REVIEW: Southern Tier Farmer's Tan Imperial Pale Lager

Look at this! The first full blown lager review on the blog. I did review Left Hand's Polestar Pilsner the other week but that was just a quick review. Today's review is the real deal. Now I said on the last review that I usually overlook beers like pale ales and ambers in favor of big IPAs, porters, stouts, and the like. That goes doubly for lagers. I almost never go for a lager. Ales are almost always bigger, more complex, more flavorful beers. Almost.

I'm a big fan of Southern Tier. Their Pumpking is one of my all time favorite beers. I was down at DEPs in Covington a couple of weeks ago, looking for beers to review for the blog, and this one caught my eye. First of all, throw the word imperial in front of any style and you've done half the work. My interest has been piqued. But an imperial lager? I've only had a couple of imperial lagers in my day. None of them really blew me away but Southern Tier has an impeccable track record with me so I gave it a shot. With all that said, to the beer!

From the label:

Neolithic humans evolved from nomadic hunters into a more settled agricultural society, changing life forever. the 'founder' crops they raised included wheat & barley. It is little surprise that the first examples of brewing appeared during this age.
The hallmark of hard work.
Brewers owe much to that epoch. Similarly, we thank our farmer friends of today for cultivating the ingredients that are responsible for the beers we now enjoy. Their laborious days spent outdoors under the hot sun earn them respect, as well as a mark of distinction: the farmer’s tan. Yes, the inevitable red & white hallmark of hard work.
So, roll up your sleeves and turn the soil. Just be sure to chill a bottle of Farmer’s Tan to enjoy after work.
2-row pale malt
european pilsner malt
white wheat
kettle hops: magnum, mount hood
dry hops: sanitum, sterling & mounthood

Farmer's Tan pours like a pretty standard lager, a clear pale golden color with a towering bright white head. The carbonation was evident from the stream of bubbles coming up from the bottom of the glass. The head receded but left beautiful lacing down the sides of the pilsner glass.

The first aromas to make themselves known are of herbal hops. Slight lemon and orange notes follow. There's also some biscuity sweet aromas in there as well. Right off the bat this beer is coming out with some complexity. Farmer's Tan's flavor is no different.

I said above that Ales are almost always bigger, more complex, more flavorful beers than lagers. This beer is one of the biggest, most complex, most flavorful lagers that I've ever had. It's up there with maibocks and doppelbocks in terms of flavorful lagers. I had to drink about a third of it before I could start to pick out individual flavors, very complex. Right off the bat it has a really nice sweetness that mixes with a pretty big and assertive hop presence. The dry hopping really makes itself known. I think the wheat is really what makes this beer stand out. It imparts a sweet creaminess to the beer. it also mixes really nicely with the citrus flavor imparted from the hops. Farmer's Tan clocks in at 8.6% ABV which is high, especially for a lager, but the alcohol never really makes itself known in the flavor. My friend Alex had a good note on this beer: rich. This is a very rich beer, tons of complex flavors that mingle together really well. This is an ale drinker's lager. A big, complex, refreshing, ultimately pretty fascinating beer.

HD