bread, grass and a hint of lemon. Flavor is mostly dough and bread. Not my favorite style of beer, but probably one of the better farmhouse ales I’ve tried. It came in a variety 9 pack. Anxious to try the rest.

3.2 At Tin Can canned. Nice spreading mouth feel. Not super carbonated. Enjoyable but I'm all stuffed up and can't smell well.

2.9 Can, Ann Arbor, MI via Plum Market. Very pale hazy gold. Thin head. Yeasty citrus aroma. Sweet, smooth, some bready grain and more citrus. Slight earthy finsih.

2.5 Canned 1/22/15, drunk 12/4/15. Large white head steadily recedes to cover atop a blonde, clear body. Dough, light dustiness, hints of corn and cereal grains don’t really announce much of a saison-like nose. There’s light lactic character, hints of bubble gum and mild fruits (apples, strawberries). But mostly just dough and grains.... Hard, rather lifeless feel to the beer, with prickly carbonation and tons of huskiness and graininess, leading to a thin, watery finish with light fruitiness and a hint of acidity. Very little malt depth, loose carbonation and just vaguely Belgian. On one hand I thought about not reviewing the beers I got in this sampler 9-pack, but they were refrigerated and even if they weren’t refrigerated, I’ve had Saison Dupont’s that have sat on the shelf warm for years that were absolutely delicious. So I don’t see any reason why the beers were in such poor condition after 10-12 months in the fridge.

2.9 Can. Pours a clear hazy gold with a white head that dissipates to the edges. Aroma has a good amount of sweet grains with a bit of light fruits and a bit of flora. Flavor has a good amount of sweet grains and flora with a bit of light fruits.

3.1 Pours a light yellow color with a bubbly white head. Notes of lemons, sourdough, and faint Belgian yeast.

3.4 Canned. Pours fairly light hazed yellow, mild gold tinge, white head. Aroma is funk, slight tart notes, belgian yeast, esters, white grape, slight green apple (or pear?). Actually pretty solid aroma. Flavor is more standard, slight tart, grape, mild banana/clove, slight estery note, belgian yeast. Not bad. Very solid.

3.5 The Beer Store, Southampton 4 pack: pours light gold with a white head. Aroma is herbs, spices, and bit of yeast. Taste is very saisonesque. It is very simple, but that appears to be the point of it. Nothing off in the taste or anything like that. Nice dryness in the finish. Good.

3.0 16 oz. Can in Fountainhead Chicago. Aroma is dough, dusty old hops, and old citrus. The flavor follows the nose with mushrooms, hay, and earthiness. Well balanced finish. Grainy and lagery.

3.5 16 ounce can. Served in a Unibroue tulip, the beer pours a cloudy straw gold color with about an inch white head. Head retention and lacing are both good. Aroma is nice, the brew smells like citrus (lemon peel), hay, apricots and some earthiness. I think the taste is similar to the aroma, but there’s also some bready/grainy malt and a bit of an apple flavor noticeable. Mouthfeel/body is light/medium, it’s crisp and easy to drink with a decent amount of carbonation. I thought this was an enjoyable brew, glad I got to try this! I got this for $3.29 a can, not sure how much the 4 pack was.

3.4 16 oz. can pours a hazy yellow straw color with small disappearing head and little lacing. Aroma has honey, biscuits,grains, and a bit of spice. Taste is slighltly sweet. Body is meslight to medium with average carbonation and a crisp mouthfeel. This one is easliy drinkable and pleasant, but nothing that made me say WOW. A solid, sessionable Saison which I could drink all night long.

2.8 Light golden-yellow in appearance with a good bit of yeast/bacterial rope hanging throughout. Smell is vaguely spicy with some wet cardboard. Funky yeast flavor with a bit of pepper and spice. Body drops out quickly. Decent, very drinkable.

3.8 This was poured into a tulip glass. The appearance was a lightly glazed over yellow color with a one and a half finger white foamy head that quickly dissipated leaving some light stringy lacing sliding into the beer. The smell had a nice sweet to grassy rustic/slightly earthy citrus hops roaming over light grapes. The taste copied the aroma well being somewhat sweet and earthy rustic. A slight grassy grape-like quality leads into the aftertaste and only leaves a wet finish. On the palate, this one sat about a light on the body with a pretty good sessionability about it. Carbonated nicely, this one doesn’t really pound over my tongue but lightly roams smoothly over my tongue. Overall, I say this was a pretty nice crushable saison that I would have again.

3.3 [7024-20150111] Can. White wine sweet grapes aroma. Clear, yellow orange body with a quick foamy white head. Lightly bitter yeasty flavour has a light fruity grape base. Medium body. Average. (6/3/7/3/14) 3.3 (c/o mds)

3.4 Aroma - The aromatics aren’t notably powerful but whats there is funky -- hay, honey, lemon, and some interesting cheesiness (think brie or Camembert). Appearance - Beautiful hazy, gold. Fizzy, white head. Taste - Lots of sweetness throughout; rock candy, honey, sweet cereals, spice (coriander?) followed by faint lemon and subtle bittering hops. Finishes semi dry, with lasting pale matliness on the palate. Bitterness becomes more pronounced as the beer warms. Palate - Light bodied, lively carbonation. Semi-dry finish. Overall - Quite enjoyable. I appreciate the use of un-malted barley, as it adds a sense of history to the experience.

2.3 Can. Pale golden body with a frothy, white head, diminishing. Aroma of sour kraut, vegetables, toasted grain, raw grain. The flavor is lightly to moderately sweet, lightly bitter and lightly acidic. It finishes lightly sweet, lightly bitter and moderately acidic. Medium body, watery texture, lively carbonation. Not a lot of good things I can say about this particular can of beer. Off-flavors, raw, dusty grain, muddled.

3.4 2015-01-12. Hazy yellow body with a small white head. 3+ Pleasant grains and cereals in the aroma, light Belgian touches. Relatively bitter especially as it warms up. Light grains and grassy hops. Average palate. Decent. Can shared by mds.

3.6 Balanced with nice spice, tartness, and earthiness. Not too sweet, not too dry.

3.7 Can: Clear gold, with a puffy white head. Strong lemony yeast aroma. Lemon, apple, light caramel malt flavor. Sweet, rich, fruit and malt..... Just mildly funky. Quite tasty.

3.8 16 ounce can into tulip glass, no canning date. Pours slightly hazy bright golden color with a 2 finger fairly dense white head with good retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Light spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with some light streaming carbonation. Aromas of lemon, pear, apple, white grape, light banana, pepper, wheat, cracker, herbal, straw, grass, light clove, and herbal/yeast earthiness. Nice and pleasant aromas with good balance and complexity of fruity/spicy yeast, earthy hops, and pale malt notes; with solid strength. Taste of lemon, pear, apple, white grape, light banana, pepper, wheat, cracker, herbal, straw, grass, light clove, and herbal/yeast earthiness. Good amount of earthy yeast spiciness on the finish; with lingering notes of lemon, pear, apple, white grape, light banana, pepper, wheat, cracker, straw, grass, and herbal/yeast earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Very nice complexity and robustness of fruity/spicy yeast, earthy hops, and pale malt flavors; with a nice crisp malt/yeast balance and zero cloying flavors after the finish. Medium carbonation and body; with a very smooth, crisp, and slightly bready mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is well hidden with minimal warming present after the finish. Overall this is a very nice saison style. All around good robustness, balance, and complexity of fruity/spicy yeast, earthy hops, and pale malt flavors; and very smooth and crisp to drink. A nicely enjoyable offering.

2.7 Draft at brewpub. Pours yellow with no head. Not a lot on the nose. There’s a bit of funk on the tongue but it’s pretty subdued. Finishes clean at least.

3.4 Poured a light cloudy yellow color with aromas of light hay, funk, some lemon, yeast and spices. Flavors match the aromas with some lemon and light funk. Solid overall and enjoyable.

3.5 16 oz can 11/7/14 (Payless Liquor #9-Indy)-Pours a cloudy orange with a small white head. Aroma of yeast, spices, and funk. Taste the same. This light bodied brew is well balanced and goes down easy.

3.4 10/10/2014: Vivant Farm Hand French Style Farmhouse Ale... Pours the color of hazy lemon juice, minimal white crown. Yeasty, funky aroma. Grassy, herbal, some wheatiness, and just a bit of bite in the finish. Medium-light, a bit thin at times, but quite good. I really like this beer because it’s unique; it’s not the typical bland so-so "farmhouse" beer. One pint can shared by Lance. Thanks!

3.2 Tap, gold pour, white head, nose is sweet, taste is sweet, some pepper, okay saison.

3.6 can. pours very pale golden with a small white cap demonstrating very little retention and no lacing per say. lightly sour-ish small yellow and red fruits, some strawberries too, fresh wheat and its light acidity, hay, pepper, subtle flowery notes. lively to average carbonation, light body, very lightly tart and astringent grassy-herbal-citrusy finish. nice stuff!

4.1 Good. Belgian yeast flavor is solid. Only downside is it has a tartness that doesn’t work super well.

4.1 Nice looking beer, yellow and cloudy. Smell was slightly citrusy, tasted of funky yeast with a slight tardiness, very nice overall.

3.1 Draught @ brewpub. Hazy medium straw, white head. Acetic, sour aroma, ripe apples, funk, hay, citrus. Dry, medium bodied, low to mid bitterness, slightly low CO2. Funky, sour, lactic taste, citrus, hay, apricot, apple cider. (2014-04-04)