Fantôme Chocolat

Brewed by Brasserie Fantôme
Style: Saison
Soy-Erezée, Belgium

Serve in Tulip

Kohtalaisen kupliva ja oranssinen olut. Valkoinen, keskirunsas vaahto. Samea. Kirpeän hedelmäinen ja hapan tuoksu. Maultaan hapan ja kaukaisen suklainen. Oudon viipyilevä maku. Suklaa tulee hieman esiin nimenomaan jälkimaussa. Tuoksussa on myös appelsiinin kuorta. Kokonaisuudessaan suklaat ja chilit, joita tämän oluen maustamiseen on käytetty, ovat hukassa. Myöhemmin olutta maistellessa tulee esiin vanilliinisokeria. Huomaan suklaisuuden olevan enemmänkin kaakarouheista, kuin puhdasta suklaata. Huomaan nyt myös lasin pohjalla olevat lilluvat palaset. Fantome on aika outo panimo.

Bottle. Golden, hazy, small to average and fully diminishing head. Moderate malty and lightly sweetish aroma, pepper (chili?), oranges, faint coffee – chocolate. Body is medium, malty and dryish flavor, lightly sour, pepper - spiciness, faint chocola – coffee. Finish is average, malty and lightly sweetish, pepper and oranges. Peppery spiciness and oranges – do not work for me.

Huge chunks of yeast in the bottom of this 750 bottle that are visible when turned. Foam gushed out when opened. The pour itself was very murky and muddy looking. Kind of orange colored with a two fingered head that lasted only a couple of minutes. A funky fruit sour flavor. It has an infected thing about it but I don’t think it is. Flavors of grapes, spice, apples, sour funk, yeast. I don’t get any chocolate or pepper. As "out there" as the label would suggest.

750 ml bottle. Pours a cloudy pale gold with a moderate white head that lasted through the first quarter of the glass and left partial lace. Pleasant aroma of lemon, mild funk, and Belgian yeast. I’m really not picking up any cocoa or chocolate in the nose. The flavor is lemon, mild funk, Belgian yeast, and just a bit of cocoa. Pretty faint actually, but its there. A bit dry towards the finish with just a hint of peppery heat. Although the cocoa and the chili pepper seem virtually non-existent, this is a flavorful and enjoyable beer.

Certainly smells like a Fantôme right out of the bottle. The pour is a murky, dark honey color with a full, fizzy, white head which is mostly diminishing and leaves minimal lace. The nose is very lemony tart, spicy peppers notable, fresh herbs, light funk, and cocoa noticed but faintly. The flavor is exactly what I thought it would be; still tart with lots of lemon citrus, herbal tones of thyme and basil?, chili noticed not so much in flavor but warmth, still just slightly funky, and very subtle cocoa. The bitterness is low to moderate but is complemented by the chili pepper warmth, and the acidity is high. The palate is very lively, seemingly warm, somewhat quenching acidity, and a medium to full body. The finish is spicy, dry but still quenching with lemon tartness, and dry cocoa left on the tongue. Such a strange beer from start to finish. The intense lemon tartness brought such a high acidity, the other flavors seemed to be hidden behind. Also, the acidity and the pepper notes competed too much and the palate didn’t make it easy to drink, despite the quenching nature of the beer. Typical Fantôme beer but just didn’t work well for me.

750 ml bottle from Wine and Cheese Place, purchased when this hit the shelf in late 2010. Pours a hazy, dull yellow-gold with lots of brown sediment and a small white head. Aroma of farmhouse funk, white grapes, grass, earth, and sweet malts (chocolate? not so sure). Flavor follows those lines pretty closely, with a lot of farmhouse funk, some tart grapes, earth, grass, and maybe just a touch of chocolate malts. I expected a lot more but they were overwhelmed by the rest of this. Medium-bodied, with modest carbonation and a funky, tart mouthfeel. Nice saison, and blindfolded I never would have even thought of the word ’chocolate’.

Very excited to try this one as I have never had a Fantome beer I didn’t love. The beer pours a hazy orange color with an off-white head. Luckily I poured carefully because there were huge chunks of yeast left in the bottom of the bottle. The aroma is heavy on the Belgian yeast, orange citrus and possibly a little bit of cocoa. Even though I might smell cocoa, I doubt I would have detected it if not for the name of the beer. Overall, a nice aroma. The flavor is even better than the aroma. I get a ton of orange and lemon notes as well as some Belgian yeast. The first taste is of a classic, citrusy saison. There is a nice malt character to the beer and the 8 percent alcohol is also present. I also may get a little bit of dry cocoa powder in the flavor. I detect no chile notes in the flavor. All of that being said, the best part of the beer is the acetic quality to the flavor. This beer is slightly sour and a little bit funky, making it easy to drink. The tartness reminds me of the regular Fantome Saison, but the flavor profile of this beer is completely different. Outstanding flavor overall. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation. Very happy I got to try this one.

Slight lemon tartness on a light saison, a bit of a chocolate hint in the end perhaps, but otherwise it’s unnoticeable. Hazy gold with an orangeish hue. Fresh field like aroma. This is a different beer.