Cantillon Vigneronne

Brewed by Cantillon
Style: Lambic - Fruit
Brussels, Belgium

Vintage 2002. Springy apricot orange hue. Dank basement cheese and sweaty sock aroma. Hard water. Ancient balsamic vinegar. Brown sugar, white grapes, pears providing a rounding sweetness that puckers tart. A surprising habanero-like grassy heat singes in the back, brought back with complementing touch of flowery tea that has some of the same, green earthiness, pleasingly cooled.

A blistering white grape tart flavor. Familiar and compelling lemon juice acidity; fruit always forward and funk reserved, though the leathery, somewhat quiet tannins seem to aptly fill the gap. Strikingly sophisticated touch. Cheese and mineral dryness in the middle, with an evasive, dusty sweetness scampering about; suggests white chocolate powdered with spice, strangely, and the vibrancy of wheat. The sourness of the grapes seems to have only grown more pungent and sharp after six years, but the layers of flavor beneath have a settled complexity about them that’s really rich and intriguing. A meaty blend of spices gathers force and really underscores that depth as the beer warms; dusty and dry, woodsy and rich; paprika, ginger and cayenne. Pleasingly startling, and the funk intensifies freakishly.

Palate is firm and spritzy; a concentrated, tangy acidity. Finish takes a while to dry out, first showing a bursting pineapple tartness, then a grainy white cheesiness, and finally a hard water and yeast minerality that’s pretty viciously rough and abrasive. But that furious dryness is what I love about a lambic finish. Begins as a juicy, delicate and fruity foray into the softer tones of wild yeasts, but ends with a pretty devastating whirlwind of funkiness.

750 ml bottle. A hazy orange beer with a small, white and fast disappearing head. Wonderful aroma of wood, fruits with the classical sourness. The flavour has a big tartness, woody and lemony notes with also some grapes. Medium body and very dry. Another great beer from Cantillon, refreshing and complex.

Draught @ Ebenezer’s. Pours a slightly hazy gold with a hint of orange, no head. Aroma is very vinous - white grapes, slightly sweet, with a slight hint of vinegar. Taste is soft sourness, bit of vinegar and white grapes, with the vinegar sourness getting a bit more pronounced right before the finish. Finish is dry, fruity, white grapes come out a bit more to complement the softening sourness. Soft, slightly pillowy carbonation and light body.

Bottle opened at Diegos tasting. First thing I noticed about his beer was that it smelled a lot like some wines I have had. Muscat aromas are very nice in this. Along with some light tartness, lemon notes and some wet wood. Flavor is tart but not crazy sour. Very fruity and a bit funky too. I liked this very much. A very mild beer as far as Cantillon is considered.

bottle. Pours a slightly hazy orange with a decent half inch of foamy white head. Superb nose... light fruity sweetness with a relatively minor amount of funky tartness. Flavor improves on a solid aroma- funk comes more to the front, blending with the tamed apple and grape sweetness. Sourness is solid but easy- sharp tartness on the front, with some lingering light sourness throughout. Superb flavor. Palate is even and full, with some light lingering funk.

The Cantillon which blesses my glass today is the Vigneronne. Raw, ripe, and divine, the Vigneronne is a Lambic and sweet Muscat grapes blend. I am immediately smitten with her murky dishwasher hues which hints of straw, hay, and lingers with a small head. While what I just described may not sound all that appealing, once you know, you know, and my tastebuds are already watering as I partake of her tart, funky nose dancing with hints of spice, wood, crisp apples, sour plums, pears, Muscat grapes and tons of Brett. Brettanomyces is a one sided love affair; while this amazing bug has captured my heart and soul, I don’t think Brett cares whether she is loved or not. My first quaff is clean, crisp, and mouth-puckering tart with a one-two sour punch and a Sahara-inspiring dryness that requires another quaff to quench my growing thirst. Spice notes mix with the tart for some sweetness in the color of Muscat grapes, apples and pears. Not to be outdone, wonderfully aromatic and palatable oak and leather carries my Cantillon Vigneronne from my lips to my throat and lingers long into the finish. As I unfortunately reach the end of my glass, a perfectly balanced mix of oak, leather, spice, and Muscat grapes round out our time together.

Again, Cantillon reinforces my love for Lambics and my ever staunch support of this old Belgian brewing tradition. Created in Belgium and still brewed best, if not exclusively in Belgium, as far as Lambics go, the Cantillon Vigneronne is magic. Magic in my glass, on my tastebuds, and throughout my senses.

Taste is vinegar and apple cider - tart and sour with mild acidity. Excellent head retention, hazy golden color with moderate to high carbonation. Light, quaffable body that goes down smooth. Great beer.

750 ml bottle. Aroma of citrus, grapes, leather, horse blanket, lemon. Pale straw-like yellow-gold color with just a bit of lace. Like golden Muscat grapes. Flavor: Sweetness from the grapes matches sour, dry, and creamy. Lemons, icy dryness, funk, milk. Wow. Very complex. The sweet grapes add a very fresh dimension. Probably the sweetest Cantillon I’ve had. Yet superbly balanced by citric sourness and that exquisite dryness. Nice stuff. Not my favorite of theirs, but super refreshing and interesting.