Fantôme de Noël

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

Serve in Tulip

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Bottle. Opaque black-brown, reddish tint, with thick tan head. Funky wood-laden aroma is saturated with dried fruit and fun organisms. Nice carbonation. Has coffee in the background and strange spices and fruits in the foreground. Some moldy flavors are strange. The flavors are nicely layered, and change with shocking sharpness. After the moldy beginning there is a sharp shift toward interesting chocolate and coffee. Ends finally in a swath of apple core and seeds.

Bottle shared by Sunshine and Oakes. Pours a cloudy brown with an off white head. Aroma is tart, funky, lemony, stewed prunes, and wet decayed wood. Flavor reminds me of chewing on a toothpick. Some tart lemon and vinegar present as well. A complex beer but not my cup of tea(beer!)

Bottle from 1994 - Brown body with an yellow edge, big bubbled beige head; Lots of age in nose, not in a dusty way but in the sherry barrel way, very special combination of chestnut, fresh figs and warm alcohol notes; Very thin textured but velvet soft body, no acid at all, quite complex sweet and spicy; Long finish with again a mixed fell, velvet soft, very spicy, warmer softer aromas with dense fruit almost candy like parts. Very special and funny beer to drink.

Draft @ Capone’s. Dark brown color with no head. Aroma of spice and honey. Dry and very crisp with strawberry, caramel, coriander and spice on the palate. Sur with a spicy undertone. Very nice beer!

Bottle from Belmont Party. Poured clear copper/orange color with an average frothy off-white head that lasted with excellent lacing. Moderate to heavy yeasty, herbs,and earthy aroma. Medium body with a dry smooth texture and lively carbonation. Medium to heavy sweet&sour spice flavor with a medium to heavy sweet&sour finish of moderate to long duration. Solid complex seasonal beer.

Big bottle from Stateline.. Capped and corked. Muddy orange in color, not much head. Tart aroma with spices. Taste is slightly tart, a little dry with some spices. It is rich and sugary for a saison... 10% is high for a saison but its not even noticable. Low carbonation. Overall nice saison...

Bottle at Max’s Belgian Festival in Baltimore. Poured a nice deep brown color with little head. Aroma was almost port like. Had some strong vinous qualities with a hint of some spiciness. Makes sense now that i see it has black pepper. Nice thick mouth feel with a good touch of sour flavor. Not overwhelming, but just enough. this was a good beer.

UPDATED: DEC 24, 2009 Rerate, 2009 vintage: Hazy light brown, medium head. Funky Fantome yeast, some spices, and lots of fruit in the aroma. The flavor is quite dry for a beer this big, with an acidic finish and just a hint of malty caramel. Some melony and citrus fruit come in as well. This really is a mixture of Fantome Saison and a maltier spiced christmas ale, with the saison just winning out, mostly due to the dryness. Nice stuff, but Just doesn’t hit the spot as a christmas ale, and doesn’t display the Fantome character as well as some of their other stuff.

Draught at 36h of Belgium at Max’s, 2008 vintage. Orange-brown color with a beige head. Spicy, earthy and lightly tart aroma. Husky grain flavor with a tart vinous quality and herbal spice. Finishes dry with some hay/dry grass. Ok overall, but a strange one for sure. (7,4,6,3,12=3.2)

750 ml bottle. Creamy large beige head settles to a smooth thin layer over a deep amber pour, and eaves good lace. Fruity aroma, dosed with caramel and peppery spice. Medium body, light carbonation, rich, warming, slightly syrupy mouthfeel. Sweet caramel with a a distant tartness and a softly bitter finish.

Poured amber in color with very thin white head. Smells of ammonia. Palate is crisply carbonated. Tastes of malty spices with subtle sour notes through the finish.