Cantillon Iris

Brewed by Cantillon
Style: Lambic - Unblended
Brussels, Belgium

Serve in Flute, Tumbler

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2004 bottle, 75cl. hazy gold with a small white head. Super crazy Cantillon funk with lots of wild yeast and lemon character. And a touch of hops if my nose doesn’t deceive me. The flavor has a huge lactic sourness with a smooth lemon-lime character and balanced wild yeast funk and a bone-dry finish. Carbonation is a little spritzy but not huge. This just blew me away with how harmonious the funk and acidity was, with every edge smoothed out. The hops have perhaps faded past recognition in the past six years, but this stuff is prime right now.

Glass at DBS anniversary night (after bowling a 604 series and winning 4 games to none). Aroma is of bitter fruit (lime/grapefruit mix) and Brett. Flavor is the same, but tame on the front end and bitter on the back (but still ends fairly quickly with slight linger). The palate is excellent. I've heard about Cantillon, but this is my first. Excellent beer. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Pours a gold with a thin white head. Slightly under carbonated. Lemon zest, some other citrus. Tart sour nose. Flavor is citrus funk. Lactic acid. Tart unripe fruit flavor. Cantillon can do no wrong.

75cl, vintage 2004 @ Old Bank, Turku. Attractive orangey amber with small pale head. Lovely exotic fruity hops aroma with fresh cut grass, honey and little funk. Great sweet and sour mix, can’t belive the hops are so complex and fresh after over four years. Flavor is classic mind puzzling tartness with exotic fruits and grass. Passion fruity, acidic finish with lingering barnyard sourness. Yeast smoothens things down a bit. Medium bodied, round mouthfilling carbonation. Just blew me away.

UPDATED: MAR 6, 2011 375mL 2005 thanks to the RateBeer crowd at Spuyen Duyvil. Pours a mostly flat clear orange. Aroma is citrusy, perfumey, very spicy with lots of cognac and dried orange peel. Taste is massively dry, spicy, peppery, perfumey. Not sour and very slightest tartness. Will need to crack open my ’07 bottle soon to compare. 8/4/8/5/15=4.0

375mL 2004. This vintage is much sweeter up front in both the aroma and body. More orange candies abound, tamarind candies, almost cloying sweetness. Very different and not my style. 7/4/7/4/13=3.5

750mL 2005 ed. Pours a hazy, glowing deep orange with a towering, healthy, rocky off-white head. Huge retention for any beer but unreal retention for a lambic. Aroma is fresh grapefruit, white grapefruit peel and dried pomelo peel, potpourri oranges, fresh/juicy oranges, rich floral notes, heavy pepper, very present caramel, and muted but present soft house funk and fruity Brett. Taste is fresh, lightly bitter, massively lactic, soft, spritzy, and citrus heavy with an insane amount of rich complexity that is tough to describe. Tannic oak is present but not so important, bitter flowers, white pepper, grass, earth, grapefruit juice, bitter citrus, light citrus acidity. Mouthfeel is light, soft, all encompassing pillow-like carbonation with sharp, zippy lactic acidity and then finishes full oaky dry. It is just so perfect that you don’t even know what to say. Unreal. 3/6/2011 9/5/9/5/17=4.5

UPDATED: FEB 12, 2012 (750ml corked 2011). In a Cantillon tulip . This was a bit of a gem really. Not being sure what to expect with a Lambic made with fresh and stale hops - all the beautiful Cantillon horseblanket shit does its service and you get the awesome unity between chessey pungent stale hoppiness and fresh floral hops , ive ever had such a marriage . Really a drinkable and classy beer , ilike anything Cantillon.. A nice concept.

Pours opaque murky dark orange with a huge egg shaped head that builds constantly. Aroma of tart funky sourness, oak, fruit, herb, vinegar. Taste is sour grapefruit, very sour. Medium body, soft carbonation. Dry finish, nice balance of sweetness but definitely incredibly sour.

Floral lemon smell. Cloudy orange yellow amber color. Very dry and moderately acidic and sour. Lemon and floral flavors .

UPDATED: APR 12, 2012 1996 Bottle at Monks for the Cellar Dinner. First of the night, and first batch ever brewed of this beer. Poured pinkish copper, no lacing or head. Aromas of sour gueuze, tons of wood, lemon, barn, apricots, funk, peach, lactic notes. Taste is unbelievably soft, perfectly cellared for the 16 years, lemon woods, peach, mouth watering sour ale. Aamzing. 2007 bottle Pours a hazy, murky turbid orange with a thin, white, creamy head. Shiny, reflective surface. Aroma of barnyard funk, sharp cheese, lemon zest, lavender, blueberry, dry hops, wild yeasts, grass, and earth. Full bodied with a smooth, creamy, roundly robust, tart palate. Notes of sharp, savory cheese in the finish. Bit sour too. The age on this brew really balanced it nicely and gave the sour a solid, malty, floral backbone. Excellent lambic.

Bottled in 2007. The pour is dark brownish orange, with some yellow highlights in the bottom of the glass. It has a huge white head that recedes quickly to a thin layer of foam on top that stays around for a considerable time. The nose is old funky tennis shoes, earthy floral bouquet and soured apples. Super complex flavor. The first thing you experience is a sour punch followed buy a bittersweet rush transitioning to bitter and finishing with mouth puckering sour. The mouthfeel on this beer is sharp yet fairly creamy, the aftertaste is superb and lingers for a long time. This is a staple of Cantillon and one of my favorite beers, ever.