Cantillon Bruocsella 1900 Grand Cru

Brewed by Cantillon
Style: Lambic - Unblended
Brussels, Belgium

Bottle. Virtually no head. Color is yellow. Aroma and taste are lactose acid and barnyard malt. Very sour and unbalanced. Drink vinegar instead.

Bottled in 2003... Hazy golden color with no head, just bubbles. Funky barnyard stinky cheese, brett, and hay in the aroma. Cheesy, tart, pepper and oak, very refreshing. Zero carbonation and strong grapefruit. Subtle yet elegant.

Hazy gold color with a thick head. Sour aroma, but not an overpowering one; kind of like grapefruit. Ludicrously good sour taste with a mild wheat and wood presence. It has the odd ability to feel smooth, yet be insanely carbonated. Quite a treat.

Bottle at RBESG-06, GTN. Orange colour with no head. Aroma is fruit, yeast, sour. Flavour is sour, fruit, yeast, apples.

2001 Bottle at the Art of Beer Fest 2004. Pours a magnificent bright goldenrod, with red tinges, and dark brilliant oranges. Like polished copper. No head, but some wisps of lacing on the edges. Aroma is intense and incredible (as usual from this brewery). Cider vinegar, oak, cedar, huge sour yeastiness, salt, sugar and maybe a hint of light molasses. Aroma is so superb and full it really sets my expectations high (as if they werent high enough already). Upon first sip, I think two things right away. 1) This is really good, authentic tasting lambic that is neither too sour/dry. 2) Wow, this body is very loose and lightly watery. Perhaps the age of it creates a lot thinner mouthfeel, but that’s what it seemed. As far as the flavor though, it paralleled the aroma quite well. Deep apple cider meets belgian yeast and oak. This is the best oak flavor I’ve tasted in a beer. Lots of light fruit esters, good lingering sourness on the finish, quite cheesy at the end as well, though in a sweetish/sour sort of way. Wow this was intersting stuff. I just wish the body would have held up better. I can hardly wait to try the bottle in my cellar and rerate. 10/5/8/4/16
2003 bottle While I don’t hold it against the beer for being flat, as that’s to style, this particular vintage seemed very underwhelming. Much looser body than the older vintage I had (strange) with less oily, oaky complexities. Yeast sourness is still present, of course, but the usual funky, cheesy nuances of Cantillon’s lambics seem less accentuated here. Still, I give them credit for bottling a style that is not terribly suited to the bottle. 8/5/7/3/14
On draught at Redbones, 4/14/05!!! Wow, to say I was excited to try draught unblended lambic is a vast understatement. Being somewhat disappointed by the 2003 bottle, I wasnt sure how it would be. However, this was superb. Flat, yet not lifeless, there is a slight tingling sensation as you drink the beer. The aroma was full of brett, citrus, lemon sorbet and rich, well-oiled leather. Flavor is a mountain of brett, more oily leather tannins, with lightly sweet malt, sweet apples and sour, yet tantalizing bacterial nuances. Too bad the keg only lasted a couple of days. . .9/5/8/5/18

(75 cl bottle from Systembolaget) I’m guessing it’s the same beer, though mine’s labeled "Grand Cru Bruocsella Lambic Bio 2003". Bottled 17 Jan 2007. Very dry cork, also bottle cap on top. A bit shady golden color, no head what so ever. Had it not been a lambic it would’ve gotten only a 2 for looks. Spritzy, sour, acidic, stable and horse blanket scent. Acidic, sour, tingly, grape skin taste, some wine and also grape fruit. Flat moutfeel, I would’ve liked to have at least a bit of co2, sadly brings it down quite a bit in my book. Perhaps it’s the unusual dry cork that has messed it up somehow? Strange since it’s so new/fresh. Not my favourite Lambic, mostly taken down several notches due to the lack of mouthfeel.

bottle. most of the first pours are very clear deep golden/orange, almost still with zero carbonation, and no head obviously. Aroma has a traditional characteristic "cantillon" unique quality to it- sour, tart, acidic, lemon juice, and moderately funky with hints of old musty wood. Nice grapefruit tart flavros with some moderate acidity and tartness throughout, so it doesnt get as sour as some of thier other lambics/guezes. Orangey flavors as well along with some funk, dust, wood, earth, fruits like peach and apricot, and plenty of lactic acid. Sharp finish and moderately easy to drink. This was a nice traditional unblended lambic.

375ml bottle (Apteeki, Turku)
Sharp and sweet aroma, a little fruity - citrus, grapefruity, woody, musky. Puckeringly sharp. Citrus and grapefruity taste, hebs, woody, oaky.
previous rating: 7-3-7-3-15=3.5
375ml bottle (St. Urho’s, Helsinki) 2005 vintage (sip - thanks mirjukka!)
Flat orange or light brown. The usual Cantillon fingerprint is easily detected on your nose, but this one is mellower. You’re definitely facing a sour lambic, but this is very woody indeed, very soft and mellow. It’s soft in the mouth despite the sharpness. Apricot is the most prominent taste, but there’s the classic Cantillon lambic body backing that up, and it leaves an oaky woody and walnut-paper nutty finish. Classic Cantillon, but this is a little thin and watery as it’s too young. Must rerate in a couple of years.
Earlier Rating: 7/4/2007 Total Score: 3.9
Bottle (Apteekki, Turku) 2003 vintage. Slightly cloudy dark yellow, completely flat. Wondrous lightly sour and refreshingly sweet aroma. Buttered hot cross buns. Taste is refreshingly sharp sour bitterness which leaves a wonderfully mellow malt taste, a little bit like buttered hot cross buns too. Don’t let the barstaff take your empty glass away, as even that smells beautiful!