I recently opened the last of several 375s of 2008 Cantillon Gueuze. Like the previous one a couple of years ago, this was corked. Sad. The good news was that the 2009 Bruocsella Grand Cru we had alongside was super interesting, by far the best (and oldest) bottle I’ve had of this beer, which I don’t even like in its youth.
So, with an eye on my 6 bottles (750s) of 2016 Cantillon Gueuze, now I’m wondering: at what age do people like to drink these? They don’t seem to develop much in the first 5-6 years, which is about as far as my experience with sound bottles goes. Should I open the first at age 10? Wait longer? I no longer buy these beers, so the 6 bottles are precious to me. I also don’t drink nearly as much sour beer as I used to, so I will hope for something interesting when I do decide to open them.
I grew up in Brussels and still remember drinking Cantillon back in 89-93 and the brewery in downtown Brussels in midst of tons of auto pollution. Oddly the raw Geuze was more interesting than Stella or Jupiler as a kid.
Funny, I prefer 3F Gueuze while it’s young and fresh (first couple of years). I like it aged too, but it loses some of the magic for me. Cantillon Gueuze I find a bit lean/austere (speaking relatively here, of course) in its youth. I’m hoping it develops some more complexity with age like the Bruocsella Grand Cru did.