50°N-4°E (Cognac, Rum Mélasse & Marsala)
Brasserie Cantillon

 

b9 Nov 17 2021

 

 

It pours a rich amber with copper highlights. The nose is deeply layered—molasses and ripe banana from the rum, stewed fruits and toasted nuts from the Marsala, and floral elegance with spiced pear from the Cognac casks. On the palate, it opens with dark caramel, candied orange, and prune jam, evolving into warming spices, toffee, and balsamic-drenched figs. The mouthfeel is smooth, with mild carbonation. It finishes long, with fading notes of dried apricot, cocoa, and soft tobacco. Rich and balanced, this is barrel-forward but deep, ideal for group sipping or post-dinner indulgence. Overall, it's a well-integrated gueuze that showcases the barrel just as much as the grape.

Moeder Lambic Blind Tasting 2025

 

 

Pour at de Garde 10th Anniversary. Bright, clear golden pour, small bubbly head. Fruity, tart aroma, aspects of white grapes and apples, pit fruit, yeasty funk. Taste is a sweet and tart fruity blend, with the additon of light savory spice notes. Barrel notes all over this, woody.

Pours a slightly cloudy, golden amber coloration with a tiny, fizzy head that soon fades to a thin ring around the inside of the glass. Smells of doughy malt and plenty of fruity accents, with notes of apricot, plum, cherry, apple and white grape, some spice, with accents of clove, cinnamon and vanilla, as well as rich, musty, leathery funk and tannic oak. Taste follows the nose, with an excellent balance of light doughy malt and plenty of diffrent fruit coming through, with notes of peach, apricot, plum, cranberry, cherry, apple, pear, white grape and gooseberry, some spice, with notes of clove, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg and tamarind, sweeter notes of brown sugar and honey, as well as some musty, leathery funk and tannic, earthy oak. Finishes with a light sweetness and tartness, as well as fruity accents, spice, funk and oak lingering in the aftertaste. Velvety mouthfeel with a medium body and light/medium carbonation.

This makes for a wonderful Gueuze that really is quite enriched by the barrel-aging, with the Marsala and Cognac barrels standing out particularly, adding a vast array of additional fruit and spice to the esters already present, as well as sweeter accents and just a hint of booziness in the finish. The sweetness and tartness are very well-balanced, with funk and oak fitting in there very nicely as well, while that light booziness never feels too overpowering. Overall, this makes for a superbly balanced Gueuze with tremeduous depth of character and while it still does not quite reach the lofty heights of 3F Golden Blend, it's certainly the best Gueuze that I've had from Cantillon so far. Perhaps a bit lacking in carbonation, but still with quite a good, velvety mouthfeel.