Community Tasting Note

forceberry wrote:

Saturday, November 20, 2021 - The base beer is fermented spontaneously and then aged in old oak foudres. The Gueuze is blended from three batches, the main batch (90%) coming from the brewing period mentioned in the label, it being late 2012 to spring 2013 here. The main batch is aged for 18 months in oak foudres, but a small addition (5%) of lambic aged for three years is blended in to add complexity and a small addition (5%) of young, still partially fermented lambic aged for up to 12 months is added for the secondary fermentation in the bottle. Best by February 2nd, 2035. 7% alcohol. Tasted along with 15 other Gueuzes.

Slightly hazy golden yellow color. The beer starts to foam out of the bottle as soon as the cork is popped. Slightly evolved and perhaps subtly reduced nose with aromas of lemony citrus fruits, some smoky notes of burnt hair, a little bit of farmhouse funk and a hint of urine. The beer is dry, medium-bodied and slightly evolved on the palate with a balanced and somewhat predictable taste of wizened yellow apple, some grainy malt, light phenolic spicy notes, a little bit of earth and a hint of bretty funk. Medium sourness. Balanced, soft and quite persistent carbonation with almost nonexistent hop bitterness. The finish is dry, gently and mildly sour with medium-long flavors of grainy malt, some spicy phenolic notes, a little bit of leathery funk, light smoky notes of burnt hair and a hint of ammonia.

A nice, balanced and enjoyable, if perhaps a bit predictable and pedestrian Gueuze. Shows all the textbook elements of the genre, but ultimately relatively little of something particularly noteworthy. Has developed some evolved complexity over the years compared to the younger bottles I've tasted, but not enough to make the beer feel noticeably improved. An enjoyable allrounder that delivers what one could expect from a Gueuze, but nothing much beyond that. Priced according to its quality at 5,79€ for a 0,375-liter bottle.

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