3 Fonteinen Oude Geuze Vintage (all from 2002-*)

Brewed by 3 Fonteinen
Style: Lambic - Gueuze
Beersel, Belgium

Bottle from Bierkoning. Dated 12/04/2005. Murky orange body with almost no head. Really prickly and carbonated. Very sour and tart. Taste of apples, wood and soured fruits. Nice blend. (Still can’t warm to the style though.)

Bottle, dated 2005/12/04 and consumed in September 2009. The pour yields a progressively more hazy, brassy, golden-amber colored body. A moderate head of foamy, off-white foam settles slowly to a think, lasting blanket, wet lacing mostly rejoining the body. The aroma approaches perfection, enticingly tart and fruity with notes of peach, lemon, soured apricot, and big, funky, buggy wood. Barnyard must, horseblanket, and hints of wild grasses impart earthy depth, enhancing the citric acidity beautifully on the nose. The flavor proves to be the perfect counterpart, initially shockingly tart, but settling in quickly to deliciously balanced and juicy. Peach, apricot, nectarine, and lemon again rule the day, with spicy, musty, saturated oak lending it’s signature funk. Bright and vibrant in the mouth, the palate is zesty and refreshing, acidic and puckering, yet even keeled and semi-dry. This is simply a masterful creation. Absolutely one of the best beers on planet Earth.

I also had a bottle from 2003/07/03 at De Heeren van Liedekercke within a few days of the above rating. Slightly less impressive, this vintage maintained the same general direction yet fell short in terms of intense focus of both flavor and mouthfeel. Still astoundingly delicious, this older bottle only served to solidify my opinion of the 2005 vintage as being one of the finest beers I have ever had.

2002 Vintage. Pours copper golden, topped with a modest sized white head. Aroma of Dry, somewhat tart aroma, with lots of wood, lactic acid, barnyard, and overripe fruit. Dry, very tart on the palate, and very woody, with lemon, green apple, and some herbal notes. Flavor is more tart than the aroma. Dry, citric finish. Nice Gueuze.

2003...mildly hazy amber golden pour with nice white head. Aroma is somewhat sweet with rotten fruit. Some nice lemony woody tones are coming through. Nice tartness, quite dry, woody tannins. Quite delicious.

Pours nice orange/golden with a small head. Hints of oak with an appealing sourness in the smell. Tastes of sour apples. Good and dry finish that tingles the back of your throat.

Bottle 2005 at Plan B. Orange golden colour with a huge long yellowish head. The aroma is smooth, dry and dusty with notes of grape, grass and poppy seeds. The taste is not as intense but very similar with the aroma. Dry grape and grass with a dusty touch.

2002 bottle labeled Vintage. This clear golden Lambic poured with a generous white head and a sour fruit aroma. This one has aged very nicely. The sharpness has mellowed to a mild sourness that leaves a pleasant tingle on the palate.

375ml. again thanks to brad (forgot to note the vintage).... pours a hazier apricot brown with a lively effervescemt white head... aroma not as funky as the de cam but more citrus fruit focused. less assertive as well but still quite a nice lambic essence....lively, somewhat funky with subdued earthiness and grass with an added lemony-citrus component.