Served at cellar temperature from a 500ml bottle into a stemmed glass. Bright straw, aggressively carbonated, the foam rising twice before it settles.
Aged whole-leaf over a pils / unmalted wheat base, finishing at 6.2% with 10 IBU. The restraint in that grain bill is the reason the rest of it works.
Handsome in the glass, unremarkable on the tongue. There is no flaw to point at, just an absence of anything that would make you order a second.
It holds together across a second glass, which is not guaranteed at 6.2%. The bitterness accumulates rather than fatigues, and the aroma is still doing something by the bottom of the second pour, which is the real test of a kriek lambic.
The fruit was clearly weighed in kilos rather than added from a bottle. Skin, stone and pith all show up, which is the tell: flavouring gives you the sweet part and nothing else.
Beers like this are why the wild section of this site exists at all. Cantillon have been making it for long enough that the consistency is no longer surprising, which does nothing to make it less impressive. If you are anywhere near Brussels, BE, go and buy it from the source.
Bought at Cantillon shop (one per person at the time of writing). Decant carefully. The sediment is not your friend here.
Worth crossing the city for, and we have.
