Cantillon Gueuze (Classic/Organic/Bio)

Brewed by Cantillon
Style: Lambic - Gueuze
Brussels, Belgium

From a 375mL Bottle, 2006 Bottling Date. Pours a transparent honey gold color with shades of naval orange skins and a finger of rocky, brilliant white head. Crisp, tart, brilliantly acidic, funky aroma of fermented lemon peels and under-ripe mango flesh. A wave of pineapple skins, granny smith apples, and anjou pear served on a cracked wheat cracker with a healthy spread of chevre cheese. Lovely balance of natural fruit aromas and funky acidity in that the funkiness adds complexity without completely dominating the fruity characters from the wild fermentation. Light bodied, moderately carbonated mouthfeel with a crisp acidity. The palate starts out with some crisp lemon and husky rhubarb stalks. White oak and dusty leather pile on, fruits remaining. A dusting of cracked white pepper and lactic fermentation cheese finish off the flavor brilliance. Fantastic example of the style; I like my gueuze to have a prickling carbonation to enhance the biting acidity of the beer - this particular bottle doesn’t have this quality although it’s not flat by any means. Everything else is rock solid and absolutely gorgeous, leading me to expect sheer beauty from a bottle with a well conditioned sizzle. I will certainly keep searching eagerly for that bottle...

Bottle at Aba Jour bar in Ghent (Belgium), poured a clear gold with no head. A beautifully clean sour aroma with some citrus and some sweet berry. A light palate at first and some citrus apple, then the sourness comes through, lingering for a long time after the swallow. Why I like these bbers I do not know, but I do.

Bottle, from Kolding Vinhandel. Bio. Pours a hazy yellow-orange with a fine medium white head. Flavour is a little underwhelming, sour berries and vinegar. Flavour is fresh and quite tart. Sour and fruity. This lambic feels up my mouth nicely. Fresh and lively, but very much a lambic in the oldfashioned sense.

375 ml bottle. A hazy orange beer with a small white and fast disappearing head. The aroma is sour with vinegar notes. tart flavour with some lemon. Medium body quite long finish. Hardcore lambic

750mL bottle, Botteld in 2.005 on the cork--mine is a yellow label with the silhouette of a guy drinking in a chair. Pours a clear orange yellow with a one finger yellowish white head that fades to a film after a short time. Aroma of very sour lemons, oak, white pepper, unripened pears, leather, hay, and even got a fair amount of sulfur (reminds me of smoke bombs on the 4th of July). Damn this is tart--and then my mouth waters like a mofo. This isn’t acidic with a vinegar taste--moreso fruity like lemons. Some hay and A tinge of fruity sweetness shows up for but a moment. Otherwise, there’s the light pepper and a little funk. Dry finish. Mild carbonation with a light body. Pretty good, though I can’t kill the whole bottle myself.

Unclear yellow body, moderately carbonated, topped by a spritzy thin head, disappearing to a light ring, barely anything. Quite funky aroma, barnyard, hay, apple, slight sulphur, horse shit in the background, but in a good way of course. First sip is a blast of classic lambic funkiness. Assertive sourness, noticeable dry-out effect. Very rustic, almost unclean, character all around. Close to being flat. Mellow, woodsy feel, slightly tannic. I can see that this might be a less approachable example of the style, but delicious to me and has a lot of class. Refreshing and fantastically drinkable, I was ready to go for another 750 if this wasn’t my last bottle.

37.5 cL bottle. Pours unfiltered orange with a quickly disappearing crispy head. Aroma is fruity sour to acidic. Flavour is vinegar dry, slight sweetness too. Dry finish. Tasted decent, but I admit that this is a vaste on me, I don’t really understand to appreciate this one.

Bottle from Cooper’s Seafood, Scranton, PA. When I popped the cork, I could smell an apple-esque aroma a foot away. It isn’t a beauty pageant runnerup but the bubbles look nice in my Cantillon glass. It has that sour apple flavor with leather and sandal wood. I love the dryness and acidity. The label says "100% Lambic" and is yellow. It doesn’t seem to have the array of fruit flavors I sensed in Girardin Gueuze but it has a lot of class.