Cantillon Iris

Bottle bought at the brewery. Strong citrus smell. The fresh hops give an added dimension, adding bitterness and grassiness to complement the sourness. Nice.

Bottle. Pours orange hazy cider with white head that doesn’t stick. Aroma is funky musty, tangy sour fruit. Flavor is the same, and meaty/smoky/salty, yet a bit on the delicate side, if that makes any sense.

Pours a cloudy gold with a medium white, bubbly head. Smells of big acidity and sour fruits. Just what you wouldexpect from these guys. The taste was much the same, very acidic and sour on the palate, but with a nice dry finish. Lemons and other citrus were detectable. Maybe a little bit of some floral flavors, but what was there was masked by the huge sourness. I love these guys brews.

Small bottle, and Tria’s new location (12th and Spruce, Philly) and resampled at Stephen Beaumont class at Tria Fermentation School 8/10/07. Orange amber color, no head when initially poured; swirling produces a small amount of off-white bubbles. Nice woody, lactic aroma with some hops; not quite as sharp and aromatic as I remember some other Cantillons. Flavor is tart, woody, earthy and citric. Long lasting hop finish. A nice experiment from Cantillon.

Courtesy of Alan at Knightly Spirits. I tried for two weeks to sit on this bottle; I couldn’t help but try it. Pours orange-gold with a white rim, no head, and elusive lacing. Bubbles are effervescent. Slight vinegar, past-ripe oranges, and sour yeast on the nose. Whooo...sour to all hell. The taste is biting on the nose and tongue...the whole mouth, actually. You can feel it all the way down until it hits the stomach acids. Hues of citrus, small herbs, oak, and always sourness. ALWAYS. The aftertaste lingers hard and the palate is bombarded. This brew is appropriate for my fluted Cantillon glass. (Thanks again Alan.) Very satisfying beer.

Hazy yellow beer with a nice and rich head but fades away like in most lambics. Aroma of citrus, flowers and some cellar comes out. A bitter taste and the fresh hops gives it a nice touch. Has a dry finish and leaves an oak touch on the palate. A pleasant lambic, that could benefit from some time in the cellar.

Pours a orangish color with a white head. Aroma wasn’t really pleasent. I usualy enjoy the aromas of unblended lambics but not this one. Lots of sourness, oak, citrus, and yeast. Flavor starts out not as good but the more you drink the better it gets. Everything on the aroma is present in the flavor with some grass flavors and a nice tart finish, but not too tart. Overall, minus the aroma, this is a very delicious brew.

2004 bottle. Light golden-orange color with a white fading head. Aroma has some nice sourness, wood, and sharp citrus. Flavor is a nice sour/acidic citrus with just a hint of wood, some vinous/wine flavors, and a nice sour feel. A nice Lambic that is smooth, tart and enjoyable.