Magic Lambic
Brasserie Cantillon

Consumed at the brewery. Pours dark cherry red with a thin pink head that stays throughout the session. Tart and highly carbonated with blueberry and raspberry flavors. Finished dry. An excellent beer.

It poured a deep almost non translucent purple. There is heavy raspberries with a musty funk at the nose. Just hints of vanilla, resembling raspberry cream. The taste likewise is similar, abrasive raspberries with a musty funk, heavy acidity. Vanilla adds a little cream to the mix, blueberries just faintly there. The mouthfeel is light bodied but quite acidic.

Probably my least favorite from Cantillon, but clearly the majority will beg to differ.

 

 

 

(~5 oz tiny snifter taster pour at Monk's for Zwanze Day 2022... review copied from scant notes taken on my phone)

funky berry pie...

what I can add from memory: I can only surmise that, considering some of the tips I've heard in (home)brewing podcast interviews regarding achieving 'pie crust' flavor in beer (use of vanilla), this is why I immediately (but not intentionally) tasted mixed berry pie, not that this had any degree of desserty sweetness to it, though its fruit flavors were, of the three fruited lambics in the first flight, the most intense... this one had a mild haze to its appearance, perhaps influencing my perception of its rather cloudy expressivity... might have had the most broad appeal of the lot in that first flight... yes, I would of course love to try this from a bottle (2040)

Pours a striking light purple, light pink head, small amount of opacity. Nose is extremely expressive with vanilla, blueberry, raspberry, pineapple, and cherry; some Hawaiian Punch vibes as well. Taste follow closely with cherry Kool Aid sweetness off the bat before transitioning quickly to a lingering earthy bitterness. Vanilla plays later on the palate but lingers long after the finish. Mouthfeel is clean with crisp carbonation. Overall, an extremely enjoyable drink, though the vanilla can become a little overwhelming after a second (or third) glass.

 

On tap at Ave Pub

 

 

Bottled 3/31/21; drank 7/16/22 @ Flesk Brewing.

See-through dull red appearance.

Almost no off-white head; no lace.

Tart strawberry & blueberry notes in the nose.

Sticky, medium mouthfeel.

All sharp, tart strawberry & blueberry; I didn't detect any vanilla.

Not subtle, and a bit punishing for me, but it's bold & assertive at least.

 

 

 

Here's another selection from Zwanze Day '21 in Reno. Yes, still doing a double take that Northern Nevada got a Zwanze Day.

Pours a different color than expected, was expecting something more red/pink, instead this came out flirting with brown. Cool beige head with that undercurrent pink vibe I was expecting moreso in the body. The aroma goes harder on raspberry, then vanilla, then blueberry in terms of pungency.

Taste is pretty well done and surpassed my expectations for my first knowing foray into a lambic + vanilla. The vanilla seems to be in a proportion right in my wheelhouse. If you like your acidity tempered, this does a great job at that, but while also giving a good impression that is neither too heavy nor too miniscule in terms of vanilla, the taste. Usual heavy but delicious amounts of berries in the Lou Pepe series is no different here, just with vanilla. Its pretty clean, I noticed that Zwanze had either a ton of earthy and funky notes, or leaning clean, this one leaned clean. Of course its more difficult to get those spon notes when you gussy it up with adjuncts, but rest assured, this is an impressive beer.

Didn't want to like it, but here we go, another lambic I'll prolly never acquire a bottle of that is really good on its merits outside of hype, trends, name etc. . .

Another one I enjoyed during 2021 Zwanze Day.
This pours a beautiful looking light pink. Lots of berry on the nose, and something that reminds me of …strawberry cheesecake? I get the sweet strawberry notes, but there’s a light funky, soured milk, almost vaguely …vomity?... note. The cheesecake sat out too long? It’s interesting, if uneven, with a clean finish.

On draft. Lighter purple bodied, a bit of a pink hue as well as a darker reddish head. Bright raspberry, like LPF but with an earthy fruit presence which I attribute to the blueberry but which is fairly mild. The vanilla adds a nice smoothness, really not so much sweetness but more of a slick mouthfeel that smooths out the fruit and acidity. Nice mild brewery funk, lemon and hay in the backend. Medium body, good carbonation. 2021 version was a touch more acidic than I remember the original Zwanze rendition that I had years back.

 

i have been skeptical of vanilla beans in lambic types, seeing it more and more, but this is cantillon, and if anyone can do it right, its them. it was awesome to be able to drink this at the zwanze day celebration this year, on draft no less. this is gorgeous stained glass purple with a really deep color density, a pretty white head on it, and good clarity too. the beer is lou pepe framboise base with some blueberry blended in, then with madagascar vanilla beans, crazy! the nose is amazing, tangy blueberries making their presence known right away, even in this small proportion, they transform the framboise into a really cool fruity mixture, raspberry still obvious, still driving this, but i get hints of tart red currant and jammy blackberry now too because of the influence of the blueberry, even tannic red wine grapes because of the blueberry skins, really dynamic. its sweet from the vanilla to me, which isnt subtle, natural as can be though, sort of sensual and soft with the fruit, and this seems lower acid than others, sweetened quite a bit by the fruit. the flavor is epic, the vanilla somehow enhances not only the berries but also the funky lambic base, and it seems way woodier, more bretty, and more mature in taste than it did in the nose. the blueberries again pop, the vanilla makes it almost creamy, and even though its desserty and i cant taste much grain, i can still totally appreciate the quality lambic at its core. tart but not overly acidic, highly vinous, and regal and fancy and special tasting, there just is nothing else like this. a delight to drink, expansive mouthfeel, not a ton of residual sugar, everything so real and honest and robust. amazing beer, just incredible. i feel lucky to have been able to attend this event and drink full pours of all these amazing cantillon beers i thought id never drink!