Experimental Raspberry
Hanssens Artisanaal bvba

Murky burnt orange body, no head save a small bunch of bubbles here and there. Sour raspberry lemonade tone runs through the sourness with light seediness, lacto, and balsamic vinegar, bright oak backs all. Smell is more pure raspberry with oak, hay, and balsamic vinegar supporting. Feel is pretty tart, slightly acidic, medium-light bodied, decently smooth with a touch of funk.

 

Shared 375 ml green bottle at local tasting. Colour somewhere between pink and red, no head. Strong and intense aroma of ripe and over-ripe raspberries, also brettanomyces / farmhouse notes. Minimal carbonation. Lovely sour flavour, notes of raspberries and lemons.

 

 

 

3 year aged bottle
Appearance: Moderate haze, golden-amber color, very poor head retention, virtually no head although off-white in color.

Aroma: Raspberry dominant, barnyard, hay, subtle vanilla, slight oak leaning, virtually no malt profile although potentially bread leaning, no hop character

Mouthfeel: virtually no carbonation, medium-low viscosity, moderately astringent due to the yeast character, finishes moderately dry but not as typical for a lambic due to the fruit additions.

Flavor: Raspberry, barnyard, hay, subtle vanilla (I assume from the barrel), rhubarb, apple.

Overall: This is a classic example of a lambic. The little carbonation is true to traditional lambics, which this is aiming to be. I was surprised at the haziness, although I attribute this to the fruit additions. I particularly enjoyed the complex fruit characteristics due to age.

 

 

(Bottled March 2014 so approximately 5 1/2 years old at this point.)

Pours a pink tinged light brown color. No head whatsoever at any point. In fact, the beer looks completely un-carbonated when poured. Some small bubbles are noted coursing from the center of the glass up the beer.

Aroma has notes of barnyard funk, some blue cheese notes, hints of raspberries, oak and some vinegary notes. The raspberry here is quite subtle in the nose, and what you do get is not a bright fruity note but more of an overly ripe, almost too much.

Taste is interesting - Up front its quite acidic, with a slight vinegary twinge. Some raspberry notes come through but again, very subtle with no sweetness - any sugars from the fruit have long since disappeared. That being said, as the palate adjusts to that acidity the background notes start to shine, especially towards the back end. unmistakable notes of wheat, oak, and some slight spicy black peppery notes. Almost astringent.

Feel is essentially flat - like there is an extremely light carbonation to this, but it might as well be non-carbonated. Somewhat astringent on the back end,

Overall this was interesting - Ive had this one fresh and now with some age to it, and frankly its not great either way. The acidity and vinegar character in this is too much for me, but its really the vinegary notes that detract from the beer overall. I wont drink this one again.

Pours a pink'ish ruby red coloration with no head whatsoever. Smell is quite sour and vinegary, with some tart raspberry, faint fruity esters, light funk and woody/musty oak notes as well. Taste follows the nose, being dominated by an extreme sourness that could strip paint and very strong, overdone notes of balsamic vinegar, as well as a lighter, but pleasant tart raspberry presence, quite musty funk and hints of hay, estery fruit notes and a slightly stronger woody/earthy oak presence as well. Finishes with a very strong sourness and some balsamic raspberry vinegar lingering in the aftertaste. Flat mouthfeel with a medium body and no carbonation.

Hanssens Lambic is so inconsistent it's ridiculous, really, but while this batch isn't quite as bad as the Framboose I had, the typical overdone sourness and strong vinegar presence is still there and not a good way, even though there is some nice tart raspberry and estery fruit notes shining through here in the background. What is conistent about it though is the terribly flat mouthfeel that seems to bve typical of Hanssens Lambic,

 

 

 

 

 

L: bright peach amber and is still

S: Raspberries lead the aromas with vanilla, citrus, fruit and mild funk adding dimension

T: flavors are complex, elegant and layered with raspberry most prominent followed up by traces of apple peel, over ripe fruit, tomato, citrus, fruit, mild funk and an oaky slightly astringent finish

F: medium light, uncarbonated, mildly astringent, and moderately acidic with lemon levels of tartness

O: elegant, tart and refreshing

 

375 ml bottle into tulip glass; no bottle dating, Lotnr: B. Pours slightly hazy deep golden amber/light orange color with no head or lacing on the glass. Slight clinging bubbles on the glass. Good appearance. Aromas of huge sour/tart/tangy raspberries, fruit skin/seeds, lemon, lime, peach, pear, pineapple, orange, green apple, melon, white grape/wine, oak, hay, straw, grass, wheat, and cracker; with lighter notes of pepper, leathery/musty funk, white wine vinegar, and yeast/oak earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of fruity/funky/acidic yeast, raspberries, oak, and moderate pale/wheat malt notes; with great strength. Taste of huge sour/tart/tangy raspberries, fruit skin/seeds, lemon, lime, peach, pear, pineapple, orange, green apple, melon, white grape/wine, oak, hay, straw, grass, wheat, and cracker; with lighter notes of pepper, leathery/musty funk, white wine vinegar, and yeast/oak earthiness. Moderate fruity/lactic tart/sourness, fruit tang, and yeast/oak spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of sour raspberries, fruit skin/seeds, lemon, lime, peach, pear, pineapple, orange, green apple, melon, white grape/wine, oak, hay, straw, grass, wheat, cracker, pepper, leathery/musty funk, light vinegar, and yeast/oak earthiness on the finish for a while. Very nice complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/funky/acidic yeast, raspberries, oak, and moderate pale/wheat malt flavors; with a nice malt/tart/sourness and tangy fruit balance. Mildly increasing pucker through the glass, but not overwhelming. Moderate increasing dryness from sourness and tangy fruit. Flat carbonation and light-medium body; with a very smooth and moderately grainy/acidic/tangy/tannic balanced mouthfeel that is nice. Zero warming alcohol for 6%. Overall this is a very nice fruit lambic. All around nice complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/funky/acidic yeast, raspberries, oak, and moderate pale/wheat malt flavors; very smooth and easy to drink; despite the flat and moderately acidic/tannic/drying finish. Extremely jammy raspberries with balanced Brett/Lacto complexity; nice malt backbone and oak presence. Would have preferred some carbonation, but this was a very enjoyable offering. Pretty impressive, and spot on style example.