De Cam Oude Geuze

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 10 | Overall: 9

C: hazed gold, very thin white cap
A: funk, yeast, tart fruits
P: medium
F: very funky, light tart fruits, yeast
O: Outstanding for the style, highly recommended

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 10 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

A cloudy yellow appearance with a minimal head. The aroma is lemons, oysters?, and vinegar. Lots of barnyard. NEEEIGH! The flavor is quite sour with some lemons, vinegar, and funky cheese. Harsh finish but in a good way. Excellent beer!!

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 9 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 9

375ml bottle, served at cellar temperature; Sampled January 2008
The carbonation on this beer is pathetic for a Gueuze, pretty much non-existent, after a careful pour there is neither a hint of a head or even a foretelling of a carbonation bubble. The beer is a clear, honey-amber color. The aroma is a dream though; funky sour, well integrated, overall it just pulls me back to Belgium sipping Lambic in the local cafes. Aromatic touches of grapefruit, lactic acid, hints of urea, mellow butyric acid like barnyard funk, piquant lemon, lavender, a bit of aromatic soap, dusty wheat, . Sharp acidity, piquantly spicy, just funky enough, this aroma really is just a fantastic treat; it is missing the lively, peppery, carbonic acid notes, but this is such a trip, I just can’t get enough.

A puckering sour note at first, but then it yields a soft touch to the tartness that was not in this beer that last time I had it. Certainly not quite as hard as when I last had this beer in 2001, still the acidity is omnipresent and quite appetizing. Just about completely flat, though there is a minuscule amount of CO2 here that just barely adds something to the body. Speaking of which, this beer is nice and light, though it has a hint of a viscous texture to it that makes it a bit thicker than water. Nicely lactic in its sourness, but it has a hint of citrus to it as well as perhaps a memory of acetic acid. A touch of musty, stale cat notes add a soft funkiness to the brew. A touch of barrel character subtly adds notes of vanillin and a certain tannic backbone that affects both the flavor, body and mouthfeel of this brew.

This is a really nice version of a Lambic, of course I was expecting a Gueuze when I popped the cork. I certainly do miss the lively carbonation and accompanying bottle conditioned funk that a grand Gueuze has, but this is a really good beer. The base Lambic is just so good that I almost don’t miss the characteristics of a fantastic (and this would have been one) bottle conditioned, traditional Gueuze; though in all truthfulness a part of me really does miss it.

Sampled at the source 2001
A sour lemony aroma with only a hint of mustiness to it. There is a definite sharp acidity to it, that I would say is on the hard side for the traditional geuze blenders. The carbonation is lively and seems to enhance the acidity.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

Bottled (2004 vintage). Golden colour, mediumsized white head. Aroma is sour fruits, wood and a bit spicy. Flavour is very much the same in a nice balance. The palate is extremelt dry, while the carbonation gently tickles your tongue.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8

Hazy dark golden with a small, thick cotton-like head. Fresh stable aroma with traces of citrus and grapefruit. Sourflavour of wood, lemon och grapefruit with a soft gentle maltprofile. Tart woody finish.