Eylenbosch Gueuze

Formerly brewed at Mort Subite (Alken-Maes / Scottish & Newcastle)
Style: Lambic - Gueuze
Kobbegem, Belgium

75cl 1987 - Beautiful deep dark golden body with a big bubbled white head, lots of sparkle; Beautiful elegant nose, slightly oxidized (only very, very little), very settled and well balanced between apple and wood; Thin a little sharp texture, very little salty, quite acidy with lots of lactic and a very little acetic acid; Long finish starting out dry mellowing out over a long time, warm sweet apple and barrel aromas, you can smell the cork a very, very little. Good bottle, has aged remarkably. This might not have been the best of geuzes when it was released, today it was quite good though............. 37.5 cl bottle, vintage ? (5-4-3-1=7) - Amber body, white head; Warm sweet sugary body; Sweet body, little carbonation; Long oxidized finish. To old!

Diese Flasche habe ich Egide Snakkers zu verdanken, der sie mir zum Testen überließ. 1989 wurde die Brauerei von Alken-Maes aufgekauft und 2001 ganz geschlossen, die Flasche stammt noch aus der Zeit vor beiden Ereignissen aus der Mitte der 80er Jahre. Verhalten säuerlicher Geruch, nicht unheimlich aromatisch wie viele andere Gueuze. Mäßig säuerliches, gleichmäßiges Auftreten, wobei es nicht das Gefühl und die Feinfühligkeit besitzt, den Tester richtig anzusprechen. Die Aromen sind nicht wirklich stark und die Säuerlichkeit bleibt auf gleichem Niveau. Keine Ausnahme-Gueuze!

Under the name of Cuvée Spéciale, the very last to come really from the Eylenbosch brewery Slightly hazy, pale orange-amber, small white head leaving rings of lace. Slightly caramelsyrup and a hint of horseblanket aroma; pineapple. Dry-licorice without sweetness, horseblanket/leather flavour. Brown sugar and true lambic underneath. A bit syrupy texture, but with some acidburn. Not the real stuff. Too sweet, too faro-like for me - by far.

Bottle, 1988 vintage, thanks joergen for sharing. Red/brown colour, small white head. Maderiawineish nose, which shows hints of Oxidation (a bit like the Bass King 1902 at RBESG). Flavour is Gueuze meets Madeira wine. Lovely.

Bottled vintage 1988, courtesy of joergen. Red color, small white head. Madeira nose, a bit oxidated. Light, fruity, Madeira-wine notes. Bit off-date already, but drinkable.

Bottle, 1988-vintage. Cloudy orange coloured with a white head. Sweet aroma of port, wood and fruits. Flavour of wood, fruits and port.

Strong oxidation doesn’t lie in the nose in the shape of madeirised stinky caramelised old pennies and clover honey. Leather and corky flavours have that damp earth stale texture to them, the palate being completely dead and flat, oily and musty. Not many qualities remaining in this one, still tart though, but worse than the kriek I’ve had this summer and I’d be real curious to see how the framboise evolved so differently.

Second try, from a bottle of 1984 Eylenbosch Gueuze, courtesy of Manuele at Ma Che Siete Venuti a Fà, in Rome:
Carbonation was fine, even providing a veil of foam throughout the tasting. Sourness soared throughout stemming from very citrusy fruitiness. Some sugar was tasted alongside some dry cereals, but in no way took anything away from the enjoyment of the puckering lambic wilderness. Much, much, much better. Many thanks Manuele!! 3.7/5

First try, from a best-before-1989 bottle of Eylenbosch Festival Supergueuze:
Any first impressions?
-A murky, dark sunset flare in a glass.
-Obviously flat, and quite sugary.
-Apple flavors and oxidation battle it out in a not-so-fair fashion.
-Acidity is still okay, but powdery sugar is definitely nagging it.

What if you dig deeper?
-An overcooked pie crust, forgotten on the windowsill.
-Dirty yeast shoves its hands in the face of appreciable flavors.
-This might have been an okay product once, but it certainly wasn’t stellar, otherwise it would have held up a lot better. 1.9/5.