3 Fonteinen Oude Geuze

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

375 ml bottle from the Oxford CAMRA beer festival. Shiny copper, nice white cap that fades fairly quickly, but leaves a nice bit of lace. Aroma of hay, dandelion flowers, metal playground equipment in the sun. A touch of brine. Very bright and summery. The first sip is almost disappointingly soft. The bracing slap of sourness actually turns out to be quite gentle. But after the surprise...the softness is very welcome. There is a pleasant quinine and chalk component to the sourness that adds to it’s refreshing quality. Green chewy leaves, pepper, a bit of lime. I suspect my bottle is a bit on the young side--carbonation level is moderate, and while dry compared to any other sort of beer, there is a touch more sweetness than sometimes offered in an aged gueuze. Subtle, balanced, profoundly refreshing.

Well, I found myself at Akkurat in Stockholm and figured that this was the place to have my first lambic, and drie fonteinen oude geuze looked like it was the best call. 375ml bottle. Solid gold to orange with a small head. Very acidic sour aroma, like acetic acid and alcohol, and some wierdness that I cant describe. Flavor is a harsh sour, extremely dry and crisp. Highly carbonated and quenching mouthfeel. I think it’s funny that my notes are pretty much the same as people who give this a 4.5. I guess I was just shocked at what a geuze tastes like. maybe i should have started with a kriek? A good experience, even if the flavors and aromas were a bit extreme to my unaccustomed palate. I’ll have to come back to this later and see if it grows on me.

12.7 oz. bottle. Pours a dark, hazy orange. Swamp-foam head, nice lacing down the side. Aroma is sour orange, lemon, grass, must, white grapes. Flavor is kind of consumed by a full sourness, it’s kind of hard to pick out more subtle flavors. Leather, lemon, soap. bitter grass. Not at all bad though. I don’t think it’s exceptional, but it’s certainly enjoyable. UPDATE: From a 10-year old 75cl bottle, big thanks to Ryan. Pours darker than the younger blend with a thin head. Musty, dank aroma with a twinge of metal. This has evolved nicely, really mellow after 10 years. Very pleasant lemony, grassy flavors, so smooth and drinkable. Anyone with a bottle of this should let it sit awhile and try it alongside a fresh one.

37,5 cl. bottle (2005). Aroma of apple, citrus and yeasty basement aromas.Golden, hazy appearance with minimal white foam. It has a medium body, a thin/medium feel and a long bitter finish.

As dry as a beverage can be. Some of the most sensuous, lively gueze is produced by this killer lambic maker. Lemony. Simply exceptional. Amber colored and gorgeous. Lovely looking beer with killer body.

Delicious funky citric and wooden geuze, cheesy, leathery and guess somewhat bloody and metallic. Very tart flavour, vinegary, lemony and extremely dry.

Wrote my whole review to find out I was not signed in for some reason. Zesty sour lemon wheat taht barnyard funk that woulda made me gag 2 years ago. Goes down extremely well for a sour brew. Delicous.

Bottle. 2006 Vintage. Cheesy barnyard funk aroma. Wonderful. Slightly meaty and vegetal. Definite hay and wet grass notes. A hint of charred nuts. Pours cloudy orange with a creamy white head.. Tart and sour flavor. Lemon zesy. Cheese. Rubber. Kombucha tea. Wheat and yeast. Creamy with excellent fizzy carbonation. I have a v. 2000 that I’m just itching to get in to. This is great stuff.