Goose Island's Sofie Belgian Style Farmhouse Ale

Beer Reviews 101: When you pay $7.00 for a beer - you review it.

So we've reviewed a few brews from Goose Island; we covered the brewery right here. Makes sense than InBev made a Belgian style ale.

This beer is brewed the traditional Belgian sense, giving it a bitter and dry flavor.  Let the record state that I do not like Belgian style beers, but as far as Belgians go, this one tastes pretty mild.  I've had plenty that essentially taste like Italian dressing; but not this one.  So I know what you're asking "Why the heck did I buy this beer?" Well, truth be told, I focused too much on the "farmhouse" part, and not at all on the "Belgian" part.  As King Herod once said in the New Testament, "My Bad".

This particular beer has an IBU of 25 and an ABV of 6.5%; both of which appeal to me.  They use Amarillo hops in conjunction with Pilsner (Pilsnerrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!) and wheat malts.

But Goose Island has a few different types of beer, along with styles.  They have the classics and the vintage (all Belgian style); which is a fancy way to say "expensive".  Do I think these vintage beers are worth the 2x price? Hell no! Does it make it look like you roll Big Willie Style in a phat Benzo? Uh, YES! These beers shit class.  If some broad sees you drinking this she will think you have style and class.  Unfortunately for me, I didn't see any noteworthy girls in the opium den I was drinking this in.

I find it never unlikely I'd ever get this again unless I fall for the same trick that duped me into getting it in the first place.  For a Belgian I really enjoyed it; but they aren't my thing and if you've seen my paychecks you'll soon realize I am not on the $7.00 beer tier.  To put in in perspective, the beer I have before this was a PBR and the beer I had afterwards was an Old Style.  If I was going to get another expensive Goose Island beer, I'd probably head towards the ones brewed in the bourbon barrels.

I know a lot of the kids are into the Belgian thing and that's cool. You'll look cooler than Strider when he was rolling deep with all those hobbits; ya know, by contrast.  He wasn't cool for hanging out with them although I suppose it worked out for him in the end.


Drinkability: 7/10
Taste: 7/10
Value: 3/10
Curb Appeal: 9/10

Overall: 6.5/10


Other Goose Island Reviews:
Goose Island India Pale Ale
Goose Island Mild Winter Ale
Goose Island 312 Urban Wheat Hefeweisen
Goose Island Kilgubbin Irish Red Ale