Fantôme de Noël

Bottle from Daniel. Another brown saison from Fantome.....only this one was good. Pours out, obviously, dark brown with a creamy head on it. Smells sweet, full of sour fruit, almost like a lambic. Also plenty of musty wood smells. Taste is sweet and smoth with a nice earthy flavor. Sour tasting as well. Has some chocolate hints to it as well. Sour and chocolate mesh fairly well in this beer. An interesting beer to say the least, and pretty good to boot.

suprisingly a dark brown color. Had a nice head on it. Aroma was your typical saison with a bit more hop and malt to it. Flavor was not the best when it was too cold, but as it warmed it became a very tasty brew. The finish was somewhat earthy, but I like this anyway.

750mL bottle, no date (my label has Santa and his reindeer) that I got from TERDFERGUSON and the Mystery Swap 2.0--thank you, sir. Nearly opaque reddish brown with a 1/2 finger beige head (pretty big bubbles) that fades to a ring before long. Acidic vinegar with some chocolate malt is up front in the aroma. I’m having trouble picking up on the coriander and black pepper, but there is some caramelized brown sugar, lemon, and leather in the background. A bit vinous as well. This wasn’t nearly as vinegary as the aroma had led on, and actually fairly sweet. There is some spice that I’ll attribute to the pepper, and a drying earthy (with a hint of ash) finish. Bitterness peaked at a 2-3. Low smooth carbonation with a medium full silky body. As it warmed it got sweeter, but it also got ashier. Nice beer.

Much anticipation for this brew being a fan of Fantome. Poured dark brown with light beige head. Initial nose giving a hint of sour ale which turned out to be more in the aroma and light on the tongue. Oakiness with some prune notes finishing with balanced bitterness. Light grapefruit tartness was consistent attribute from beginning to end. Medium body that disguised the 10% alcohol well. Happy to try but expected more from this brew. Purchased Ramsey Liquor 12/2007. Shared with Mike C.

Oct. 2006 - Beer poured dark brown with surprisingly big head. Aroma could be detected from across the table. Flavor was seriously spicy, lots of ginger. Very sweet from brown sugar and a touch of barnyard and a strong burn at the end. I can’t say I was crazy about it, but a very unique brew.

Clear amber colour with a white head. Aroma of yeast and sourness. Flavour of yeast, spices and has a lively carbonation.

Bottle. Huge thick bubbly head that mostly lasted. Cloudy amber colour. Good display of lacework. Aroma of sour notes, spice, citrus, fruit and what could be called classic Fantom notes. Medium bodied with a lively carbonation. Moderated sour and sweet flavour. Light sour and fresh apple and citrus with a hint of spice. 7 / 4 / 7 / 3 / 15

Thanks to shp555 for this most interesting beer. Pours a dark brown with a medium sized tan head, fading to a ring around the glass eventually. Aroma of tea, hay, oak, red wine, cheese, wet dog (only mildly though, thankfully), cloves, grapes, dirt....Basically, it smells like everything, with a sour earthy leaning. Very woody slightly sour vinegar, some nutty malt flavor, some subtle chocolate, and caramel to make things sweeter. The wood and sour then take over the flavor and the beer finishes with a mustard spice, bitter nutty taste on the throat, and a coffee aftertaste. Medium bodied, but with a full creaminess (compared to Strange Ghost, which had none) and big flavor. Very good, and highly complex, but I’d prefer a little less wild yeast sourness, so I could taste the malts even better.