Franz Solo’s slew of beer reviews continues. This is good, because one of us — well, me — is gonna be buried in high school basketball coverage this week with the state tournament starting up Tuesday. Say a prayer for me. Or buy me a beer if you see my exhausted remnants at a brewery later in the day (they gave me all the morning games again). — Stoutmeister

Marble’s 111 Farmhouse is quite the unique saison. I had the beer first at WinterBrew in January and liked it well enough, but it was overshadowed by many other glorious offerings on that wonderful tasting day. On tapping day (last Wednesday), I made the short trek to the west side Marble taproom to try this beer more properly.

This is a springtime beer at its core, crisp, refreshing, and wonderfully easy to drink for a 7-percent ABV beer. The aroma is somewhat akin to a Belgian sour with hints of white wine and green apple. It has a tart flavor, like a slightly sour, dry white wine with a good bit of golden raisin as it spreads out. The finish is nice and malty with hints of yellow plum like I used to eat from my parents’ tree in my youth in late July.

The mouthfeel is quite pleasant with a good spreading effect throughout and a very balanced profile overall. That is impressive considering the multiple flavors which vie for your attention. There is a nice crisp and clean wheat hint at the finish that peeks out from taste to taste.

This beer is unique for a saison, a sour somewhat, benefiting from Belgian yeasts and lots of interesting fruit notes throughout. I would call this most emphatically a beer for the spring and summer seasons and would definitely recommend it to anyone who likes dry white wines and wheat beers. My rating on Untappd for this particular ale was 4.5 stars out of 5. Perfection would have demanded just a tad more Belgian “funk” to put this beer in to the upper echelon.

So go out and enjoy one of these outdoors on a nice afternoon or evening, and enjoy a pint of spring as we shed the last of winter’s chill.

Prost!

— Franz Solo