MAKE MINE A SMUTTYNOSE

Aside from having the coolest name of any American brewer, New Hampshire's SMUTTYNOSE BREWING also make some pretty fantastic beers. I'm still wishing I could take another crack at their GRAVITATION that I imbibed in Boston earlier this year. So there I was in Atlanta again a few weeks ago, out for dinner at a place called CYPRESS STREET PINT & PLATE in the city's Midtown section. Who chose dinner for me & my co-workers, based solely upon the beer menu listed online? Why that would be me, of course. I'll fess up and admit this place was no great shakes - weak service, mediocre food, very little ambiance to speak of - but they did have a pretty rich slection of beers. I made mine a Smuttynose.

SMUTTYNOSE FARMHOUSE SAISON is not a dry, earthy saison, but a super fruit-forward beer, trending closely to a pale ale. Floral, yes, and the fruits tasted therein were "wet" fruits like peaches and nectarines. Only vaguely sour, and at 7% ABV, it hid its alcohol very well. They call it a "lip-smacking palatability". I'd have to agree on that one. 7/10.