Fantôme Printemps

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

Bottled. Poured a translucent coppery orange with a short white head… got much hazier with later pours. Aroma picked up lots of funky, dusty, crazy spices.. some caramel and dusty toffee… sweet, gummy-like candies emerge toward the back. Flavor found sweet candy, heavy coriander and peppery spices.. toffee and more spices… some lemon sourness at the finish… also some ugly spices. Somewhat thin on the palate with oddly-placed heavy caramel and toffee thickness. Not one of my favorites that night.

Saison #10 consumed ’blind’ at the Pewaukee tasting. Clear, light brown color. Aroma and flavor dominated by a collection of old mixed flowers being collected for seeds from my grandmother’s garden. A little sweetness, sourness, some definite astringency in the flavor. Strange spices. Moderate-light mouthfeel. Healthy carbonation.

Dull brown, white foamy hat. Aroma of herbs, dry cheese, cider fails to deliver. Weak but spicy carrot-tomato-fruit soup flavor. Thin, watery mouthfeel. I wish I knew what other people see in this one.

Bottle: Poured a hazy brown with a white head. The aroma was earthy outdoor fruit. The taste was spice and roasted like with a tangy dry finish.

Bottle. Fruity (apple,pineapple) aroma, light metallic yeast. Cloudy orange yellow, nice golden creamy head. Medium body, fruity base (tropical, clementine, apple), light bready notes, a hint salt. Pleasant.

Pours a hazy gold color with an inch or more of thick white foam. Very nice spidery lace. I smelled a strong, pungeant, tart cider aroma as I poured the beer into my glass. First sip - sour. I taste some unripe apple and lemon. A little grapefruit too. Beyond the tartness, there is a peppery-clove spiciness. Something suggests to me that the spiciness comes from spices, and the hops, and the yeast strain. Medium bodied, with lots of fizzy carbonation. Lots more of that spice when the yeast from the bottom of the bottle is stirred up. The most sour Fantome I’ve tried yet, but that’s what I’m looking for. Very good beer.

Good solid cork "pop". Cloudy dark orange. Thick foamy head. Light zesty aroma with apples and flowers. Apple front in the taste, light baking soda essence. Light body is a little watery. Don’t notice the alcohol at all. Enjoyable refresher. Salty finish.

The body’s a light amber and somewhat hazy. The head is a pale tan and lingers only shortly, its lacing sliding down the glass and back into the ale as you drink. Nice tart, funky aroma, fruity, lightly floral, with a splash of watered honey. Nice tart flavor with a soft/sharp malt, spices, an herbal bitterness, sor apples and lemons, a soapy yeast, and a touch of alcohol. The finish is dry and satisfying. Another good one from Fantôme. I wish I could remember where the heck I picked it up recently.