BFM Abbaye de Saint Bon-Chien Grand Cru 2009 (Spirit Barrel)

Formerly brewed at BFM (Brasserie des Franches-Montagnes)
Style: Sour Ale/Wild Ale
Saignelégier, Switzerland

Serve in Snifter, Tulip, Tumbler

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(375ml, bottled Dec 2009) Pours a cloudy amber-brown body with a medium cream head and descent web lacing. Aroma of florals, alcohol, wet leather, mustiness, and cranberries. Flavor of alcohol, cranberries, vinous, and cherries with a dry oak finish. Needs time to age.

Bottle courtesy of brainlair. Very boozy aroma with notes of toasted malt and bread. Strong alcohol note. Sweet, lightly tart at first. Strong booziness dominates. Bitter finish. Not very drinkable.

375mL thanks to BrainLayer. Gusher! Clear tea amber. Over carbonated beige head. Funky nose with celery and oddities. Sharp ethanol nose. Higher alcohol. Probably infected and attenuated to over 11%. Sharp volatile phenols and ethanol. Taste is tangy, celery, powerful strawberry flavored vodka and heavy ethanol. Whoa. Much too alcoholic. Should be an aperitif in 2oz pours or less. Ugh. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

GUSHER ALERT!!! GUSHER ALERT!!!
In short: A dirty/dusty, funky, oaky, tannic and strangely fruity amber ale. Good if you like the style
How: 1.5L Magnum (more like a 750ml after the gushing geyser). Consumed when a little over one year of age. Tasting session with Montreal gang
The look: Cloudy burnt orange topped by an off-white ring of foam
In long: Nose is funky, oaky, old attic and fruit peels. Taste has lots of oak barrels, lots of tannins, fruit seeds (cherry pit and raspberry seeds sensation), wild berries, a little vinegary, some sawdust. Sourness level is medium. Overall rather dirty. This was a very nice beer but as usual I prefer the assembled Saint Bon-Chien over the inexplicably more expensive single-barrel versions. And to think we paid $80 for this magnum and lost half of it because it was a gusher!!! People say there are worst things in life than wasting good beer. I am not one of those people.

As soon as you pop the bottle open, hold this one over the sink with your glass ready. It’s a gusher and everytime you lose a drop of this beer you see the $$$ signs dropping down the sink. So get ready. You’re welcomed with a woody aroma and taste. The barrel comes through here. You’re also going to get some fruits. Cherries and raisins. Toffee with a slight funk and sourness to it.

Magnum at a tasting.
Appearance : Gusher. Lost about a glass. Hazy amber with small head.
Aroma : Citrusy tartness with brett. Woody and tannic.
Taste : Tannic with sour cherries. Bretty and funky. Nice cherries. Finish is funky with wood and cherries. Light acetic notes. Some alcohol.
Overall : Really nice funk. Nice light sourness. Nice wood and fruits. Probably the best of this barrel aged series so far.

Bottle. Pours a hazy deep earthy amber with an off-white heads that begins and remains at the edges. Aroma is full of barrel with some sweet grains and a good amount of sour fruits. Flavor has a decent amount of funk with sour fruits and a nice amount of backing barrel.

Tasted on 12/7/11 from a capped 375mL bottle purchased at Lush Roscoe. Pours a murky brown-orange with an average beige head that slowly recedes to spotty lace. The nose is sour with fresh lemon juice, a hint of balsamic, along with brown sugar and caramel malt. The flavor is full of tart and sour lemon up front, moving to balsamic, brown sugar, and caramel malt, with some alcoholic heat. The body is full, with very lively carbonation that adds to the mouthfeel, and a long, tart lemon, caramel malt, and alcoholic hot finish.

My Bottom Line :
Funky cranberry fruitiness evolves alongside dusty yeast, earthy cocoa and a touch of barrel-laden alcohol for a sour tornado of a brew.

Further Personal Perceptions :
-A veil of foam tops the murky amber.
-This was another f’n gusher from BFM... We lost at least a third of the extravagantly-priced magnum. Reminded me why I haven’t bought a bottle from them in a couple of years...
-This tastes like a 7-year-old (yes, 7, not 6 ;P) Fantôme Black Ghost. Which is not a bad comparison to make.
-Barrel flavors are well integrated, as are wild yeasts and bacteria.
-Once having breathed, this is a very pleasant countryside ale. But that bottle-conditioning job is truly horrible.

Magnum.

Magnum. Dégustation chez MartinT. Arômes de fruits murs, de chêne, de spiritueux. Très légères notes acétiques. Robe orangée et trouble, peu de mousse malgré une effervescence assez active. En bouche, on retrouve une belle présence fruitée (raisins, framboises), accompagnée par une forte présence du chêne et du spiritueux (rappelant le cognac par moment). Passablement sauvage, les brettanomyces apportent une composante poussiéreuse et on remarque une légère acidité acétique en finale. Longue finale alcoolisée. Intéressant, mais l’alcool et le fût de chêne sont très présents.

Sampled at the High Rollers Tasting 2011. Sampled with the same year bon chien regular. I actually prefered that. this one has more of a spicy ’gin’ liquor note to it. Good stuff.