Cantillon Vigneronne - Brasserie Cantillon

mikesgroove

South Carolina

4.5/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured into a tulip it was a light orange brown with a very nice three finger head of lace and a good amount of carbonation streaming up from the bottom of the glass. Nice retention only gradually let the head fade away, what was left was a very nice set of concentric side glass rings of lace. Smell was very sour, lots of grapes and other fruits. A bit light on the nose before the sour wrath kicks in. Flavor was very full and robust. Nice yeast filled flavor wrecks your taste buds but calms down considerably on the finish. A huge rush of sour fruit than kicks into overdrive and puckers your lips through the finish. This was a wonderfully unique brew that had a very good flavor and a light fruity feel that really made it shine.

Serving type: bottle

07-04-2011 04:22:48 | More by mikesgroove

womencantsail

California

4.43/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A: The pour is a slightly hazy golden straw color with a few bubbles after a vigorous pour, not much in the way of carbonation.

S: The nose is nicely acidic with plenty of lemon, green apple, and green grapes. There's a slight wet hay aroma and a bit of must.

T: The flavor has a nice combination of a slight sweetness (seemingly from the grapes) and the trademark Cantillon sourness. The lactic acid is prominent and gives that wonderful lemony flavor. The grapes really stand out and provide the beer with an excellent dryness.

M: The carbonation is low, but it works with lambics. The body is medium and the beer just has a wonderfully dry finish.

D: Cantillon is one of those breweries that just can't do any wrong. I would gladly drink this one again.

Serving type: bottle

04-01-2010 15:53:37 | More by womencantsail

Thorpe429

Illinois

4.1/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Pours a somewhat-dark peach color with only a slight head. Very bright coloring.

S: Lots of vinegary and acid with some green apple and green grape. Lactic sourness, but nothing too overwhelming.

T: Green grapes and a bit of musty earthiness. Some tongue-puckering qualities, but nothing too substantial.

M: Pretty sour and a medium body with good carbonation.

D: Nice, but the flavors never really completely fused together like they do in most Cantillon beers; still, a very solid offering.

Serving type: bottle

02-17-2010 13:48:30 | More by Thorpe429

brentk56

North Carolina

4.38/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Appearance: Pours a cloudy golden color with a frothy head that dissipates quickly, while leaving a few strands of lace

Smell: Brett yeast aromatics dominate (surprise, surprise), creating a lot of barnyard funk; underneath, there is a hint of vinous muscat, with a sweet essence that beguiles

Taste: The sourness starts out bold and builds from there, but all the while there is this sweet grape flavor underneath that provides an incredible contrast, if you can taste beyond the barnyard; after the swallow, the sweet flavor becomes a little easier to discern but is still dominated by the sour flavor; the combination tastes of grapefruit pith, but in a far different way from a West Coast IPA

Mouthfeel: Medium body with moderate to low carbonation

Drinkability: While I am not a big fan of the style and struggle to consume this, I find this a very intriguing beer and look forward to my rare excursions into the world of lambics

Serving type: bottle

02-10-2009 23:57:08 | More by brentk56

UCLABrewN84

California

4.23/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottle pour sampled at mrbubbler's tasting.

2009 vintage.

Pours a murky yellow with an off-white head that settles to an oily film on top of the beer. No lacing on this one. Smell is super sour, tart, and funky with a lemon aroma. Taste is the same with a sour lemon flavor on the finish. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a very good lambic with an awesome flavor.

Serving type: bottle

04-09-2012 04:05:31 | More by UCLABrewN84

Phyl21ca

Quebec (Canada)

4/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle: Poured a bright golden yellow color lambic with a small pure with bubbly head with minimal retention and not much lacing. Aroma of horse blanket with light green apple acidity and light tart finish. Taste is a well balanced mix between some tart notes with light oak and some horse blanket and soaked leather. Acidity is well balanced but muscat grapes are hard to noticed but could have dropped the acidity level since I seem to noticed that there is less acidity then in a regular Cantillon product.

Serving type: bottle

10-05-2009 02:20:21 | More by Phyl21ca

BEERchitect

Kentucky

3.83/5  rDev -11.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A very clean, lactic tartness is the perfect counterpart to the white grapes used in the blending for its recipe. But the lime-like acidity obviously steals the show.

Vignerone pours with a canary-yellow hue and carries a mystic glowing haze. Bleached white foam amounts to a timid coat of foam, yet disipates to stillness quickly- all expected from unblended lambics.

Very sharp aromas of limes, white wine, balsamic, sandalwood, and mild leather all add to the complex yet delicate aromas. Mild pilsner malt provides to slightest of a base for the wild, fruity-tart aromas and must character.

Lemon/lime zest and pilsner cracker-like taste begin an assault on the front of the tongue while it mellows a bit, allowing the more grape-like flavor to settle on the middle of the tongue and palate. This, all before the hop bitterness and acidic vinegar-like sourness leaves it's memory on the mouth as the beer finishes. Crabapples, under-rippened berries, and kiwi all come to mind as the zesty lime tartness leaves a final impact in finish.

Light and acidic throughout, the beer's thinness allows the full brunt of taste to lay on the mouth's surfaces; only adding to the impact of sourness and astringency in mouthfeel. The feel of grape seeds, grape skins attack the sides of the jaws and usher in a crisp, lactic finish. Very dry and palate stripping of all residual sweetness or lingering taste. Very refreshning and mouthwatering from nose to finish.

Thanks bbehr!

Serving type: bottle

05-25-2011 16:10:13 | More by BEERchitect

oberon

North Carolina

3.38/5  rDev -21.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours a spritzy orange with a nice rocky head that really didnt leave much lace at all,whoa the funk like sitting in a barn with this bad boy I also picked up some oak and vanilla but the funk was hard core,My mouth is still puckering from this stuff full tilt sour and musty like intensly concentrated lemon pith and a wet basement.Not my cup of tea this will be my last foray into Cantillon brews this one is most intense in my opinion.

Serving type: bottle

02-19-2005 01:22:42 | More by oberon

feloniousmonk

Minnesota

4.05/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Raise a shout and a hip-hooray for my first bottle of Cantillon! Only had a taste of Rose Gambrinus once, years ago. Onward!
On first uncorking, a citric, sour, mustiness pervades the air from out of the bottle. Bright golden color, slight haze, with a solid white head that wittles down to nothingness in seconds flat.
Aroma: a subdued sour, a mellow lemon/orange, and a certain je'ne sais whosits, a dank must, but with a trace of sweetness and honey.
Taste: bracingly sour, instant grimace graces the countenance, but once you get over it, it's pretty easy to take. A light, rounded fruitiness lays underneath, a pleasant flavor, vibrant, tangy, tasty.
Medium body, extraordinary, tart texture, with a long, comfortable finish, giving a little spark with every encounter with the tongue. Good stuff !
Muscat grapes mixed with unblended lambic...I like it!

Serving type: bottle

03-16-2004 07:50:39 | More by feloniousmonk

drabmuh

Maryland

4.28/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I feel very fortunate to have had this on draft at Churchkey side by side with Saint Lamvinus. Beer is yellow and completely hazy, no head really, lacing is low as well as carbonation.

ARoma is tart with a citric based sourness and a mild funk (less than the St. L).

The beer is grapey for sure, sweet and smooth, low body and a late sour with a tartness that gets me in the corners of my mouth. There isn't a lot of carbonation in the mouth, but this beer is suppose to be thin and the sour comes from acids. This is a great beer. The more Cantillon I have the more I love them. I would serious recommend it. I need to find a bottle so I can compare them.

Serving type: on-tap

03-18-2010 17:20:33 | More by drabmuh

Mora2000

Texas

4.43/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bottled 12/24/08.

The beer pours a slightly hazy golden color with a few bubbles, but no real head. The aroma is very sour with some oak notes mixed in. The flavor is very tart grapes along with some oak. There are some vinegar components. This beer is very similar to white wine. The beer is very dry. Very low carbonation and the beer has a thin-medium mouthfeel. The beer is extremely drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

06-10-2010 01:50:11 | More by Mora2000

Gueuzedude

Arizona

4.22/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Bottled 2001, Sampled November 18, 2003
As I pull the cork I get a strong smell of vinegar, this aroma seems to be attached to the cork and does not carry over to the beer. It is a cloudy orange color, and though well carbonated, it is not beery enough to hold a head for any length of time. A sour musty aroma emanates from my glass, notes of citrus as well. The taste is predominantly a lemony sourness. Definitely wine like in some ways (especially the body), but it is hard to say of this is from the Muscat grapes. There is a definite funky Lambic character here; musty, astringent, and acidic. Hard to say what grape character is here, it seems a bit lighter in body and there is a definite lack of heading proteins, perhaps a hint of the Muscat is in the acidic finish, but it is hard to say. As the beer warms up I get some cider notes as well, though it is still quite lemony. As a fruit beer it lacks the fruit character it should have (perhaps younger versions have more Muscat character). As a well carbonated Lambic type beer though, it works and is quite good.

Serving type: bottle

11-19-2003 17:07:41 | More by Gueuzedude

Halcyondays

California

3.73/5  rDev -13.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 1 | overall: 4

750 mL bottle, 2008 Vintage,

A: Pours yellow-orange, with a light head and carbonation, good colour.

S: Musty barnyard, green apples, lemon. Not a huge nose for a lambic, not as fragrant as it should be.

T: The flavour is where it's at. As with all Cantillon's I've had it is very full-flavoured. Lemon-lime, more toward the lime, lacto-fermented lemonade/punch. The grapes give an almost White Burgundy note in there as well, though it is minour. It has a great potential to gain even more complexity as it ages.

M: Silky, very smooth, but needs carbonation, thin, still quite acidic which gives it some body. As Gabe at Beachwood described it the beer is ropey, that's where these 2008s are right now.

D: Good drinkablity. This effort by Cantillon is still very young, I don't think I've had anything younger than about 3 years from them before, this is just a year old. The flavour is very good, but other aspects of the beer need some work. In 5 years it could justify its $19.99 price-tag, but not today.

Serving type: bottle

06-03-2009 21:38:08 | More by Halcyondays

emerge077

Illinois

4.2/5  rDev -3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Served at cellar temperature 52º into an Oerbier tulip glass. Crackling, hissy fizz at first, audible and acidic. After the initial sound, its completely still, though there are tiny bubbles slowly ascending. Glowing orange jewel toned orb in the light. Signature Cantillon lambic aroma, musty leather and citrus. Somehow softer than the classic Gueuze with light floral accents and a suggestion of honey. Moderate mellow tartness, some light hints of white grape, rhubarb, and oak. Dry in the finish. Citrus dominates, some low level sweet/tartness as well, pleasant oak aftertaste. Vigneronne is a subtle variant of the Cantillon Gueuze, slightly less acidic, but still moderately sour.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2008 02:37:18 | More by emerge077

Gavage

New Jersey

4.13/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: hazy orange with some reddish tones. A wispy head and no lacing develops during the session. Many carbonation bubbles stick to the glass.

Smell: sour grapes are strong on the nose.

Taste: huge sour grape flavor with yeast, honey, and mild alcohol tones. Very dry. The sourness is bold but the tastebuds get accustomed to it quickly.

Mouthfeel: dry and smooth throughout. Aftertaste is bold but short, as the sourness seems to assault the tastebuds into submission. Medium bodied beer.

Drinkability: definitely down a few notches as the sourness tires the the tongue by the end of the glass. But the flavors are interesting and unique. Worth giving this a try if you like extremes.

Serving type: on-tap

02-25-2007 20:40:24 | More by Gavage

jwc215

New Jersey

4.2/5  rDev -3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Cage-corked bottle - bottled in Oct. '06:

Pours hazy golden yellow with a white bubbly head that descends to barely a patch, leaving some traces of lacing.

The smell is of lemon, sweettart candy, barnyard must and a hint of grapeskins.

The taste is of lemon, sweettart candy and barnyard must. Clove and ginger lend a spiciness to it. Sugary and honeyish sweetness blend nicely with the loemony tartness and light spiciness. Sweetened grapeskin segues into a dry finish.

Appropriately light-bodied, with mild to medium carbonation level for the style. It has a lasting, refreshing dryness.

This is a unique, refreshing brew. Interesting use of muscat grapes. Though I don't normally seek grapes in my beer (and prefer this brewery's St. Lamvinus), they do blend nicely into the house yeast strain and the malt that is used. It is a gueuze-like lambic that fits in nicely with the "unique treat" category.

Serving type: bottle

12-08-2007 00:39:05 | More by jwc215

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.95/5  rDev -8.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

November 2009 vintage - a lambic with wine grapes - sounds good to me, like an obvious "well, we've got a lot of this stuff lying around, let's see what it can do". On the label, a star of David sits amongst the raw ingredients in this offering - heads up, He'Brew!

This beer pours a hazy medium golden hue, with one finger of fizzy white head, which disappears in an instant, leaving no remnants, lace or otherwise. It smells of sour underripe apples, white grain, and mild funky yeast. The taste is tart green apple, soft wheat malt, white wine vinegar, and dead-flower, musty yeast. The carbonation is fairly sedate, the body light, airy, a bit fruity, and mouth-puckeringly crisp, and it finishes dry, tart, and just a wee bit of 'everything dies' funk.

I'm drawing a reasonably straight parallel to the white wine I've got fermenting at the moment - yeasty, sweet, white grape juice, and warming alcohol. The exaggerated tartness is the beer's domain alone. Overall, a nicely drinkable sour lambic.

Serving type: bottle

05-02-2010 01:40:50 | More by biboergosum

akorsak

Pennsylvania

3.75/5  rDev -13.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A bottle split with JohnnyM2002 and Phatz.

A: The ale is a slightly hazy goldenrod color with a thick head that quickly dissolves to a white ring around the glass.

S: The aroma is thick with brettanomyces tartness. There is also a green grape sourness mixed in.

T: The flavor is a continuation of the nose. The ale is sour, tart, puckering. Very intense, it combines some green grape tartness, sweet and fresh but very tangy, with a brett-infused harshness. Be warned, your mouth will never be the same.

M: The mouthfeel is tart, green grapes and acidic dryness. It does not let up at all.

D: The drinkability is limited by my general dislike for the style. It packs a punch and makes you regret/anticipate each sip.

Serving type: bottle

01-07-2007 00:24:53 | More by akorsak

rhoadsrage

Illinois

4.1/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

(Served in white wine glass)
A- This beer has a slight murky deep orange body with a thin ring of white around the rim. There is a very gentle carbonation of one or two bubbles that are visible.
S- The cheese rind brett note is followed by a soft tartness and a nice white grape skin aroma finishes.
T- The light cheese rind flavor has a smooth tartness to follow with a mild white grape tannin note in the finish. There is a nice pucker and a muscat grape note that linger.
M- This beer has a medium-light mouthfeel with a slight slippery texture and no alcohol heat.
D- The bright tartness with the subtle muscat grape flavor and cheese rind work great together. This is easy to drink and crisp and the tartness is smooth enough for another glass.

Serving type: on-tap

09-26-2010 01:28:07 | More by rhoadsrage

mdfb79

New York

4.43/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

From 04/30/10 notes. Brought a bottle of this to Dark Lord Day; 2009 vintage. Poured from a 750ML bottle into my SAVOR snifter.

a - Pours a hazy bright yellow-golden color with one finger of fluffy white head and high carbonation evident.

s - Smells of funky, sour fruits, earthy notes, lemon, citrus, barnyard funk, and white wine. Very enjoyable and sour, with some slight mustiness in those earthy tones.

t - Taste matches the nose pretty much. Tastes of sour lemon and fruits, white wine, oak, light mustiness, and some of that Cantillon funk. Very enjoyable.

m - Medium body and moderate to high carbonation, with a pretty crisp body.

o - Overall another great beer from Cantillon. I've heard this one ages great so I will hold onto my other 2 bottles for a few years, but it's still great right now. Will certainly have it again.

Serving type: bottle

05-08-2011 23:55:31 | More by mdfb79

Viggo

Ontario (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Big thanks to biegaman for bringing this bottle, 2004 vintage!

Pours a clear amber, thin white head forms, settles down to a big bubbled ring around the glass, no lacing. Smell is awesome, socks and barnyard, very acidic, lemony, oak, intense sourness, honey and wheat, white grapes, very complex. Taste is intense, charred oak, lemon, wood, honey, grass, sweet and sour middle, some light fruits, grapes, barnyard funk and acidic finish. Mouthfeel is light to medium bodied, medium carbonation. Very smooth and definitely interesting. Apparently the white grape brother to Saint Lam, both are excellent! Thanks Jan!

Serving type: bottle

02-22-2008 20:32:51 | More by Viggo

Bighuge

Minnesota

4.43/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

The final Canillon in my little "mini-tour" of fine authentic lambics.

Cork says 1998. Little did I know.

Pours with a fizz. A small ivory white head forms atop the hazy light golden body. It fizzles away quickly leaving a miniscule collar. Carbonation looks to be vigorous from appearance. Aroma is quite funky. Love that funky lambic smell. Like a horse stall at the State Fair. But in a good way. There's also lemony, grassy tones on the nose. And just a tad of sweet fruit as well. When the beer hits my tongue, I don't pucker nearly as much as I was expecting. The acidity and tartness seem a bit lower than your typical Cantillon offering, but they ARE there. And quite enjoyable. Funky yeast tastes mingle with musty overatures. Barnyard, Horse Blanket, lemongrass, acetic acid...damn enjoyable. Mouthfeel is lively. Burps burn my nostrils. This is a great sour beer.

Serving type: bottle

08-23-2003 05:19:50 | More by Bighuge

corby112

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

2006 vintage on draft at Monk's Cafe.

Pours a slightly hazy, pale golden straw color with a thin white head that quickly dissaptes.  Not much lacing to speak of.

Slightly funky, vinous aroma with hints of musty funk and wet hay along with earthy oak and vinous light fruit.  Lots of grape in the nose.  

Medium bodied with a nice mix of dry, tart/earthy funky notes and sweet light fruit. Dry and very puckering without being harsh or acidic.  Sweet acetic vinegar lingering complimented by sweet vinous fruit notes.  Grapes are still prominent five years later.  Hints of dry, earthy oak and musty funk are perfectly balanced with a lingering sweet vinegar finish that leaves me thirsting for more.

Serving type: on-tap

09-11-2011 02:20:28 | More by corby112

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

4.1/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

First had: bottle at Monk's, Philly, PA
2010 vintage

Normally I wouldn't pay a whopping $45 for a bottle at the bar, but my friend wanted to try a "good lambic," not caring about the price, so I picked this one out and he paid, as I'd probably never consider having this one by myself. He hated it of course, but he's still a novice. More for me. I'm not big on Cantillon or lambics in general, but this is probably one of the best I've had from them.

Poured into a Cantillon balloon glass, this beer was a light golden-peach color, mostly clear, but a little foggy from sediment towards the end; a minimal layer of delicate bubbles capped it off, with no real retention or lacing to speak of. Aroma of pale malts, white wine, and some musty funk. Taste of fresh cut grass, white wine, apple skins, oak, a dash of Champagne, with an ubiquitous mild funkiness throughout. Very nice, very delicate. Sour, but not lip-puckering. (Though it should be noticed that this followed a Russian River Supplication, so my palate might have been biased.) Light-bodied more or less, and very enjoyable overall.

Serving type: bottle

03-06-2012 13:45:36 | More by Rifugium

glid02

Georgia

4.13/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Picked this up at Green's on Ponce in Atlanta.

Pours a hazy orange color with a thin and fizzy white head that quickly recedes into a thin ring around the glass. Almost no lacing.

Smells...funky. Huge hits of barnyard funk backed up by tart fruits. It's a bit off-putting at first, but after the second sip I find myself looking forward to it.

Tastes very good. The aroma didn't lead me to believe this beer would make me pucker up as much as it did, but that's certainly the first flavor. After my palate adjusts there are loads of tart fruits that I can't pick out, some funkiness, and underlying hints of grapes that come out after the dry finish.

Mouthfeel is good. It's got a good thickness for the style with active carbonation that brings out the flavors.

Drinkability is good - as long as it's not more than a glass. I'm glad I was sharing this with a few people as I don't know if I'd be able to finish an entire bottle myself. This doesn't mean I don't enjoy it, it's just very powerful.

Overall this is my first foray into Cantillon, and it ensures that I will try more. As long as you know what you're getting into this is well worth a shot.

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2009 04:10:00 | More by glid02