SPON - Méthode Traditionelle
Jester King Brewery

SPON - Méthode TraditionelleSPON - Méthode Traditionelle
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From:
Jester King Brewery
 
Texas, United States
Style:
Gueuze
Ranked #12
ABV:
5.8%
Score:
96
Ranked #1,068
Avg:
4.34 | pDev: 6.22%
Reviews:
31
Ratings:
167
Status:
Active
Rated:
Sep 26, 2022
Added:
Oct 09, 2016
Wants:
  44
Gots:
  27
Formerly Spontaneous Blend 1 and SPON — Méthode Gueuze
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by StonedTrippin:
Photo of StonedTrippin
Reviewed by StonedTrippin from Colorado

4.45/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
i think people always fall into the trap of expecting things to taste like other things. this i dont believe is supposed to taste like it came from the lambic producers of belgium, and it certainly doesnt, but its really awesome beer, an expression of a place far away from there actually, and while quite a bit more subtle than what we have come to expect from belgian lambic, it is no less complex. looks like nothing out of the ordinary, a very chalky washed out pale yellow beer with a short white head, patient looking, although there are some bubbles. aroma and flavor mirror one another, bretty funk well ahead of bacterial sour, which is pretty classic jester king for me. lemon, funk, subtle cheese, lemongrass, sauv blanc wine with attendant acidity and floral elements, wet new oak, must, spring soil, honey, aged hops, dry straw, its very complex but its not an in your face kind of beer, subtle in the overall, but fully loaded with flavor for the careful drinker, better and better as it warms up too. soft in the feel, long lasting but dry too, brain and tongue connected here. it takes some skill to age and blend beer like this obviously, and these guys again show how far ahead of the game they are with this one. so excited to see what else this morphs into as time goes on. looks like some fruited editions have already come around. spectacular wild beer.

edit: I guess they are doing numbered blends of this now, and i recently had the privilege of drinking both number 2 and number 4 in the same session, both of which have the same sort of subtleties as the number 1 reviewed above here, but i think are both quite a bit more evolved and delicious to be honest. i thought the fruitiness is both was way more developed, peaches and nectarines and white grapes and floral honey, the 2 a little drier than the 4, which had a berry note at the end as well, but it comes in waves, and i think the aged hops stand out a little more. not sure if this is a solera sort of thing, where there are just older and older threads in the blend each time or what, but i thought these both were even better than the 1, yet still quite unique from the lambic and gueuze of belgium, a departure from those, despite all the funk and complexity and the way they were made. i like it being a touch sweeter, i think it extends the experience. still very delicate and refined. feeling lucky to have experience these, especially in the same session. increasing a few scores here to reflect the wonderful progression this series is making. still dying to try some fruited ones!

edit: finally got my lips on number 3 2017, and i think its hands down my favorite yet. in addition to having all the classic old world lambic properties that the other blends i have had have possessed, this one also has distinct cedar wood notes to it. older and tighter in the bottle its like an old mans cedar chest when i pour it into the glass, insanely fragrant and appealing, and that aromatic wood character stays through the flavor, cut by a deep lemon acidity and allowed to linger long with the funk at the end, shockingly complex and delicious. each number should probably have its own listing here now, the beers are pretty different, at least in my experience where i have caught them at various stages of their bottle development. number 3 is my favorite of the lot so far!
Nov 05, 2016
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.25 by 4DAloveofSTOUT from Illinois

Sep 26, 2022
 
Rated: 4.18 by edthehead from Maryland

May 30, 2021
 
Rated: 4.23 by SadMachine from New Jersey

May 15, 2021
 
Rated: 4.38 by Tuck_leepulin from Texas

Jan 01, 2021
 
Rated: 3.94 by Sammy from Canada (ON)

Nov 15, 2020
 
Rated: 4.5 by TallGuyCM from California

Sep 01, 2020
 
Rated: 4.29 by Magery from Kentucky

Jul 25, 2020
 
Rated: 4.14 by T_Hass from Georgia

Apr 22, 2020
 
Rated: 4.75 by RiceOwls27 from Texas

Apr 16, 2020
 
Rated: 4.42 by Hangryginger from Connecticut

Dec 30, 2019
 
Rated: 4.5 by TrilliumFan from Massachusetts

Sep 30, 2019
 
Rated: 4.38 by ckeegan04 from Texas

Feb 03, 2019
Photo of REVZEB
Reviewed by REVZEB from Illinois

4.31/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Burnt orange in color with ring of bubbles up top and the occasional island of bubbles on the surface. Smell is the best part, just breathe it in. Funk of multiple varieties: barnyard, basement, and horse blanket. Some orange zest, brett, oak tannins, lemon and hay as well. Taste is not as funky, but has a smoothness of flavor where the blending is not exaggerated, belgian yeast is pervasive in taste. Crisp, smooth and cool in feel
Jan 29, 2019
 
Rated: 4.28 by bmf5581 from North Carolina

Oct 09, 2018
 
Rated: 4.28 by DVMin98 from North Carolina

Aug 19, 2018
Photo of joaopmgoncalves
Reviewed by joaopmgoncalves from Portugal

4.81/5  rDev +10.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
Drinking this in my parent's backyard, sunny and warm. It's roughly my 700th unique beer, and I'm on vacations. I want to finally open this - as it was being cellared for more than one year on my cellar, and now it's basically the time to open the SPON 2, bottled on the 24th of February 2016.

I pour this beer into my new Mikkeller taster glass that I brought from Mikkeller Baghaven Copenhagen (without asking the waiter but they have many of these).

A: Body is yellow with some darker hues. It's not totally cloudy but you can sense a medium opaqueness in here. The head is minimal and exists only to the sides of the glass.
S: God, the aroma on this is so light for a cellared Gueuze. You can find some fruitiness, not that forward of course as this is a lambic with no added fruits - but you can sense peaches, apple and wheat. After this, you can also find the usual tartness, a very smooth funkiness that enbodies everything in a perfect way.
T: Taste starts off with a sweet tone, incoming from the wheat and then turns to an almost champagne like tartness and ends beautifully in a dry tone that's purely enjoyable.
M: Body is medium. Carbonation is perfect. Alcohol is minimal. Sourness is mild to smooth.
O: LONG LIVE THE METHODE TRADITIONELLE.
Jul 12, 2018
Photo of JamFuel
Reviewed by JamFuel from Sweden

4.65/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
On tap at Mikkeller & Friends.

Pours a clear golden hue of orange, with just a slight hint of foam.

Smell is a bit funky, with soft notes of grapefruit, orange and elderflower.

Taste is just beautiful. The funk, oranges, grapefruit and elderflower from the nose are all still here, and are joined by notes of orange peel, Campari and a slight touch of bitterness. The sourness and acidity are spot on, powerful, but not overwhelming. Very complex, but not daunting. Perfect.

Mouthfeel is thin to medium with sparkly carbonation.

Overall, a superb gueuze, probably the best non-Belgian I've ever had and on par with the best, Cantillon, 3 Fonteinen, Girardin and Hanssens.
Jun 23, 2018
Photo of Ciocanelu
Reviewed by Ciocanelu from Romania

4.1/5  rDev -5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
On tap. Lambic funk notes, tart, yeasty. Taste is woody, a bit buttery, tart, bitter fruit pits. Light body, quite effervescent. It really feels like a traditional lambic with lots of rustic notes.
May 12, 2018
 
Rated: 4.69 by stewartea from Texas

May 02, 2018
SPON - Méthode Traditionelle from Jester King Brewery
Beer rating: 96 out of 100 with 167 ratings