Cantillon Lou Pepe Gueuze

Brewed by Cantillon
Style: Lambic - Gueuze
Brussels, Belgium

2000 tasted in 2005. First of all I must say that the cap was rusty and the bottle under the foil was covered with the effects of oxidation. Never seen that before. Poured a cloudy speckled off-orange golden colour wiht a fizzy white head. Huge nose as soon as the cork is released. Smells of citrus and acidity. Some fruitiness rounds out the nose. At first this beer is a bit astringent, but mellows as it warms. Spritzy, but subsides. Moves into some lightly smokey notes with citrusy undertones and a definite tartness. Quite a dry finish. I recommend that the bottle is swirled to include the yeast which rounds out the corners and takes out a bit of the spritziness. A quality gueuze, seems a bit rough.

(bottle, 2002 vintage) Like a regular, somewhat mild, Belgian strained through dirty sweat socks. This is what I was expecting from a lambic festival! A little sour, a little drying, a lot tasty.

1999. cap was rusty with beer underneath it...very mellow and lush somewhat typical Cantillon nose is rather subdued. Tart and complex in the finish, even malt seemed apparent, citric and lactic & hay laden with Brett. Very dry, lovely, drinkable gueuze.

The last of the trio for me finished where the others have left. I could not find the 6-star reviews from Tim Webb whom I respect immensely. Except perhaps for the framboise, I’m pretty sure I prefer the regulars by a fair margin, they seem more assertive and pungent if not as classy. This was a 2000 vintage. The cork would have led me to believe it’s a 1990 as dismantled and rusty as the cage was. It pours a cloudy golden yellow with little-to-no head. Pinneaple and grapefruit immediately dominate the aromatics. Very little funk manages to come through, mostly wet socks and a slight cheesy old hops thing. It is dry and tart as expected, but I could not see how this is moreso than the regulars. Tea tannins and wood hints are a constant. A slight biscuity/candy aspect manages to reach the back of the nasal cavities while the citric bite punches the sides of the tongue in a very fruity fashion, dry and astringent. Very soft carbonation, less present than I expected. Medium bodied, rather creamy texture. Refreshing and rather complex yes, world-classic? Not sure about that.. I do prefer many other’s balance leaning less on citric character than lactic and tartric glory or unadulterated funk.

After having this in a blind tasting, I confirm my score of finding it under your average gueuze however good the intentions are. Something is lacking, blending being the most obvious candidate and I lower my score from 3.5 to 3.2.

Vintage 2002.
Pours orange golden and a fine small snow white head. Tart grapefruit aroma with woody and earthly tones - sharp and dry, but very nice balanced. Extremely dry woody flavor with a penetrating sour tone of grapefruit. Very sour, makes my mouth looks like a hønserøv. Very complex and more full-bodied than the average Cantillon. Extremely tasty and refreshing.

It was hard for me to drink this slow. It is a wonderful Geuze. A friend dropped by with a bottle and some stinky cheese. The bottle had lived its entire life ( or so I am told ) on its side. Wonderful tartness, hints of lemon, bready, sweet tones of hay and complex spice notes in the finish. I am truly in love with this beasty.... more more more !!!!

Vintage 2000: This kind of funkiness, I like much more in a gueuze than in a fruited blend. Hazy yellow, it smells of slow drying hay, leather, dust, and an overriding sourness. The taste is quite tart, citric in nature, with a touch of grainy sweetness in the finish. Not bad.

<font size=-4><a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/events-detail.asp?eve Fest at Delilah’s, Chicago, IL 06/04/2005<font size=-1>

1999 vintage. foamy white head, clear golden color. aroma is barnyard, fresh cut grass. already I know we’re starting a wild trip to the backcountry outside Brussels. flavor is sour & tart but smooth. nice lively carbonation. clean finish. surprisingly, a little grapefruit too. very happy to share this at JimMack’s!