Chapeau Apricot Lambic - Brouwerij De Troch

BuckeyeNation

Iowa

3.78/5  rDev +15.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Sun-faded apricot with a generous infusion of honey. The bright white crown is a loose collection of unsticky bubbles that resembles the head on a glass of 7-UP. On the other hand, it lasts a while once it shrinks to a slim disk. No lace.

Brouwerij De Troch fruit lambics all smell roughly the same in a general sense. They smell like whatever fruit was used and they smell like the oak casks that the beer was aged in. Abricot (just noticed the spelling) smells like... surprise... sweetened apricots and oak barrels.

Even though I'm not a huge fan of eating fresh apricots, I tend to like apricot flavors in beer (especially when it's due to some of the fruitier American hop varieties). This one is pretty good if you like sweet-tart, slightly acidic fruit lambics. All of the flavor elements come together well, which is the primary reason for the taste score seen above.

Mouthfeel is a tough call between 3.5 and 4.0. In fact, with a few exceptions, any of the final three scores could be either one of those numbers for any of the Chapeau beers. It all depends on my mood when I'm reviewing them. Anyway, this offering is medium, with a slick stickiness that is leavened by efficient carbonation.

Abricot Lambic is too expensive ($6.19 per bottle) to be a regular purchase. Besides, the intense sweetness isn't something that I can stomach very often. It's classic chick* beer, but you'd better hope your wife/girlfriend develops a taste for something cheaper.

*apologies to all the female BAs to whom this doesn't apply

Serving type: bottle

07-11-2008 11:59:02 | More by BuckeyeNation

womencantsail

California

2.83/5  rDev -13.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Thanks to Bobby for sharing this.

A: The pour is a straw color with a short lived white head.

S: Sweet and sugary with light apricots and some slight vegetable aroma that sort of overwhelms what apricot is there.

T: Intensely sweet and sugary with a definite apricot flavor. I think apricots are usually too sweet anyway, and this is just overdoing it. A little sourness, but not enough for me.

M: The body is light with a high carbonation and a slightly grainy feel on the tongue.

D: Not my favorite of these lambics, but certainly not the worst either.

Serving type: bottle

09-10-2010 04:36:00 | More by womencantsail

ChainGangGuy

Georgia

1.63/5  rDev -50.2%
look: 2 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 1.5

Appearance: Pours a clear, orange body with, well, okay... so there's no head. Who says a beer had to have one anyhow?

Smell: Displeasing aroma of spoiled vegetables, mustard seed, and cheap, rotting wood. Any apricot to be found here seems fake at best, and it's not worth subjecting yourself to the rest of the aroma to find it.

Taste: Sweetish, apricot juice flavor is fleeting, as a funkiness that can only be described as trash can juice creeps in and never lets go.

Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied. Mild carbonation.

Drinkability: No thanks times a million! Grab a Cantillon, get yourself a 3 Fonteinen, but do steer clear of this mess.

Serving type: bottle

04-13-2008 20:39:31 | More by ChainGangGuy

BEERchitect

Kentucky

3/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

First beer from Chapeau. It's both intriguing and problematic. The green corked bottle displayed a film that formed a ring around the top that worried me. The pour shows cloudiness and floaties from the cork and other ingredients. However, the rich tart aroma displayed over-ripened fruits (apricots, peaches, and lemons). Flavors had these and apple cidery flavors along with thin sharp tartness, though not as tart as many other lambics. Certain off flavors come along too, like vinegar and soy sauce-like flavors likely caused by oak and aging. This also displayed a hickory or mesquite flavor that I think didn't agree with the fruits and esters. Decent alcohol also works to thin the body and dry the finish. It's a drinkable, complicated, and appreciable beer, but you just have to like lambics with an odd turn from the beaten path.

Serving type: bottle

08-07-2005 22:09:17 | More by BEERchitect

feloniousmonk

Minnesota

3.8/5  rDev +16.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Like all Chapeaus, corked, then crowned, in a green 12.7 0z bottle.
Appearance: clear, bright apricotty hue, bubbling with carbonation, and a brief white head atop.
Aroma: a bit thin, but full of apricot. With De Troch, there's no fooling around, what you see on the label, fruit-wise, is what you're gonna get. Straight up, no fooling.
On the palate: very mellow, very light, though tingly with carbonation. Only a touch of tart occasionally intrudes. Flavor is excellent, light sweet, fruity.
Perfect dessert beer, made for coolin' out after piggin' out!

Serving type: bottle

05-25-2003 17:21:45 | More by feloniousmonk

Mora2000

Texas

2.17/5  rDev -33.6%
look: 3 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

The beer pours a yellow color with a white head. The aroma is a mix of grain, grass and steamed vegetables. Not the least bit appetizing. Against my better judgment I decided to go ahead and drink the beer. The flavor is heavy on the sugary, sweet apricots with some grain and vegetable notes. The beer is extremely sweet. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation. Not a good beer.

Serving type: bottle

09-18-2011 22:28:20 | More by Mora2000

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.85/5  rDev +17.7%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

375ml capped and corked bottle, 3.5% ABV. Junior-high school art class label design. And it's "Abricot". Look it up.

This beer pours a hazy, medium golden brown hue, which literal chunks of sediment ungainly drifting throughout, and one skinny finger of fizzy white head, which disappears quickly, rendering a soapy ring of lace around the glass. It smells of sweet wheaty malt, tart apricot, and funky, sour yeast. The taste is fruity, sugary apricot, a strongly moderating oaked maltiness, very mild, leafy, earthy hops, and more softly funky yeast. The carbonation is quite low, the body hefty in a saturated juicy manner, and smooth in the same regard. It finishes clean, and off-dry, the sweetness not letting up, but rather kept in check by a nice even tartness, equally sourced seemingly from both fruit and yeast.

A nicely balanced fruit lambic, until they dumped that extra apricot juice in, which skews everything somewhat, but not enough to detract from it being an easy-drinking, fairly refreshing quaff, ideally when you've got a sweet beer tooth. Too bad this bottle costs upwards of $10 around here.

Serving type: bottle

04-20-2011 23:42:45 | More by biboergosum

Jason

Massachusetts

3.88/5  rDev +18.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Presentation: 12.7 oz bottle that is corked and capped, no freshness date. A thin layer in sediment in noticeable on the bottom of the bottle.

Appearance: Pale faded clouded orange color with a bubbly champagne like carbonation that leaves a quickly producing and dissipating white lace.

Smell: Fresh macerated apricots in the nose, fragrant in the fruit. Mild musty almost horse blanket smell, a bit yeasty but still more fruity.

Taste: Light to moderate body, slick and syrupy mouth feel with a light carbonation that still holds some crispness like a light and delicate sparkling wine. Sweet and sour flavor, sweet fruit of apricot that stays even and the sourness is mild but puckering. Musty yeast flavor has a touch of barnyard flavor with some earthy and mineral undertones. Hops are hidden and meant to be that way, soft powdery husk flavor reminds the palate that this is indeed beer. Alcohol qualities are hard to find though a nearly lifeless warmth does come through. Hint of oak within. Sourness gets lemon like and complements the apricot flavor. Somewhat on the dry side yet there is a dash of sweetness that sticks around, sourness pretty mush disappears all together in the finish.

Notes: A decent fruit lambic, sweetness is kept to a minimum. Treat this one as a dessert beer perhaps pair with a cobbler or a tart.

Serving type: bottle

07-16-2007 01:21:29 | More by Jason

Gusler

Arizona

3/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

So here’s an another beer from the De Troch Brewery, that was in the 6-bottle set. Translucent golden straw color, the head off white in color, the size unimpressive, the lace adequate. Aroma of over ripe apricots, cloyingly sweet with a last minute hint of tartness, top lean, finish moderately acidic, hops sparse, sweet and sour dry aftertaste. As far as I’m concerned the whole line should be classified as strictly “Desert” beers, suitable for an after dinner apéritif, which is certainly not a bad thing!

Serving type: bottle

12-20-2002 11:06:58 | More by Gusler

OWSLEY069

Pennsylvania

3.98/5  rDev +21.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a hazy copper color with a small white head. In the aroma, small tart apricot sweetness. In the taste, apricot sweetness and a small tartness in the end. A smooth and medium bodied mouthfeel and a dry apricot sweetness to a clean aftertaste. Really nice apricot flavor, small tartness, and not overly sugary.

Serving type: bottle

07-06-2008 23:30:46 | More by OWSLEY069

Tone

Missouri

3.25/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Pours a clear, golden color. 1/6 inch head of a white color. Poor retention and poor lacing. Smells of citrus, slight sweet malt, hint of yeast, and a hint of grain. Fits the style of a Lambic - Fruit. Mouth feel is smooth and crisp, with an average carbonation level. There is also a noticeable tartness. Tastes of tart malt, citrus, slight sweet malt, and a hint of grain. Overall, poor appearance, decent aroma, and blend.

Serving type: bottle

09-07-2010 14:54:35 | More by Tone

LilBeerDoctor

New York

3.53/5  rDev +8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Reviewed on 1/31/2010. Bottle thanks to dkachur. Pours a clear orange with a very tiny ring of white head. Aroma of sweet apricot and musty oak. Flavor again of sweet fruits (I can't quite say that it is specifically apricot, but there are plenty of light fruits including apple and apricot) with a nice malt base. Overall quite enjoyable, as the other Chapeaus are.

Serving type: bottle

12-23-2010 18:20:00 | More by LilBeerDoctor

ADR

Pennsylvania

3.55/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Murky pineapple juice color, pale big-bubbled head that powers down in 35 seconds. No lacing in the wine glass. Gingery aroma and lots of apricot as well. Peppery, spicy flavor impression, plenty of apricot sense but also a slight bitterness/spiciness that’s non-hop related but a taste that’s more interesting than some of the sweeter berry Lambics, to me. A little sticky and cloying at the finish as a sugar sense comes on. OK for what it is, certainly much more of a statement than a Pyramid Apricot Ale or something similar. Could use more astringency.

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2003 10:42:43 | More by ADR

allengarvin

Texas

3.98/5  rDev +21.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a limpid, hazy amber-brown color, with little head retention. Aroma is fairly lambic-like, actually, with a metallic, rusty-iron-like note and dank sweaty undercurrents. Fairly sweet initial flavor, almost cloying, with overripe apricot-skin flavor (quite tannic along the roof of the mouth), an underlying cheesiness and a lingering sourness. Thin bodied, well-attenuated.

My favorite of the Chapeau line so far.

Serving type: bottle

07-06-2006 02:05:58 | More by allengarvin

Pegasus

Texas

3.3/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: Strikingly clear golden color, with a small scattering of foam on the surface, and quite minor lacing.

Aroma: Remarkably musty, like an old horse blanket after a rain, to say that a barnyard aroma is present understates the point. The apricot comes across sweet, but with little definite fruit character.

Taste: Cloyingly sweet, with a sharp note of tartness midway through, finishes quite sweet, with an underlying strong note of mustiness. The apricot character is lost, except for an over-the-top sweetness.

Mouth feel: Soft and fairly full, pleasant.

Drinkability/notes: The apricot character is almost entirely lost, and the excessive sweetness subsumes the interest of the lambic qualities.

Sampled as a part of the "Night of Chapeau", with my friend and fellow BA HardTarget.

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2006 00:36:09 | More by Pegasus

JDV

Texas

2.35/5  rDev -28.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Light orange color, spritzer like high carbonation. Quickly fading white head. Smell is funky musty spoiled yeast (i guess what people call "barnyard" perhaps, some apricot like fruit juice and sugar. Wow, extremely sweet tasting. More like soda pop than beer. Kids would like the taste of this, I'd bet. Just smells rancid though. Sweetest beer I've ever had. Fairly tart as well, which is sort of nice, but too sweet to drink much of. I dumped the last 3/4 of the bottle.

Serving type: bottle

02-24-2008 18:41:40 | More by JDV

HardTarget

Texas

3.03/5  rDev -7.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Aroma: Musty wood and cobwebs with a very sour note. Now we’re talking Lambic! Smells like the inside of a wet barrel.

Appearance: Clear gold glass, thin collar, small amounts of lace

Flavor: Sour wet grain spiced with pear and apricot. Almost a Hefe quality to this one.

Mouthfeel: Dry, light medium body, very low carbonation

Overall Impression: Has a lot of cool elements, wood, fruit, tart, musty, but the total result just isn’t that exciting.

Sampled as part of the “Night of Chapeau”, many thanks to Pegasus for assembling the 8 flavors.

Serving type: bottle

10-30-2006 18:06:50 | More by HardTarget

aasher

Indiana

1.3/5  rDev -60.2%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1

This bottle has to be at least three years old. The cork was half soaked and smelled of vinegar. This beer pours a bright pumpkin orange in color with moderate carbonation and no head. The nose is strange. It smells of steamed carrots with butter and brown sugar with a slight metallic tinge. Pretty bad in my opinion. The flavors are sweet and artificial, almost like a chewing gum. It leaves the foul carrot like, vegetable after taste behind which is unsettling. It's sweet and syrupy and undrinkable. This is a horrible introductory lambic. Lindemans puts this brand to shame.

Serving type: bottle

01-26-2012 17:41:18 | More by aasher

Rutager

British Columbia (Canada)

3.6/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Appearance. Pours a clear yellow gold with a little bubbly white head.

Smell. Over-ripe sweet apricots, some spicy belgian yeast and just a little horse barn funk.

Taste. Sweet apricot nectar. A little bit tangy and a little bit funky.

Mouthfeel. Medium body with low carbonation. Kinda syrupy.

Overall. Sweet and fruity. Perhaps some age would reduce the sweet and bring up the tart? Maybe not...

Serving type: bottle

06-07-2011 00:16:36 | More by Rutager

PorterLambic

Florida

3.88/5  rDev +18.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I love apricots and really like lambics so I was very pleased to see the Cock & Bull stocking this brew.
Pours a hazy honey-orange color with little head and no lace left behind.
Smell is fresh, ripe apricots, honey, malt and spice, a slight yeast note.
Taste is of apricot, malt, orange and a light spice that complements very well.
Smooth, though a little syrupy, with a medium-full body. Not as sweet as a Lindemann's (not a bad thing), this lambic has good flavor and balance. Definitely looking forward to trying others from the Chapeau line.

Serving type: bottle

08-16-2005 17:23:00 | More by PorterLambic

SpeedwayJim

New York

3.33/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured from a 12 oz. bottle into a Blue Point Snifter

A: Hazy orange with a very coarse surface head. Little to no lacing was left on the side of the glass.

S: Apricot and slight alcohol. Also a woody earthy note from the cork.

T: Sweet and a little sour throughout but very light. Almost like fruit juice.

M: Very light and coarse and really did not leave a trace lingering in the mouth.

D: Very light and drinkable but one is enough. Intriguing style but not my favorite.

Serving type: bottle

08-30-2009 01:13:51 | More by SpeedwayJim

jettjon

Florida

3.1/5  rDev -5.2%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Highs: Bizarre flavor for a “beer”
Lows: Appearance, drinkability, narrow range of appeal

Now here’s an odd duck. Lambics are probably borderline beers in most people’s definition. Also the low ABV (3% in this case) coupled with the extreme flavor makes it hard to drink more than one at a time.

Pours reddish clear with no bubbles and the merest hint of a white head despite a vigorous pour. A tiny bit of lacing remains after the “head” has made its exit. Nose is strongly of apricots in a sugary, fruity kind of way, much like apricot rinds or fruit candy. There’s already a sweet-sour note on the nose. Taste is definitely soury-sweet, strongly fruity of (obviously) apricots or scuppernongs/muscadines. Mouth is very thick, bordering on syrup. The finish is bittersweet syrup, and something that almost tastes like dirt. Drinkability is low; besides the very low ABV, this “beer” is too strongly sweet and sour.

Overall: Three out of four friends who sampled this beer made “ugh” faces. Only the most seasoned beer aficionado appreciated it. It is definitely a “niche” beverage.

Serving type: bottle

04-09-2006 20:45:31 | More by jettjon

matjack85

Illinois

3.48/5  rDev +6.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

I found this 12oz corked bottle at the Binny's store in Plainfield, IL for $5.99. No freshness date, but I was surprised at how thick and heavy this brown glass bottle was.

The beer pours a clear amber color with a 1½ finger white head that lasts a few minutes. Nice lacing left behind with each sip.

Nice apricot smell along with that funky Belgian yeast/barnyard aroma.

This has a really sugary apricot flavor, It has some of that lambic puckering sourness as well, but not as much as I like.

Despite it's sweetness, it's actually on the thin side - sort of like an apricot soda, although the carbonation is not that high.

At just 3% alcohol it might seem more like a pop than a beer, but it's still not a bad lambic. Overall I enjoyed it, but it's a little too sweet to have more than one.

.

Serving type: bottle

12-24-2010 22:58:01 | More by matjack85

dherling

New Jersey

4.3/5  rDev +31.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured out a pale, cloudy light orange color, topped by a bubbly champagne like head that dissapears quickly. Lace? What lace? The nose is unmistakable apricot, but slightly tropical as well. There is some dry musty yeast notes as well. The taste offers a blend of sweet and sour, with the apricot fruityness leading the way. Again, there is some musty champagne yeast notes in the taste as well, but it is subtle and works to add complexity instead of ebing a distraction. Medium bodied with a slick oily mouthfeel. Finishes cloying and sweet.

Serving type: bottle

11-17-2006 02:00:00 | More by dherling

Nipitato

Massachusetts

2.9/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Purchased a bottle at Julio's Liquors in Westborough, MA.

A: Good clarity. Virtually no head. Dark golding hue.

S: Significant horse blanket aroma. Light apricot fruit aroma. Also some hard mineral scents. Not particularly pleasing overall.

T: Overly sweet cloying fruit flavor. Horse blanket comes through strongly. Only slightly tart.

MF: Not nearly enough carbonation, which would have helped take some of the cloyiness away. Cloying syrupy mouthfeel.

D, notes: Too sweet with not nearly enough tartness to balance. Not well attenuated. Cloying mouthfeel seriously impedes drinkability.

Serving type: bottle

04-15-2008 16:20:56 | More by Nipitato