Ommegang Biere de Mars

Brewed by Brewery Ommegang (Moortgat)
Style: Bière de Garde
Cooperstown, New York USA

Bomber at Jerry’s. Hazy orange-amber with big, foamy white head / Tart nose of funky, brett / Light body, moderately tart, with good balance and dry finish / Flavors of sour orchard fruit, caramel, oak, and funky brett / Very good, but lacking the complex flavor profile of, say, Jolly Pumpkin.

Pours a cloudy orange with a smallish head. Very interesting aroma - tons of mandarin, a bit of lemon, spices, some bready, yeasty notes, and citrus rind. The flavor is a bit more bitter - the rind really comes out - adding some sweeter fruits to the notes in the aroma. It’s interesting, but was really a bit too vinous for my taste.

This is my official beer find of 2009. It’s incredible. I’m drinking this bottle (from batch 2) quite young and I’m pretty sure it will taste even better after some time hanging out in the closet. It’s a perfect balance of sweet and sour; beautiful to look at; beautiful to smell and deliciousness to taste. It was $11something a bottle at MSL in Tallahassee. I’m a poor boy, but I’m going back for more. Thanks MSL for stocking this beer.

Bottle from la bodega. Clear golden orange with a creamy white head. Orange spice and sweet fruit aroma. Bright palate. Citrus cinnmon brown sugar taste. Quite good.

Shared by turdgerguson, thanks Sam. Pours a soft lively amber with a fizzy offwhite head. Gone pretty quick. The nose is subdued, sweet, fruity, yeasty, with warmth I found some pineapple, mild spicy character, malty. The flavor is crisp, mildly spicy, some sweetness, I tasted pear, some astringency, yeasty with warmth. More of a hop profile than I expected, detracted from the mouthfeel, the body didn’t hold the bitterness well. Made it feel astringent and inappropriate.

April 2008 bottle from Secret Santa. Has 10 months on it at time of sampling and the brett is coming through. Aroma has notes of leather and musty barn loft. Still quite a bit of residual sweetness in this, so I could see another year bringing out some more funk. Malt sweetness is finely caramelized, with a a spicy finishing hop rounding out the finish.

750 mL C&C bottle from Wine Warehouse in Charlottesville, VA. Pours a hazy orange color with a large fluffy head. Good head retention and fair lacing. Aroma is a fairly straightforward dry, tart slightly citrusy funkiness. Fruity taste... cherry, plum, peach and caramel with just a touch of funk. Full bodied.

I really like this biere de mars for the fact that is both uses brettanomyoces and that it is bright and citrusy. Kind of brings the best of both worlds to this seasonal brew. Very yeasty, very assertive fruit (cherries, plums, orange), and a nice soft malt backing that lends just a little caramel to the palate. Excellent, light body and aggressive palate.