5 Sciences Beer
Brasserie Fantôme

5 Sciences Beer5 Sciences Beer
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From:
Brasserie Fantôme
 
Belgium
Style:
Saison
ABV:
6.5%
Score:
80
Avg:
3.49 | pDev: 20.34%
Reviews:
33
Ratings:
168
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Aug 09, 2020
Added:
Apr 09, 2013
Wants:
  19
Gots:
  29
Collaboration with Hill Farmstead Brewery
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by zestar:
Photo of zestar
Rated by zestar from California

3.5/5  rDev +0.3%

Oct 16, 2014
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.91 by zotzot from Vermont

Aug 09, 2020
Photo of SABERG
Reviewed by SABERG from Massachusetts

4.16/5  rDev +19.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured from the 750 ml bottle from batch 1, into he tulip[ glass.
A - Honey colored backdrop with excellent clarity, gently carbonated, with a seductive lacing.
S - Apricot, wildflower honey, Candied orange peel, dusty grains hide in the background.
T -The palate follows the nose well, add a hint of spicy white pepper.
M - So soft on the palate, semi sweet start then a small swell of tartness rolls through, followed with a revisit of that semi sweet.
O - A really nice Saison, with age it has mellowed quite well, not a trace of acidity,Glad to have had this.
Mar 07, 2019
Photo of stakem
Reviewed by stakem from Pennsylvania

3.99/5  rDev +14.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
Batch 1 (has the paper tape across the cap) poured into a Fantome glass appears a brilliant copper orange color with perfect clarity and faint head composed of some white bubbles resting atop.

Aroma is very fruity almost tropical with a caramel to biscuit-like backing, vanilla, and earthy to horsey brett mustiness.

Taste is strikingly tart to almost acidic with mild fruity accent and a heavy brett/horsey aftertaste that lingers with mild smokiness.

Medium in body and very light to almost nonexistent carbonation with crisp acidity. For being a brew from Fantome’s dark smokey tire fire era, this was much better than anticipated.
Mar 16, 2018
 
Rated: 2.18 by Knapp85 from Pennsylvania

Jan 09, 2017
 
Rated: 3.5 by Hayley_86 from Netherlands

Dec 25, 2016
 
Rated: 3.88 by Treycotton from Oklahoma

Dec 17, 2016
 
Rated: 1.45 by Deltoro from Florida

May 25, 2016
Photo of Jugs_McGhee
Reviewed by Jugs_McGhee from Colorado

3.41/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
BOTTLE: Has a paper ribbon over the pry-off crown cap bearing the logos of both breweries involved. The crown cap covers an internally housed cork (in classic Fantome fashion, though breweries like Schneider Weiss and Cantillon also do similar things with packaging). Green glass (ugh...). 1 pint 9.4 fl oz format. Purchased at BierCaB's shop in Barcelona. Abundant yeast/lees are plainly visible at the bottom of the bottle.

Served cold into a tulip and allowed to come to temperature over the course of consumption. Reviewed live as saison per the label. Given the breweries involved, I couldn't be more excited to try this.

6.50% ABV. Brewed & bottled at Fantome. Imported by the Shelton Bastards.

Doesn't gush upon opening. Good sign.

HEAD: Off-white colour. ~3cm wide. Not the most robust or thick consistency I've seen, but even throughout. Leaves no lacing as it recedes, which takes only a disappointing ~1.5 minutes.

BODY: Murky and turbid, revealing its lack of filtration. Looks a bit like stale orange juice given its dull orange colour. Not a vibrant body by any stretch.

Appears aptly carbonated. Not a unique or special appearance for a saison - especially one from the best saison producer on the planet (i.e. Fantome).

AROMA: Funkiness is evident - brettanomyces is in charge of this beer. Faint acidic character is evident, but I don't detect any lactobacillus, pediobacter, or other bacteria. Has a bit more hop presence than most Fantome beers - plenty of subdued fruity notes. Tangerine, melon, maybe orange juice. The coupling of funkiness and acidic character almost indicates brettanomyces lambicus in addition to the requisite brettanomyces bruxellensis, but I'm not willing to make that leap given the lack of any sourness. Hints of cedar, dry fruit peel, white pepper, yeasty spiciness, Belgian ale yeast esters, and faint apple.

Aromatic intensity is moderate. Suggests a balanced acidic dry brew, but what I'm really missing is Fantome's signature complexity and intricate spice profile. It is adequately complex for the style, sure, but it isn't on the stratospheric level of Fantome's finest aromas. Let's hope the taste delivers...

TASTE: Fruit-forward instead of spice-forward, this flavour profile emphasizes apple, pear, dry fruit peel (tangerine and orange come to mind, minus any bitterness), zest, and melon. Cracked grain. Malt backbone is definitely on the paler side. Hints of white pepper and some yeasty spiciness hang in the background, staying subtle but never delving as deep as spices tend to in Fantome's best saisons. Cedar character is present throughout, lending the build a natural unity and cohesion. Hop character is fruity.

Funkheads might be a bit let down; there's some mild brettanomyces (bruxellensis) funkiness throughout, but aggressive descriptors like "gym sock" wouldn't be appropriate for it.

Barnyard notes abound, but they're all rather shallow. Hay/straw, rustic spice, cedar planks left to weather in a barn (if you'll excuse the pretension that description verges on). Somewhat grassy, though not in the classic Hallertauer hop sense of the descriptor.

I can see why some would venture to say "horse blanket," but - as always - I shy the fuck away from that.

A blip of mild lactic character finishes out this somewhat complex saison.

TEXTURE: Acidity is higher than in most good examples of the style. Medium-bodied yet nevertheless refreshing. Subtly prickly (probably from the peppercorn), but not coarse on the palate per se. Dry, absolutely, but never parching or dragging on the palate. Very approachable. A biteen overcarbonated, which is rare for Fantome (especially an aged Fantome) - but I've heard reports to the contrary from many drinkers online.

OVERALL: No, it's not as intricate as Fantome's (or Hill Farmstead)'s finest work, and it seems - as is often the case with collaboration beers - that putting two great cooks in the same kitchen hasn't yielded a better dish. Still, it's a worthy addition to Fantome's lineup (even if it tends towards the bottom of Fantome's range in terms of quality). I'm glad I tried it once, but at its price point (and it's import price point is all we can go on based on its lack of ubiquity in its country of origin) I wouldn't want another. Certainly drinkable, but it's best treated as a table beer for pairing with food, not a world-class saison you should savour every sip of.

B- / WORTHY
Apr 24, 2016
 
Rated: 3.71 by Fabianno from Brazil

Mar 04, 2016
 
Rated: 4 by ADTaber from South Carolina

Feb 21, 2016
Photo of lpayette
Rated by lpayette from Vermont

3.24/5  rDev -7.2%
look: 1.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 2 | overall: 3.25
Such a strange beer. If I had another bottle I'd like to try it again in a couple of years. The flavors seem to be moving in the right direction.
Feb 17, 2016
 
Rated: 3.08 by kiki3drt292 from California

Oct 11, 2015
 
Rated: 4.6 by SteeleWright from Texas

Aug 07, 2015
Photo of StoutSnob40
Reviewed by StoutSnob40 from California

4.19/5  rDev +20.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25
Fantome dominates this collaboration. Unmistakeable Fantome wet basement, tobacco funk. It's funky as hell but also really clean. Nothing off about this. Deep and unique.
Jun 24, 2015
Photo of scottfrie
Reviewed by scottfrie from California

2.37/5  rDev -32.1%
look: 1.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 1.75 | overall: 2
750ml bottle into tulip.

A: No pop to the cork; bad sign. This beers pours a clear apricot color with no head. Well, there's a few soapy bubbles from my rough pour, but overall this doesn't sit well in the glass.
S: Smells of earthy and musty funk with a hints of sticky cheese, cooked vegetables, apple cider vinegar and horse shit. Band-aid pokes through as well.
T: Follows the nose. Flavors of vegetables, tart funky bugs and mild wheat. Band-aid, dirty mess of spices , sour mash, earth and wood. Aftertaste has a touch of fruit to it.
M: Flat as water. Medium body, light tartness.
O: A mess of a beer. I tried to power through a glass, but didn't even get half way. This is the second expensive Fantome drain-pour I've had recently.
May 09, 2015
Photo of Faxmesomehalibut
Reviewed by Faxmesomehalibut from New Hampshire

4.46/5  rDev +27.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
Had this twice, first time it was nothing special....after 6 months of age all the flavors came bursting out....super funky and bright with lots of yeasty notes. Real solid with age!
May 07, 2015
 
Rated: 3.5 by crosenkrantz from Switzerland

May 01, 2015
 
Rated: 3.96 by BUNZILLA from Indiana

Apr 12, 2015
 
Rated: 4.18 by nathanmiller from New York

Feb 12, 2015
5 Sciences Beer from Brasserie Fantôme
Beer rating: 80 out of 100 with 168 ratings