Ommegang Ommegeddon

Brewed by Brewery Ommegang (Moortgat)
Style: Saison
Cooperstown, New York USA

750 mL bottle from Sam’s in Durham (Batch #2, bottled March 2008). Light golden pour with a huge fluffy white head. Aroma of some barnyard and horseblanket but this is really overwhelmed by the lemony citrus and unmistakeable bretty funkiness. The flavor I expected was a mildly sour version of Hennepin and to a degree that’s exactly what this is. But I do think the sour and funkiness is a bit underwhelming. Which isn’t to say this is a bad beer; in fact it’s really good. I don’t think the effort or the price, however, are worth it given other beers in this category.

Aroma of clover, apple and white grape. Appearance is cloudy gold with creamy head that never went away. Flavor of clover, white grape and apple. Palate was effervescent and lively. A somewhat good Saison.

Batch 1 bottle, a gift thanks to miketd!
Hazy gold with a large, frothy white head that dies in some time. Really funky nose at this point, a load of brett and hay with some lemon, grapefruit-level bitterness, and light tangerine sweetness. Lightly solvent-like at this stage, so I’d drink soon. Dry palate is now a little under-carbonated, but the body is still pretty decent. Dirty favor dominated by brett, also some light grass and citrus. Very dusty and earthy, this is Saison to the max. Gueze is normally considered an onslaught, but compared to this, Gueze typically has some fruit and acidity to cut through the brett and dust. Batch 1 is full on funk right now, and I’d suggest drinking it soon. Thanks Mike.

Bottle at RnH in NYC. Pours a slightly hazy red body. Aroma is tartness and funk. The flavor is great, farmhouse funk flavors and slight tartness.

DØE Valby 09. Pours yellow with a white head. Aroma is slightly sour, light malt and brett. Flavour is caramel, light hop, light bitter, brett. Sour aftertaste.

Bottle at rattle n hum. Tart and funky wheat notes. Belgian spices, dry, and hoppy. Better than I expected.

Corked bottle, aged over a year. Pours a slightly hazy golden with a thick, frothy white head. Nose of brett/funk, herbal, earthy hops and hay. Pale pils malt base with a firm, resinous noble hop bitterness plus notes of grass, lemon/citrus, hay, spice and farmhouse funk (but no sourness, though). The dry finish and medium body with spritzy carbonation is spot-on for the style. Really nice saison here.

A huge white froth sits atop a slightly hazy nectar pour with lots of effervescent bubble formation. Aroma is citrusy with loads of brett character. Leather, earth, clove, bready dough, and a great overall funk profile intermingles with some floral and herbal notes. A citrus oriented hop profile is subtle but evident. A very slight alcohol warming sneaks in the nasals with prolonged sniffs. Flavor is sweeter than imagined with citrus and brett coming through fully, Floral and herbaceous with some sweet bready malt but overall attenuated feeling. Palate is prickly, full for the style, and pretty dry. Strikes the balance of sweetness and attenuation quite nicely. Smacking but never sticky. I was quite impressed by this unique brew.