I have to say that the more beers I try from Blue Moon Brewing Company, the more I am impressed by them. Blue Moon has been around for a number of years now, and I recall first enjoying their flagship Blue Moon Belgian White way back in 1996. Shortly thereafter came their now famous Pumpkin Ale, an appetizing abbey style ale, and a tasty raspberry cream as well.

Blue Moon was a subdivision of Coors in those early days, being a foray into the craft beer movement without direct ties to the parent company. At least, as far as the consumer was often concerned; I was always shocked when speaking to people and they were unaware Blue Moon beers were made by Coors. Today, of course, Blue Moon is still a Coors brand, though Coors is now part of the SAB-Miller-Molson-Coors empire.

I don’t really have a problem with large brewers, as long as they make good beer. Large multinationals can make great beer (Spaten, after all, is owned by the same giant AB Inbev conglomerate that Anheuser-Busch is a part of). I can say that, at least from my perspective, Blue Moon has been making some pretty good beer of late, the latest to fill my glass being Blue Moon Farmhouse Red Ale.

Blue Moon Farmhouse Red Ale is described by the brewery as sort of farmhouse ale (saison)/Flanders red hybrid. Here are the specs/ingredients from the Blue Moon website:

Malts: Pale Malt, European Abbey Malt, European Acidulated Malt, Chocolate Malt, Malted White Wheat

Hops: Spalt Select, Czech Saaz

Our Twist: White Pepper, Coriander, Hibiscus

IBUs: 15

Original Gravity: 14.5º Plato

ABV: 5.4%

Here are my thoughts:

Blue Moon Farmhouse Red Ale pours to a brilliant reddish color with a medium sized head of creamy foam and a soft, gently nutty sweet malt nose. Taking a sip, I get some delightful stewed malt flavor up front, a hint of caramel, a satisfying creaminess, and more of the toasted nuts the nose provided. The subtlest hints of coriander emerge as the beer warms, though I can’t really say I’m picking up the pepper or hibiscus.

In the finish, there is just a hint of tartness, not really enough to be anywhere near say, a Belgian Flanders red, but enough to make the beer refreshing and very quenching.

All in all, I found Blue Moon Farmhouse Red Ale to be much better than I expected, a tasty, creamy red ale with a hint of tartness. Though it lacks the spiciness of a saison and the trademark sourness of a Flanders red, it still comes off as an enjoyable beer. And at $7.49 a six-pack it’s reasonably priced, as well. A solid gateway beer, I think, but one that seasoned veterans can enjoy as well.

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