NOSE: very expressive; smells like it will be very sour; high-toned; orange juice. Smells incredible! Reminds me of Tilquin’s Oude Gueuze.
BODY: no carbonation; hazy yellow-orange color; light bodied.
TASTE: tart/acidic, but not as much as the Nose suggests; very lemony — almost Cantillon-like; very slight pukey hint; peach-orange; 5% alc. not noticeable; a bit spicy — somewhat akin to a rye beer; very very fantastic lambic: possibly perfect, in my opinion. As a lambic: 9.5 – 10/10.
Peter C…where are you buying the Tilquin? I can see that if it’s outside the US or in other hard to reach places. The SSRP went up on Tilquin by $2 this year here in Maine. So it’s now $22/750ml. Still a deal at that price…and if you can’t find Tilquin, Cantillon, or Drie Fontenien then I’d say pull the trigger on a bottle.
Wow…$22/750ml for Tilquin is a pretty damned good price. Here in the metro NY area it’s usually in the sub $30 range. I was floored back in January when, while in London for work, I met up with Brian G. and we went to a craft beer bar where the 750ml of Tilquin was on the list for the equivalent of US$25! At a bar!!
2012 Cantillon Brewery Fou’ Foune Lambic- Belgium, Flanders, Brussels (9/5/2013)
– tasted non-blind from a tulip glass –
– bottled: Aug. 28, 2012: BBE: August, 2017 –
NOSE: strong aroma: smells like a fruity/edgy/light Saison; apricot aroma is noticeable, and pleasant.
BODY: hazy orange color; active carbonation produces a lacey white head; light to medium-light bodied.
TASTE: noticeable brett; citric acidity; very tart/sour; apricots, with a strong lemony undercurrent; 5% alc. not noticeable. 300g of Bergeron Apricots per liter were used in the production of this beer. As a fruited lambic: 10/10
Brian, that Fou’Foune is a beer I’m hoping I’ll be able to track down at the bar tomorrow for Zwanze Day! You got someplace close to you that’s celebrating?
Omfg. 2011-2012 Tilquin Oude Gueuze a L’Ancienne. First time drinking this and it totally reminds me of Crooked Staves beers. Which I realize means the latter is killing this style. Everything is in balance: slight funk, citrus notes, sourness, Brett, acidity. Just so refreshing. It’s no surprise that as a Champagne freak, I can’t get enough of this style of beer. Wow.
NOSE: expressive; typical Cantillon — if I were served this blind, I’d probably simply guess “Cantillon gueuze”; smells very citric/tart; hint of Christmas spice; maybe a bit more orange-y than a regular Cantillon gueuze.
BODY: hard pour produces a thin, fine-bubbled white head; yellow-orange color; some sediment present at bottom of bottle;
TASTE: 5%alc.; very tart; orange sherbet edge to the otherwise tart palate; there is a supple/slightly sweet streak that runs through the palate, too (from the Muscat grapes, I assume); pronounced cereal note on the finish; this is an interesting part of the Cantillon lineup; I do think this is good, but I’m not sure it’s interesting enough for me to pay a price premium over the regular gueuze, and – actually – I’m pretty sure I prefer the regular gueuze to this lambic, albeit by a narrow margin; as a fruited lambic: 9.0 – 9.5/10.
