Soleil De Minuit
Brasserie Cantillon

Huhzubendah from District of Columbia

4.24/5  rDev -6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Brad, I can’t thank you enough for sharing this gem.

Sunset yellowish orange body with a thin, wispy head that quickly dissipates.

Aromas of strawberry, funk, light phenols, white grape, must.

Similar flavor. Tangy with a light prickle of carbonation.

A bucket list beer. Santé!

Jan 20, 2019

grover37 from District of Columbia

4.32/5  rDev -4.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

75c at Akkurat into proper glassware with Lisa (in memory of Bootsie). 895 NOK or about $90.

Big head that goes away. Clear orange gold. Nose is similar to strawberry, perfume, raspberry. Nice but not super funky. Flavor is better with the characteristic Canrillon lemony acid with some white raisin and light raspberry. Stinging tartness in the finish and lingering strawberry from the nose. Feel is sharp and long. Low-med body, pretty dry but not bone dry (will age well), and med-high carb. Really good lambic but not exceptional - lacking the funky depth of 3F, yet somewhat makes up for it with its big acidity. Just worth trying at the high price point.

Sep 01, 2018

ArkyVaughan from New Jersey

4.74/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

Bottle at Akkurat in Stockholm - Batch 3 (2015). Intense aroma of cloudberries - when he opened it, the bartender joked that the whole bar would smell like cloundberries and he was only half joking. Amazing tartness from the berries. This is a must try if you are at Akkurat.

Jan 18, 2018

mothman from Minnesota

4.6/5  rDev +2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Tick 5000 on BA

Batch 3 at Akkurat.

Straw gold color. White head.

This beer lives up the hype. Classic cantillon funk and light sourness. Hints of lemon, hay, and basement musk. Nice fruit from the cloudberries, but not overpowering.

Light bodied. Hints of tannins in the finish. Ends clean. Lively fell but not over carbed.

This was a real treat to finally try this. It was as good as I was hoping for. Everything I enjoy about cantillon with a twist on the fruit.

Dec 27, 2016

Kurmaraja from California

4.42/5  rDev -2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

A bottle I didn't think I'd get to try. A 2 oz pour at Zwanze day, Chicago, 2015. Not a pretty beer. Relatively flat, watery, a few lazy bubbles. Smell is floral, musky, reminiscent of tangled berry vines along a northern creekbed ... warm summer underbrush, spicy. A hint of yogurt followed by Cantillon's house character of lemon and hay bales. Flavor has a perfumed, almost unctuos berry preserve note.

Something about this is strongly reminiscent of Ale Apothecary's Spencer - the way the fruit is subsumed, creating a complex, dense flavor that doesn't come across as initially fruity. All the simple sweetness of the fruit is transsubstantiated and you're left with all the structural components, the acidity, savory notes, the plant elements and earth. For all the intensity of aroma and flavor, the feel was a bit ethereal, lighter than expected.

Sep 20, 2015

MattSweatshirt from Texas

4.38/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

750ml @ Akkurat

Pours out gueuzey. Clear apple juice like with a thin white cap.

The tumbler glass isn't the best for aroma but a fresh pour yields a nice smell. I am anticipating the taste greatly. Has the Loon funk to it and plenty of fruitiness.

Pretty funky with hay and barnyard and horse blanket, etc. Sharp acidity stings the throat. Fruity with the acidity of green apple and lemon. Apricot, green grape, and pear.

Light carbonation and dry as hell, but gets the mouth watering.

The price tag hurts so much, but I somehow made it to Stockholm so why not.

Jul 22, 2014

mltobin from Connecticut

4.54/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

750mL bottle served at that place in Stockholm, lambic basket and proper glassware.

The appearance is a light orange tone with a small white head that does not sit atop for very long. Pulling this towards my nose to check the aroma and I get funk, hay and do get some cloudberries coming through. The aroma did not disappoint and continues to build anticipation of tasting this beer. Upon taking a small sip, I taste oak, a general earthy funk and a good dose of cloudberries. I am someone who has enjoyed cloudberries several times over the years and this beer did a great job of using this Northern Scandinavian fruit. The mouthfeel is a bit champagne like and finishes quite dry. It leaves you with some of that sourness, but not too much. All in all, this beer lived up to my hopes and expectations, which were high. It is a great beer and worth the $.

May 09, 2014

mjohnson17 from Illinois

3.71/5  rDev -17.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Bottle shared at Zwanze Day 2013.

A: Clear pale yellow/orange. No head, small foam/head ring around the edges of the glass, no head in the middle of glass.

S: Fruity. Not sure what an actual cloudberry smells like but I get apricot, cranberry, pears, some white grape musk. Mostly light fruit nose, a bit of acetone.

T: Disappointingly acetone/nail polish remover. There is some of that fruit that I mention in the smell, white grape, pear, come citrus like orange and lemon. Very little sour or mustiness, do pick up some wood/oak.

M: Nice enough. Surprisingly carbed mouthfeel for very little head on the pour.

O: Really fortunate and glad I got to try this, especially outside of Sweden. Definitely didn't live up to the hype. It was a solid enough offering from Cantillon but to be honest would take most of their regular lineup any day.

Sep 16, 2013

joel66 from New York

4.61/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5

Batch 2

poured golden yellow with white fluffy head and nice lacing.

The nose was stone fruit and citrus with a suttle musty wood character.

Flavor was musty oak, juicy apricot and tart berries.

Champagne like mouthfeel with a complex finish

Overall- delicious

Aug 15, 2013

emerge077 from Illinois

4.49/5  rDev -0.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

2013 edition. A huge thank you to the appropriate parties for the opportunity to try this.
Served in a small wine taster glass, quick review from written notes.

Bright gold with sharp clarity, frothy edging of white foam and spotty lace in the glass. Seemingly little color attributed to the yellow-orange cloudberries.

Unusual aromas, medicinal camphor oil, green olives, olive oil, honey sweetness, green vines, sour fruit woven in under all that.

Super sour, intense and unusual fruit character. Dry finish, oaky sandalwood with an unripe green raspberry tartness. Salivary glands work into overdrive, the mouth literally waters with each sip. Overall a unique and unusual fruit lambic worth seeking out.

Jun 20, 2013

WillCarrera from Ohio

4.66/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

750 ml bottle at Akkurat, 2012 vintage, poured into a gueuze glass.

A- Pours a clear golden orange color, produces a thin white head that recedes to a ring, leaves some spotty lacing.

S- Smells absolutely amazing, the berries are huge, juicy, and smell delicious. There's also a lot of hay and dry must, along with a bit of acidity. This is crazy good.

T- Moderate tartness, nice mix of lactic and acetic, a mild herbal, leafy bitterness, along with a very prominent berry flavor, which again is awesome. Finishes very dry with a musty, woody funk.

M- Medium-bodied, moderate to lowish carbonation, has a smooth, soft feel with a very dry finish.

O- This is a really, really delicious beer, one of the best I've had from Cantillon. The berry flavor and aroma are incredible, it still might improve with more acidity, I expect this would be drinking really well in a few years as well. Hopefully I'll have the chance to try it again.

Jun 10, 2013

Fux from France

4.52/5  rDev +0.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Bottle from the recently released 2012 vintage, 750ml. Generously shared by a true lambic lover during an epic sour tasting.
A: The beer is yellow / orange with golden copper glints. Pours crystal clea rwith a white head that fades quite quickly.
S: The nose is very fruity. The cloudberries outstand (there is 6€ worth of fruit on a single bottle, hence this nose!). it reminds me a little bit of red currants and cranberries (with little sourness however). There is also tropical fruits notes and some pear. A light funky scent and some hay aromas in the bakbone.
T: The palate is surprisingly little sour, with almost no tartness on it. It emphasizes much more the fruity flavors, with cloudberry, red currant, orange, mango. It also shows very nice wood flavors. It is not the fruity explosion of a fresh Foufoune, but there are various fruits layers here that express in a brilliant way and which should age well.
M: The mouthfeel is not much sour, but very bright. The beer is very easy to drink, refreshing.
O: A very nice treat. I'm very happy to have been able to try this one. This is a very solid offer from Cantillon, once again.

May 10, 2013

MasterSki from Canada (ON)

4.54/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Review #2500. So I missed drinking a magnum of this beer in 2009, as when I visited Akkurat, they were undergoing renovations and their cellar was inaccessible. After my near-miss I had largely abandoned hope of trying this beer, but lo and behold it shows up at a friend's house less than a mile from where I live. 1999 cork, served in Hill Farmstead stemware.

A - It's still carbonated after all these years. Removing the cork yields a nice pop, and a careful pour yields some quick-dissolving white foam that settles to a partial ring and some stray bubbles. Lightly hazed dark orange body.

S - As someone who's enjoyed cloudberry jam on occasion, I was pleasantly surprised by the persistence of the fruit character after 13 years. Slightly overripe cloudberries mingle with musky funk, mild vinegar sourness, and perhaps a faint hint of oxidation. The aroma is quite potent, and leaps from the glass.

T - The taste, on the other hand, is quite sour, with white wine vinegar and a lightly salty mineral character I get from many Cantillon offerings. Berry flavor is more understated, lending more in the way of a tart, candy flavor. I think I prefer the balance of funk, fruit, and tartness found in the aroma, but this will definitely please lovers of all things acidic.

M - Lower carbonation, medium-light body, and exceptionally dry on the palate. There's some tooth-coating candy stickiness left behind. Not quite as moisture-obliterating as the Feestbier.

D - I must agree with Arne - magnums are the appropriate serving format for this beer. I could imagine crushing 1.5L of this on the Akkurat patio with the sun still shining at 9pm. However, I think there are at least a half-dozen lambics I'd choose over this one if I were stuck on a desert island.

Jun 29, 2012

Tnudish from Wisconsin

4.6/5  rDev +2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Wow, never thought I would have an opportunity to try this beer. This is without a doubt the pinnacle of my beer drinking career. I will try to do the beer justice with this review. Cork denotes this is the 1999 vintage.

A-The beer pours a hazy tangerine color with a small white head. Great carbonation still after so long.

S-I’ve never smelled or tasted a cloudberry, so these next two categories will be hard to judge. The nose is incredibly musty with some pretty prominent urine notes, I don’t know why, but it’s incredibly appealing to me.

T-Soleil is crazy sour, probably the most sour Cantillon I’ve ever had. Typical Cantillon funk and lemon rind.

M-Light mouthfeel, gentle carbonation, good acidity, and a moderate finish.

O-Fantastic beer and such a treat to enjoy, I would probably still rate Loerik above this, but that takes nothing away from this. An incredible experience that I’ll never forget. Thanks guys!

Jun 26, 2012

Sean9689 from Illinois

4.25/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

First, this beer wasn't only available in magnums (sorry, Arne). Secondly, this was an unlabeled 750ml with a cork from 1999 into a Narke tulip given to a friend by a really good friend not in the USA.

A - Pours golden in color, fizzy white head, bubbles on top.

S - Super funky tart nose, light fruit, some booze for only 5%. The fruits are sweet but I'm not exactly sure I can pick out cloudberries. Musk, hay, and light acidity.

T - Super sour, tart, light booze burn on the finish, lightly oxidized, light fruit aspect....not sure if it's cloudberries or not, but some fruit is there. For only 5%, I'm surprised how much alcohol there is on the way down. The finish is very tart, light fruit.

M - Light body, light carbonation, dry finish.

O - Sour...very sour. Not as much finesse as I thought there would be with this Lambic. I think the fruit has been overtaken by the tart funky notes, but still, there's some complexity. I am grateful to have tried this beer, and I know I'll never have it again. Thanks to my friend for making this happen because of some genuine beer karma....much deserved.

Jun 24, 2012

alfrantzell from California

5/5  rDev +10.9%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Soleil de Minuit is a simple lambic, really --

There are the cloudberries, slightly sweet, somewhat tart, but still fresh after eleven years in the bottle. Then comes the lambic, easily recognizable as Cantillon - ripe socks, yellow woodsorrel, and antique armoires. The whole thing goes down with a champagne consistency.

-- and since this was available only in magnums, that came in handy!

Apr 28, 2010

ggaughan from Pennsylvania

4.4/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

I have been waiting to try this beer for so long and was dissapointed to find they did not have 75cl bottles of this at Akkurat when I visited in August 2008. On a return trip in September 2009 my cousin krkearney and I split a 1.5 litre magnum of it ourselves! Vintage 1999. The beer poured a slight hazy golden color with a 1/2 inch head. Bottle appeared flat as there was no pop when the cork was removed but there was definite life left in the bottle. The nose had a very unique and interesting berry character. A bit tart as well. The taste had a strong tart and acidic character. Lovely berry notes, a bit of wood and pepper in the background. The cloudberries are very present in this beer and make for a fantasticly unique beer.

Oct 10, 2009

bark from Sweden

4.05/5  rDev -10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Vintage 1999. This beer is probably only sold at the beer bar Akkurat in Stockholm, who made this experiment together with Cantillon.

The colour is orange-red-brown and the liquid is somewhat shady. There is no virtually no head at all, although there is a thin white lacing.

The smell is an almost unbelievable blend of sweet cloudberries and sour vinegar. There are also some notes of wheat flour and iodine.

The taste is as complex as one could have expected; there are dry notes of lemon peels, white vinegar, iodine, lime, fruits and cloudberries (which didn’t dominate the taste as much as I had thought). The aftertaste got a loch and developing taste of cloudberries, a full sour body and salt-sour notes of jam and gravy.

The carbonation was representative for the gueuzes with lots of very fresh small bubbles.

Sep 09, 2005