Blanche
Brasserie Fantôme

Lemon peel, hay, and green apple on the nose. Head thinned out quickly. First sip is lemon verbena and a light touch of horse blanket. Finishes dry, lightly hoppy and just short of tart. This is like a nice rustic saison and a St. Bernardus wit had a baby. A beautiful Belgian baby. Sophisticated and drinkable. Very very nice.

Pours a hazy golden, less of that lighter straw haze you get from a regular Witbier, but this is a Fantome. No head retention at all whatsoever. Nose is quite interesting - I get basil, plum, rosemary, and peach. Like a summer fruit pie that is accentuated with herbs. I get a lemon and lemon verbena from this. Maybe some very overripe banana as well. Limited amount of carb if any. You really don't know what you're going to get a with a 'tome and that Ghost is just chock full o mystery. This, to me, just is weird to the point that I had to put it down after a few sips. The lack of carb makes this so strange and unwelcoming. The flavors are strange enough without that but that just tilts it further in the wrong direction. Not for me.

everything fantome is so stupid good, doesnt matter what anyone says, fresh or old, common or rare, they all hit for me, this is the kind of beer i just live for, bottle conditioned, weird and rustic but not cultured saison yeast of generic persuasion and not sour either, although this might ring in a little more tart than other fantome beers. 2020 vintage, i had to have it. one of the lower alcohol fantome brews i can recall, usually they all say 8% abv spiced saison, so this was a little more clear, witbier inspired apparently, but equal parts saison to be sure, green glass stink all through it, although more right when we blast out the cork than after it sits for a minute, like that skunk walks off slowly, saunters if you will. the beer is immaculately clear through much of the bottle, more clear than any wit in the game, sparkling like french bubbles, looks so sexy and refined, to a crazy degree for these guys, high head and everything, but more pulpy and hazy towards the bottom, i like the more intense yeast profile the dregs bring to life, no complaints with my extra portion. this is so special, nose and taste of lemongrass, lime leaf, jasmine, clover, tangerine peel, bretty as they come, mature now, even a wood note although i dont know it saw any, light vanilla, white pepper, anise seed, coriander, tajin, and some unidentifiable uniqueness in the ferment, like how can this be so dynamic?! black pepper too, birch bark, white tea, elderflower, burdock, its insane, herbal, citrusy, funky and old, oxidized in the best way, wet paper, dusty bricks, old wheat, this rules. this is not for everyone, not even for most true witbier lovers probably, but its for me. so esoteric and strange, this is everything i stand for and nothing i dont. the glory of fantome writ large!

25.4oz bottle. Poured out a slightly cloudy, straw-yellow color with a large, white head of bubbly foam. It left sticky rings of lace. It smelled of barnyard funk, straw, hay and wheat. Nice cracked wheat taste with a funky bite of spices.

Mostly cloudy golden body with a large white head, and thick splotches of lacing. Getting herbal hops with light dankness, bready belgian yeast, slight ester, wheat and lemon in the nose. Familiar nose for those who have had others by fantome. Taste is surpassingly cleaner: wheat and bready yeast rise to meet the pop of lemon, apple, and pithy grapefruit, with almost a lingering grape to it with the herbal and weedy hops, though not as strong as they are in the nose. Sneaky complex, easily delicious. Feel is yeasty foremost, more bright and has a shot of juice to it, lifts on the palate as you sip.

Bottled on:

A - Light to medium gold with slight haze and lot of vibrant carbonation and dense vibrant white creamy head resting on top.

S - Funk and citrus with a slight bit of rotten egg skunkiness (but in a good way if you can even imagine that).

T - Citrus, funk, and coriander. No more, no less.

M - Medium body with lots of carbonation that gives way to a soft, gentle finish.

O - A really nice beer with a hefty price tag. Glad to finally try this one but not again.

So happy to see this finally now that Lime is importing the brand.

Best before September 2025 - consumed on 6/20/2022 - poured from a capped and corked 750mL bottle into my Hoegaarden tumbler. This batch is up a bit to 4.5% ABV.

Pale, hazy, naples yellow body with a faint eggshell surface slick fed by a highly active stream of bubbles. Fluffy, slight lacing; average retention.

Quite floral nose with hints of vanilla, orange blossom, honey, and herbal/spice notes. Sweet/tart with some hints of wood sorrel and dandelion.

Grain-forward with wonderful interplay between wheat (einkorn? spelt?) and spices (coriander, green peppercorn?). Medium bitter and sour, but these elements fade in the long, dry, woodsy, grainy finish. Unique, phenol-forward yeast character adds further complexity to the flavor profile.

Medium bodied, crisp, well carbonated, and refreshing. Grows richer and milkier with the bottle sediment mixed in more thoroughly.

A lively and complex beer, but reasonably balanced and refreshing despite defying some style conventions.

 

 

Poured from 750mL bottle into my BeerAdvocate teku. Bottle is labeled 4.5% ABV.

Appearance: light golden hue with a moderate haze and a thick finger of frothy eggshell foam atop. Pretty!

Smell: malty and wheaty, as you might expect. There's a bit of bright fruitiness in there that might be coriander, as well as an orangey note. There's also a bit of skunkiness to this; could be an issue with the green bottle, it's hard to say. Overall good, but the slight skunkitude is not great.

Taste: flavor is quite malty with a nice lightness and a finish that's a bit bitter. There's a pithy character to the bitterness, which is reasonable for the style, but perhaps a bit forward for my taste. It's interesting, though not totally to my taste.

Mouthfeel: medium body with a good level of carbonation and creaminess. Nice!

Overall: this is an interesting, and perhaps challenging, example of the style. I think of my favorite witbiers as being subtle and smooth, and this is anything but. Don't know if we have simply a green bottle situation here, or if Fantôme just does a rougher, more bitter witbier by design. I might try it again if I ever make it to Belgium, otherwise, I'll give it a pass in the future.

 

2021 vintage, Julian date “1401” faintly etched at the top of the neck, the 140th day of 2021, March ‘21. A year old and now imported by Lime Ventures, Concord, CA. High today of 68° in Chicago, warmest day of the year thus far... a cause for celebration.

Pale gold, hazy on the second pour, huge rocky head that billows up above the rim like a tall cumulonimbus cloud. Racing streamers of carbonation are ever present. Pillowy surface texture.

Aroma is earthy, noble hops and a green bottle funk that’s not unpleasant in a mixed-ferm witbier, creamy wheat and mineral-laden well water round out the simple, rustic aroma.

Gentle acidity, yeast has a touch of peppery saison phenolics, earthy noble hop, smooth and creamy wheaty malt base. Mild citrus peel and ghostly coriander, used sparingly. Rustic with some nuance to keep it interesting. Medium bodied, really smooth and supple, ample carb.

Overall this is excellent, and a great pairing with food. Not so much a traditional witbier as a low abv mixed-ferm wheat Grisette or some hybrid of those. Definitely very interesting and a repeat buy for me.

 

Poured into a Gulden Draak tulip. Pours a lightly hazy, medium golden amber with a fine, one finger white head that dissipates slowly to a thick cap with nice lacing. Aroma of saison yeast and grainy malt, coriander, apple, light lemon, light summer herbs and pepper. Flavor is dry saison malt, saison yeast, citrus rind, coriander, faint bitter herbs, bretty funk; dry, bitter finish with lingering grapefruit rind. Medium bodied with sharp carbonation. Well, not a traditional wit, but it does taste like what I'd expect a wit from Fantome to taste like: light grainy malt, coriander and clove to justify being a wit, then dry saison character with bitter herbs and light citrus. Drier and more bitter than expected and the citrus notes were not traditional, but appreciated. I've tried only a few Biere de Champagnes, but that is the style this reminded me of the most: light malt, very dry and bubbly. Admittedly more spicing and bitterness than a champagne, but otherwise reminiscent. I'm not sure the lower ABV and gentler malt body support the expected Fantome spicing and bitterness as well as some of their more intense offerings, but there is a lot of flavor and character here for a 4.5% beer. Unique, interesting and enjoyable.

 

 

 

 

 

This beer pours a pale yellow and is less cloudy than the other wits. It also has a more intense flowery, citrus aroma than other Witbieren and offers up a series of spicy, fruity, herbal tastes. It is hard to pin down exactly what specific citrus and fruit flavors are wandering around in this beer but they are there. There is not a lot of carbonation but the beer is refreshing, a touch dry and drinkable.

 

Pours orange with a quickly fading head.
Aroma of orange peel, herbal notes, soft farmhouse notes. Quite acidic.
Similar flavours, more tartness and some big mandarin notes. More orange peel, somewhat herbal.

 

 

this should be a recent vintage (2013-14). amazing, like tart passion fruit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

750 ml bottle at Delirium Cafe in Brussels, no bottle date that I can find, poured into a snifter.

A- Pours a hazy golden color with a finger of white head, nice retention and spotty lacing.

S- Funky, lots of citrus peel with a nice herbal element to it.

T- Very fruity, lots of pear, orange peel, some lemon, a bit tart towards the finish, some wheat sweetness as well.

M- Light-bodied, smooth feel, nice carbonation.

O- A nice wheat beer, actually quite flavorful and obviously very drinkable at 4.00% ABV, it's too bad we don't get this one in the US or I would buy it more often.

 

 

292nd Review
750ml bottle poured into New Belgium snifter
Vintage: Didn’t catch this, but it was a newer label.

From notes. Enjoyed a couple summers back at a backyard BBQ with the usual suspects in the Mile High Knight's tasting crew. If memory serves correct, I can thank André for this one. Cheers!

A: Hazy, hay-ish yellow. ¼ (white) fingernail head on medium pour.

S: Very herbal and strong. Notes of white grape skins, tart grapefruit, white pepper, touch of lemon, and cracked wheat. Interesting, but slightly too much here.

T: Taste is quite mellow compared to potent smell. Mix of herbals notes, soft citrus, and some wheat. Touch of yeast too. Nice and refreshing.

M: Light bodied with gentle carbonation.

O: Different twist for this style, but quite enjoyable. Clean. Crisp. Solid!