Oude Kriek
Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen

From a bottle, season 19|20. Cloudy red color with no head. Sour cherry smell. Medium body and a slick feel. Tart cherry and some floral notes with a sour finish. Classic example of the style

 

 

 

 

Cloudy, purple body; nice initial head on first pour that quickly fades to nearly nothing except a faint circular wisp around the perimeter of the glass. A nice musty, fruity aroma; a very faint touch of horse blanket. A wonderfully balanced flavor of cherry sourness, low-key alcohol, and a touch of earthy woodiness; mild to moderate tartness counterbalanced with a moderate fruit sweetness; a smidge of wheat in the background. Medium body; nice mouth puckering tartness, not too intense and nicely offsets the cherry sweetness.

This is just an incredible beer. The blending and barrel-aging artfully melds together some great flavors and produces a sublime mouthfeel.

Pouring temperature: 49 °F; bottling info: BOTTLING DATE 10 OCT 18, BEST BEFORE 26 OCT 28, Blend n° 83 · season 17|18
Additional info: macerated for 5 months, lambics originate from 4 different barrels and 5 different brews

 

Smells like a classy parfume. The aspect remembers the "oinopa ponton", the wine-dark see, that Homer sings in the odyssey. The taste became more and more complex and satisfying while I was drinking it. It's a quite good balance of flavour, alcool, sour and fruit

Blend 32, Season 18|19, Bottled 1/23/19

It’s funny, just last night I had Allagash’s Coolship Cerise, an Americanized Kriek. Now it’s time to have an authentic Belgian version of the style. I’ve been picking up more of these 3 Fonteinen bottles I see on the shelves because they’re pretty much always available for a decent price given what they are, and they never disappoint. Let’s get into this one

Pours a slightly cloudy ruby red with a finger of pinkish white head that quickly fades to a ring and leaves minimal lacing

The cherries are definitely front and center in the nose, but there’s a malty vibe that makes it feel like a funky pie. I’m picking up on aromas of sour cherry, graham cracker, lemon juice, wet hay, pie crust, apple skin, buttery oak, and light tangerine

It has just as much of a cherry presence in taste, but the tartness is even more focused. On the front end of the sip I’m tasting tart black cherry, sharp oak, wheat bread, vanilla, juicy strawberry, lemon juice, and crabapple. The swallow brings notes of tart black cherry, pie crust, lemon juice, wheat bread, cinnamon, vanilla, sharp oak, wet hay, and light apple skin

A medium body pairs with gentle carbonation, resulting in a sharp yet smooth beer. Finishes mostly dry and very refreshing

Oh yeah, this one is great. It goes down ridiculously easy but still has a wild complexity to it

 

 

Blend n` 71 season 17/18

Appearance: Clear red color with no head but a few bubbles that quickly disappeared.

Smell: Moderate barnyard and some tart apple and cherries aromas.

Taste: Tart cherry notes feature upfront in the flavor profile, followed by tart citrus notes, and some faint grassy/hay notes. While the cherries are noticeable there is no sweetness observed unlike many fruited wild ales. The beer finish is dry.

Mouth-feel: Fairly light-bodied with a low level of carbonation, appropriate for the style.

Overall: A good fruit Lambic. The flavor profile incorporates the cherries nicely and comes off very smooth.

 

 

 

Bought at Bottle Craft in San Diego, CA. $18.99 for 12.7 oz bottle. I remember when I first started drinking craft beer, I remember thinking anything over $1 an oz is outrageous. Now that still seems pricy, but not nearly as outrageous. Bottled 6/26/18 consumed 07/04/22. Brought in part to celebrate purchasing my first place and for the holiday. I let it warm to probably ~50F before opening.

A&S: I can see from the inside of the bottle that there is going to be a ton of sediment at the bottom. It will be interesting to see how this changes the different aspects of the beer once poured. Not very lively when opened. Sometimes you get an explosive "POP" when uncorking, this was a mild "plunk". Without the sediment, the beer is translucent almost opaque crimson red. Over time this color shifts more towards marron. The head is basically nonexistent, although interesting. Only when poured is there head, but the bubble is large and transparent, very unusual looking. A few lazy bubbles of carbonation make their way to the surface. The aroma is surprisingly alcohol forward for being 6.6% ABV

T&M: Initially without much of the sediment, the flavor is super tart. Primarily consisting of under-ripped strawberries and cherries upfront. The flavor stays, but the tartness decreases over time. Semi-dry. The mouthfeel is light and more carbonated than I expected. The taste doesn't linger too long and the beer is not heavy on the tonuge.

Overall: Pricewise this beer is I think worth it for special situations. I really enjoyed it, even with the price consisted. It was a phenomenal example of the lambic - fruit style. Close to being on par with Fou' Foune.

375ml bottle poured into tulip.

Pours a hazy cherry red with a ring of pink bubbles around the edges of the glass that leaves scattered blobs of foam as it recedes.

Smells of sour cherries, fresh soil, barnyard funk, raspberry jam on bread and boozy oak staves.

Tastes of cherry vinegar, cold cherry pie, more breakfast table raspberry jam, woody funk, moist earth, and oaken barrel staves.

Feels light and sharp. Medium bodied with fizzy carbonation. Finishes sour.

Verdict: Recommended. This is a seriously sour beer. It's pretty tasty but make sure you brush well after drinking this fucker or all of your teeth will fall out.

 

A five lambic blend with a total maturation process of 30 months. Rose colored somewhat hazy pour with a pink here-and-gone head. It's Drie Fonteinen, so expect subtle nuances--tartness offset by just the right amount of sweet, a robust cherry flavor balanced by undertones of earth and funk. You can taste the history--it's beer art.

 

 

 

 

Pours a deep burgundy-red with a heavy fog to the translucency. Head is a half finger of pink fizz that bubbles away quickly. Aroma is a big slap of cherries, followed by earthy stone, mossy oak, and barn yard funk. It hits hard and quick, bringing with it a little tart funkiness. Cherries are ripe and forward, with a little sweetness that helps smooth out some of the underlying tartness.

Flavor profile is cherries with a huge, funky undertones. A lot happens very quickly - first earthy, stone, and grassy hops flood the senses, before breaking away to reveal ripe black cherries. Underneath is a funky tone, that contrasts the surface level cherry sweetness well, creating a beautiful balance. There is enough tartness to lock the jaw momentarily, bordering on full-on sour, but this trait dissipates as the beer warms. Highs and lows are digital when served cold - that is to say -sharp and contrasting, but as the beer warms, note transitions are mellowed out, smooth like an analog signal.

Mouth feel is medium in thickness with a near-still effervescence. There is a touch of silty grit to the texture, but it's otherwise smooth. Thickness is medium.

Overall, an incredible depth, while still remaining cherry forward. Despite the use of cherries, this is not an overtly sweet beer, carrying heavy tart lambic undertones in both nose and taste.

Served in a 15.5oz Spiegelau tulip from a 375mL bottle. Season 18|19. Bottling date: 03JUL19, consumed 17MAR22, in toast to the memory of Armand. Blend no.86. ABV of 7.2%.

Pours a beautiful ruby red with excellent clarity. Almost no head to speak of, but a good looking beer nonetheless. Aroma is heavy on the cherries (which makes sense). There's a sweetness to it that is mostly pleasant, but there's just enough cough syrup to the aroma for me to knock it down a notch or two.

Taste thankfully follows the good elements of the nose, but not the cough syrup part. While it's cherry-forward, the fruit notes are complemented very well by some lightly tart, earthy funk that really balances this out. Light in the mouth, clean drinking and somewhat low carbonation.

Overall, quite tasty. Rest in peace Armand Debelder.

 

Pours a ruby red with small purplish head that falls quick not any real lace.

Aroma is tart cherries mellowed by sweeter raspberries, good barnyard notes funky and earthy mixed together. Some oak dryness and vinous notes but defiantly more unfermented fruit goodness then wine like fruit notes.

Taste is nice tart cherries right away, then hints of sweeter fruit notes think being sweeter brings you away form the cherry to raspberry or even strawberry like goodness. Finish is the barnyard some light spice and herbal mingled with dry wood notes , hints of the dry red vinous light vinegar hints mingled in. Smooth and complex each sip brings out something a little different almost but probably not in reality.

Mouthfeel is lighter body carbonation is fairly smooth the flavors and vinegar might make it seem lighter also.

Overall a nice little treat.

 

 

 

 

Had this wonderful beer with Christmas dinner.

Poured from a bottle into a small tulip glass. Beautiful purplish ruby red color with brief head and no lacing. Very pleasant smell and taste of tart cherries and sweet strawberries. Raspberries and dry white wine. Bit of funk but a nice clean, crisp feel and taste. Enjoyed it even after dinner. The funk and fruit flavors played off each other as the beer sat in the glass. Helped make Christmas merry!

 

 

12.7 oz bottle dated July 3rd, 2019.

Pours a dark ruby color with a small, effervescent off-white head. The head dissipates almost instantly with no lacing to speak of; Typical for this style of beer. Love the color.

Strong aromas of cherries and raspberry jam, as well as red wine vinegar, wheat, barnyard funk, and earthy, musty oak barrels.

The flavor is a bit difficult to describe. There's just so much going on. There's the expected cherry and raspberry notes. There's also lime zest, honey wheat, green apples, red wine vinegar, pale malts and clove with plenty of earthy oak and damp, grassy hayfunk. Don't think that's a word but it's there.

The feel seems right for the style. Medium-light bodied with lively, effervescent carbonation. Crisp and dry. Very easy to drink.

Overall, this is a great beer. I'm not anywhere near an expert of this style, but it hits all the right notes and complexities that should be expected, and I definitely enjoyed it.

Accidently crashed a bottle share at Beer Nouveau
3 Fonteinen Oude Kriek by poured a red body with good of white head
big cherry aroma then followed up by sherbet notes Oude Kriek
Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen

Just flat out amazing. Like Magnus Carlsen moving a chess piece or something, this is top notch. Yeah, like Leonardo doing anything, even brushing his teeth, this damn thing godsmacks Raul! Holy puckering hell… like this one time I was in Thailand…well, you get the picture.

See ya.

2½yo (2018) bottle...