Fantôme Printemps

Brewed by Brasserie Fantôme
Style: Saison
Soy-Erezée, Belgium

Hazy golden body with a thin but persistant white head. Lacing.
Big yeast nose. Spice and wheat sharpness. Maybe some candi sugar too.
Wheat, lemons, oranges, yeast, spicey and maybe some coriander. Sweet and sour throughout.
Full-bodied with a very acidic finish.

Nice, even, deep gold, lightly hazy beer with a lasting white, wispy head. Oddly enough, this beer has a bit of a floral character. Woody, bready, and pleasantly fruity and floral. A little sour, malty, and very well balanced. Finishes a little wood and dry. More bready malt in the mid palate with some fruitiness. Some alcohol evident in the flavor as it warms, but it's not a typical saison in my mind. There is a light sourness which adds to complexity of flavor. Lighter bodied and moderate carbonation, as well as a dry mouthfeel. Again, not the typical Saison in my mind, but very good. I'm glad I have another one in the cellar.

11/10/03: bottle.
yeasty nose with some esters and banana. hazy, golden-brown body with a slightly creamy white head. average lacing. very active. champaigne-like mouthfeel. flavors included bread yeast, grapefruit, sour apple and lemon. there was also some spice noted, towards the back of my mouth. clean, crisp and refreshing.

A big pop when this one opens. Amber body and quite hazy. Massive rocky and frothy head with gentle lacing. Aroma is yeasty with some black pepper, cloves, mint and citrus hops. Flavour is sweet at the front with peach and pepper before mellowing out and turning sour, drier and hoppier. There is a lingering of burntness that is quite unique.

A nice saison but, then again, everything from Fantome seems to be pretty nice. Very earthy flavors in this one along with some good spice notes and a GREAT color and head. A very nice brew.

Rating # 275
Vintage 2000 or 2001?
I don’t know how old this beers is but I can assure you it is old, it was covered in dust so I know it’s not light struck either.
Hell Yeh, I just had the perfect pour into my Trois Pistoles chalice, it looks like something out of a Michael Jackson book. A rich copper, more orangeish body, fluffy cream colored head that slowly subsided into a velvety cap and ring of lacing.
The aroma and flavor are incredibly earthy, smells of those gigantic bales of hay, very rural and woodsy. Huge notes of wheat, rather; my new terminology, “barnyard.” Quite yeasty; this is strange but it reminds me of family vacations where we went spelunking, Printemps gives off this musty mildew stagnate impression found in caves. Noticeable notes of clove, coriander, rosemary, apricots, black pepper, and more pronounced remarks of Granny Smith apples. Ending with a nice fizzy champagne like palate with a dry bitter sweet tart apple finish.
This is a rather complex but enjoyably creation, I probably would not spend $13 on another 750ml bottle, but I Highly Recommend trying it at least once!

Hazy copper, loosely formed but long lasting and large light tan head. Aroma is surprisingly restrained, with notes of apple, orange, wet pennies, and very distant funk. Smooth mouthfeel with a definite toffee malt note, undefined fruit, and some bitterness on the finish. Almost English somehow. This is a Fantome with training wheels. Big thanks to matta for sending this one!

08.19.05 750ml bottle. Dark, hazed, and lovely sunrise golden below a thinly remaining film of white foam. Aroma is fruity and sweet like a tripel, but grassy and sharp like a ligher saison. Nice. Citrus and cotton candy, strawberry jam and lemon grass. Quite light and juicy throughout. Heaps of interesting juxtipositions make this brew a delight.