Matilda Lambicus
Goose Island Beer Co.

Beer Geek Stats:
| Print Shelf Talker
- Style:
- Wild Ale
- ABV:
- 7%
- Score:
- 84
- Avg:
- 3.68 | pDev: 12.77%
- Reviews:
- 29
- Ratings:
- From:
- Goose Island Beer Co.
- Illinois, United States
- Avail:
- Retired (no longer brewed)
- Wants
- 6
- Gots
- 7
SCORE
84
Good
84
Good

Notes:
Golden copper color, fruit and baking spice aroma, spicy tart flavor, very dry body.
Reviews: 29
| Ratings: 311
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Reviews by TXhomebrewer:
More User Reviews:
Sludgeman from District of Columbia
3.11/5 rDev -15.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.25
Poured into a tulip at Rustico/Arlington
Don’t know if I can make sense of this one. Plain. Blah! A disappointment all by itself. If you’re thinking this beer is similar to Matilda be ready for even more disappointment. Nothing to like. Nothing to hate. One bright spot, this beer hides its 7% ABV very well.
A – Pours a clear amber. Little to no head (bar pour). Good lacing.
S – Upon a good swirl some sour cherry fruitiness emerges. Some faint funk. But all the aroma is generally missing. Budweiser has more.
T – Almost tasteless for a wild ale. Very little bitterness. No acidity or sourness from the Brett Lambicus.
MF – Medium light bodied. A bit sharp.
Sep 16, 2013
3.11/5 rDev -15.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.25
Poured into a tulip at Rustico/Arlington
Don’t know if I can make sense of this one. Plain. Blah! A disappointment all by itself. If you’re thinking this beer is similar to Matilda be ready for even more disappointment. Nothing to like. Nothing to hate. One bright spot, this beer hides its 7% ABV very well.
A – Pours a clear amber. Little to no head (bar pour). Good lacing.
S – Upon a good swirl some sour cherry fruitiness emerges. Some faint funk. But all the aroma is generally missing. Budweiser has more.
T – Almost tasteless for a wild ale. Very little bitterness. No acidity or sourness from the Brett Lambicus.
MF – Medium light bodied. A bit sharp.
Sep 16, 2013
waddellc2 from Pennsylvania
3/5 rDev -18.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Jan 15, 2015
3/5 rDev -18.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Jan 15, 2015
LambicPentameter from Nebraska
4.01/5 rDev +9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Enjoyed on tap at Bier Station. Poured into a small Belgian tulip glass. Was able to try this once at a beer festival, but it was a couple hours in, so I didn't trust my ability to properly evaluate. Glad to get an opportunity to try it again with some time to sit and appreciate it.
Appearance - A beautiful looking beer, with a big frothy whipped head of stark white three fingers thick and full of tiny microbubbles. It begins to recede immediately, but takes its time, with the foam creeping back but leaving opaque sheets of lacing on the side of the glass. Beneath the luscious head is am enchanting brassy orange with a jewel-like quality to it. Darker notes of amber and lighter tones of gold and what looks like a bit of a chill haze.
Smell - As one would expect, the Brett is front and center, with dominant notes of white wine must, grapefruit, and chardonnay balanced along side fresh cut grass, funk and wet hay. I know it can smell somewhat off to some, but I just love that yeasty pungency that the Brett provides. This one makes it the star.
Taste - Not quite as enchanting as the nose, but with a lot of the same characteristics, just more subdued. Grapefruit and dry citrus are again on display with plenty of funk, white tea and damp wood. Just a touch of tartness, like lemon juice that has been cut with water to take the bite off. The pale malt is there, but it really takes a back seat to the yeast.
Mouthfeel - Light bodied and plenty of carbonation with a very dry finish.
Overall, a wonderful beer. I'm a bit biased when it comes to Brett beers, but this is a good one. The name might be misleading to some, given that "lambic" as a style of beer is usually sour to some degree. However, the Brett culture after which this version of Matilda takes its name is only a component to making a lambic and doesn't provide the souring that bacteria like Lactobacillus and Pediococcus. Anyone expecting this beer to be sour is likely going to be disappointed. Personally, I think a more analogous comparison for this beer is Orval, or perhaps Rayon Vert, even if people's opinions may very on which is the most preferable.
Dec 31, 2013
4.01/5 rDev +9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Enjoyed on tap at Bier Station. Poured into a small Belgian tulip glass. Was able to try this once at a beer festival, but it was a couple hours in, so I didn't trust my ability to properly evaluate. Glad to get an opportunity to try it again with some time to sit and appreciate it.
Appearance - A beautiful looking beer, with a big frothy whipped head of stark white three fingers thick and full of tiny microbubbles. It begins to recede immediately, but takes its time, with the foam creeping back but leaving opaque sheets of lacing on the side of the glass. Beneath the luscious head is am enchanting brassy orange with a jewel-like quality to it. Darker notes of amber and lighter tones of gold and what looks like a bit of a chill haze.
Smell - As one would expect, the Brett is front and center, with dominant notes of white wine must, grapefruit, and chardonnay balanced along side fresh cut grass, funk and wet hay. I know it can smell somewhat off to some, but I just love that yeasty pungency that the Brett provides. This one makes it the star.
Taste - Not quite as enchanting as the nose, but with a lot of the same characteristics, just more subdued. Grapefruit and dry citrus are again on display with plenty of funk, white tea and damp wood. Just a touch of tartness, like lemon juice that has been cut with water to take the bite off. The pale malt is there, but it really takes a back seat to the yeast.
Mouthfeel - Light bodied and plenty of carbonation with a very dry finish.
Overall, a wonderful beer. I'm a bit biased when it comes to Brett beers, but this is a good one. The name might be misleading to some, given that "lambic" as a style of beer is usually sour to some degree. However, the Brett culture after which this version of Matilda takes its name is only a component to making a lambic and doesn't provide the souring that bacteria like Lactobacillus and Pediococcus. Anyone expecting this beer to be sour is likely going to be disappointed. Personally, I think a more analogous comparison for this beer is Orval, or perhaps Rayon Vert, even if people's opinions may very on which is the most preferable.
Dec 31, 2013
Farnswurth from Illinois
4.03/5 rDev +9.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Dec 01, 2015
4.03/5 rDev +9.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Dec 01, 2015
groleau from Canada (QC)
3.42/5 rDev -7.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Oct 29, 2016
3.42/5 rDev -7.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Oct 29, 2016
Casey3236 from Pennsylvania
3.58/5 rDev -2.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Jan 10, 2015
3.58/5 rDev -2.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Jan 10, 2015
KYGunner from Kentucky
3.92/5 rDev +6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Bright yet dark this wild ale already started kind of wild with a near schizophrenic amber to orange color. The head was thick and frothy and settled nicely for a while.
The aromas are typical and yet atypical. Sour grasses and acidic vinegarish aromas yield a pungent earthy nose. There is some bready scent and some background fruit but also a yeasty component.
Sour, tart, acrid and funky this has all the elements of a farmhouse ale and it seems to go well. Some breadiness and doughy tastes work with a yeasty, light clove and orchard fruit. Some Sour Patch Kid sweetness and a bit of acrid pungency all mix to create an interesting and intriguing beer.
Sep 08, 2013
3.92/5 rDev +6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Bright yet dark this wild ale already started kind of wild with a near schizophrenic amber to orange color. The head was thick and frothy and settled nicely for a while.
The aromas are typical and yet atypical. Sour grasses and acidic vinegarish aromas yield a pungent earthy nose. There is some bready scent and some background fruit but also a yeasty component.
Sour, tart, acrid and funky this has all the elements of a farmhouse ale and it seems to go well. Some breadiness and doughy tastes work with a yeasty, light clove and orchard fruit. Some Sour Patch Kid sweetness and a bit of acrid pungency all mix to create an interesting and intriguing beer.
Sep 08, 2013
Matilda Lambicus from Goose Island Beer Co.
Beer rating:
84 out of
100 with
311 ratings
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