Ommegang Ommegeddon

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

750ml bottle: Pours a dulled gold with a healthy white head that sticks all the way down. The nose is well built, with a nice blend of honey, caramel, Saaz and ginger. Cinammon and bubblegum as well. The body follows through with a dangerously drinkable presentation. Finishes with a champagne dryness that is also nicely tart. Very good.

This hazy yellow pour is one of much complexion. It is sweet, spicy, with notes of bubblegum, pine, and earth. It is very smooth and drinkable for its alcohol content and diversity. Very nice.

A 750 ML Bottle - Batch #1 June 2007 head was thin - then vanishes quickly - yellow hazy appearance - lemon and citrus notes - slightly bitter flavor - iits strong not overpowering.-like a strong european wheat beer but without the typical wheatbeer aftertaste i dont particularly care for.

750mL bottle (June 07 production). Head is initially small, fizzy, white, mostly diminishing. Body is hazy medium yellow, bottle conditioned. Aroma is lightly to moderately malty (toasted grain), lightly to moderately yeasty (mold), lightly hoppy (flowers, herbs), with notes of vinyl, lemon zest, cement, gum, alcohol (somewhat fusely). Flavor is moderately sweet, lightly to moderately acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly sweet, lightly to moderately acidic, moderately bitter, slightly unclean. Medium body, watery texture, lively carbonation, lightly to moderately alcoholic. Rather than just write "plastic" as an aroma, the quality of this one is quite notable...it’s not like band-aid, a la Orval. It’s just like an air mattress. Not pleasant (not that band-aids smell *great* either, but there’s a certain weird guilty pleasure in certain plastic odors, and band-aids are one of the likable ones...another is from back in the 80’s when those translucent smoke-tinted cassette tape cases were used for recordings...had a hard time not sniffing those...but I digress). So yeah, the phenols here are both off-putting and a bit overdone, as is the raw yeast aroma itself (quite moldy/mildewy). Not much classic Brett character in the nose, probably the biggest disappointment of all. I hate to say it, but it smells more industrial than rustic. Good flavor balance, quite dry...but it’s marred by a somewhat unhealthy aftertaste (perhaps due to some of the fermentation effects found in the nose). All in all kind of a "sketch" of a beer, like a work in progress. I couldn’t drink more than a few ounces of my bottle, such a shame because I was sooooo looking forward to this one. Maybe I missed better batches, I dunno. My advice to readers is not to let this batch warm/breathe very long, as the aroma just goes downhill the longer it sits in the glass. Better luck next time?

Hazy yellow color with a white head. Aroma of yeast, spices and some hops. Flavor of lemon/citrus, yeast, spices, and some hops.

cloudy orange color topped with a huge fluffy white head, it has a warm and sweet floral aroma of citrus and spice with just a slight note of hops. it enters very smoothly; the yeasty flavor is accented with appropriate bitterness. very nicely done!

This ale has a hazy straw body with a short-lived, creamy head. Very little lacing. It’s got a fruity, spicy nose - young oranges and a drop of lemon with pepper and herbs and old flowers. A funky wildness chimes in adding some musty hay and old wood. It’s got a sharp, acidic mouthfeel. All continue into the flavor with a light earthy/herbal bitterness coming in at the midpoint. It finishes on a bitter, barnyard note. The alcohol? Didn’t begin to notice it until the bottle was fairly empty. Very nicely none, and more bottles are needed to lay down even longer.

<font size=-4><a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp? Wine & Spirits, Downers Grove, IL<font size=-1>

750mL Batch #1, June 2007, thanks to beastiefan2k (Eugene). I realize I should follow the instructions and Cellar 6 months for maximum enjoyment of Brett. . . . ., but I have come upon another couple bottles and want to see how this changes. Slightly hazy pale straw yellow with a two finger creamy white head that lasts the duration. The brett is already easy to pick up in the aroma at only 4 months. There is also some ripe orange peel, lemon pulp, and hints of pepper and a lightly bitter herbal character. Flavor is more herbal and spicier than the aroma let on--thought the brett is still there, I can see it taking over much more with longer cellaring. Dry finish with low bitterness (maybe peaking at a 2 out of 10). 8% ABV? I’d be careful with that because I couldn’t pick up on it. Once this got to room temperature I could finally pick up on a small amount of alcohol. Moderate to high carbonation with a medium body. Very good beer--glad I have a couple left!