Cantillon Fou' Foune - Brasserie Cantillon

radshoesbro

California

4.72/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

damn good beer.

pours cloudy orange with a big foamy head that dissipates almost immediately. p-funk nose, that's got a dirty earthy "horse blanket" thing going on. tastes sour, with a mild apricot thing going on. the apricots aren't super prevalent, they're just there sort of as a back up.

solid beer, get if you can.

Serving type: bottle

05-02-2009 02:54:24 | More by radshoesbro

Hojaminbag

Colorado

4.2/5  rDev -8.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A very light orangish colored body that looks a little like an apricot color itself. A pretty good sized cream colored head rises above that body and has some decent retention. Leaves some lacing behind on my glass.

The smell is great. A big blast of tartness like one would expect, with notes of vinegar but followed by a great apricot aroma that smells like it is natural.

This beer tastes a little more sour than it smells. The biting, puckering chracter that every Cantillon has comes through with a big burst of tartness. The sad thing is that the apricot in the aroma doesn't really transfer over to the flavor. Only a touch of the fruit comes through, and that only if you look really hard for it. Overall a good lambic, but I would like some more apricot.

Mouthfeel is dry and puckering.

Drinkable beer, a little less biting than some Cantillons such as the kriek.

Serving type: on-tap

05-01-2009 14:38:14 | More by Hojaminbag

SimmoGee

Australia

4.45/5  rDev -3.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750ml bottle served in a flute glass. Found this one at Plonk in Canberra

A - Poured with a good ivory coloured head which then dissipated over time to reveal a cloudy apricot colour liquid.

S - A funky sour smell bites at the nose. I think that I served it too cold initially, it was only when it warmed up did I get a nice apricot smell.

T- Insanely sour on the first sip but this really grows on you with each sip thereafter. As for the smell, as it warmed up I began to get a gentle apricot taste.

M - A smooth mouthfeel that is slightly dry.

D - If you didn't take another sip after the first one, you would swear this is undrinkable. As I said earlier, as it warmed up it really came into its own. I find it really hard not to like anything from Cantillon (not that I'm trying to hate it). Well done again Mr Van Roy! I only wish I had another bottle.

Serving type: bottle

04-24-2009 08:13:27 | More by SimmoGee

Overlord

California

3.95/5  rDev -14.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3

Pours a hazy orange gold. Small white foam crusting. Nice bubbling.

Smells like unripe apricot, vinegar, and a hint of funk. Muted funk, though.

Taste is insanely dry. There's a soury apricot, apple, and lemon vinegar notes. The sourness would be more palatable if there was any balancing agent, but this is so extraordinarly arid, it becomes a chore after a while.

Mouthfeel is nicely carbonated.

For a beer with such a strong fruit component, it's just too dry. I am not sure why, but it's a bit offputting.

Serving type: bottle

04-23-2009 09:57:24 | More by Overlord

JohnQVegas

Tennessee

4.8/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Bottle into wine glass.

Pours hazy, orange-gold, thin big-bubbled head that fades quickly.

Smell is tart and bright, with tons and tons of fresh apricot. This is the most fruit I've ever gotten from a Cantillon fruit lambic, and it's delicious.

Flavor is gorgeous - huge, vivid apricot. Clean tartness up front, hints well-integrated of barnyard funk and wet leather at points, and so much gorgeous apricot it's stunning. Dry, more acidic sourness than funk. Finish is so much apricot it feels like there should be chunks still floating in the glass. Complete showcase for the apricot, sans any hint of sweetness. Masterful.

Mouthfeel is light, subtle but crisp carbonation underneath a light body that's just brimming with flavor. Some acidity in the back of the throat complements the carbonation. Beautiful.

Drinkability is astronomical. I had 16 ounces, and felt like I hadn't even gotten a good start. Could have finished an entire bottle and then started on the next.

Serving type: bottle

04-23-2009 00:10:54 | More by JohnQVegas

mikesgroove

South Carolina

4.97/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

I picked up this fantastic 2006 vintage bottle while I was down in florida at knightleys. Served at cellar temp and poured into a snifter, this one was consumed on 03/09/2009.

The pour was fantastic looking. Rich orange and amber in color with a good amount of cloudiness and haze to it, enough that you could barely see through to the other side. Nice light puff of white on top that faded leaving only a little bit of lace on top.

The aroma was beautiful. Rich sour funkiness with huge touches of apricot mixed in. Light peppery and spice notes come through as it warms, but the sour funk was so hardcore. The flavor was puckeringly good. Rich apricot and apple vinegar sour notes are all over this one. As it warms like barrel notes, lots of spice and a long drawn out and very dry. Super drinkable and very refreshing, this was one of the best sours I have had. Worth the wait.

Serving type: bottle

03-10-2009 15:57:00 | More by mikesgroove

Gavage

New Jersey

3.98/5  rDev -13.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: cloudy dingy orange color with a spotty head. No lacing develops.

Smell: sour fruits and a bit of funk is surprisingly very pleasant on the nose.

Taste: apricots and funk is up front along with a lip puckering sourness. There is some soft bitterness and some mildler yeast tones arriving late.

Mouthfeel: medium bodied. Crisp throughout. Aftertaste is long as the sourness glues itself to the tongue.

Drinkability: after having a few ounces of this the sourness became less shocking and more pleasant. But after completing the glass over a long period I had enough for the session.

Serving type: on-tap

02-19-2009 17:01:10 | More by Gavage

IBUnit63

Massachusetts

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

On-tap at Deep Ellum...served in a teardrop glass for $8 a pop.

Good, clean white-colored, full-finger head. This sticks decently and shows pretty well adequate lacing...There's just a little bit of haze emerging from a pineapple/honey colored body.

The sweet apricot essence is quite mild. There's a fair amount of pure citrus Bret that is dominant. We're not at the horse blanket stages by any means, but the yeast and Brett electricity on this one is quite nice.

So, so crisp...tart, citrus and Brett funky pucker is countered well by a solid apricot sweetness and very light tropical and white fruits (mango, melons, grapes, maybe a tinge of pear). Yeast strain is powerful and keeps this one extremely clean.

The tight pucker on this one is extremely enjoyable. It's balanced by husky apricot fruit tones and maybe even a tinge of oakiness. Brett is a tie that binds, keeping this all in sync and quite smooth.

For a lambic and its funkiness this drinks incredibly well. I will most likely seek this out whenever possible.

Serving type: on-tap

02-05-2009 18:17:25 | More by IBUnit63

kasper

New York

4.47/5  rDev -3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottled Aug 16 2006

A: Pours a turbid, faded straw color with an off-white head that quickly fizzles to a ring. Bit of white lacing can be seen on the glass.

S: Very sour. Aromas of lemon, wild yeast, hint of peach flesh.

T: Unbelievably delicious and refreshing. Extremely sour -- pretty much as sour as it gets. Puckering. Flavors are a bit like the nose, very acidic with hints of tangy fruit flesh.

M: Fairly light in body, well carbonated, fairly silky on the palette.

D: If you're craving sour, this does the trick. Worth every one of the $25 it costs. Extremely sour but easily drinkable for someone versed in lambics. Would buy again.

Serving type: bottle

02-01-2009 01:40:37 | More by kasper

LilBeerDoctor

New York

4.33/5  rDev -6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Reviewed on 6/11/08. On tap at Spuyten Duyvil Brett Fest. Pours a light orange with a small white head. Aroma of sour apricot. Flavor is of sweet apricot, maybe some cream cheese (?). Light, hardly sour, very fruity, and quite excellent. I had this in bottle awhile ago and was unimpressed, but this draught version really wowed me. Awesome and refreshing.
8/4/9/5/16 (4.2/5)

Serving type: on-tap

12-20-2008 15:11:24 | More by LilBeerDoctor

koopa

New Jersey

4.08/5  rDev -11.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

750ml bottle purchased from Liquid Solutions. Cork says botted in 2007, sampled 12/14/08.

Appearance: Slightly peach colored hazy golden pour. Quite lemon looking with an overall fine foam head.

Smell: Rotten eggs, slightly over ripened apricot, yeast, mild barnyard funk.

Taste: Exactly like the nose but the egg note is minimized and the barnyard note is increased.

Mouthfeel: Very refined, sophisticated, creamy, delicate.

Drinkability: Very approachable considering the style.

I think the apricot sweetness would disappear completely with any additional age put on this one. But the sharpness and dryness would continue to develop. Its already fairly sharp and dry so who knows what extremes it could reach! Definitely not a low class sweet fruit lambic. This is a winner.

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2008 00:47:24 | More by koopa

GClarkage

California

3.8/5  rDev -17.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12/4/08- Purcahsed at Plumpjack's in San Francisco, CA.

Presentation- 750ml bottle, vintage 2003 says the cork. Poured into my Cantillion small tulip/wine glass.

Appearance- Seems to be a brown liquid under the cap surrounding the cork. Pours with a grapefruit colored cloudy white-yellow. Slightlest of spritzy head upon pour which fades upon impact. Leaves super light spotty quick disolving lace.

Smell- Smells very vinegary...the cork pops and still smells a bit vinegar-like, but also more lambic like with some definite barnyard qualities of wet hay and earthyness. Sour fruits, but I can't make them out. Possibly lemon, but apricot does not stand out.

Taste- Pucker city. Possibly the most sour beer I have ever encountered. Tart and mouth puckering. Lemon, grapefruit and other citrus fruits are pretty mucn undefinable due to the extreme tartness.

Mouthfeel- Very dry with an ultra long lasting sour feeling on the back of the tongue. Medium carbonation level.

Drinkability- This about pushed my limits of sourness. It tore up my stomach as well. Only for the people who can tolerate extreme amounts of citric acid. Tasted just fine, but hard to complete an entire bottle for me at least.

Serving type: bottle

12-05-2008 15:32:08 | More by GClarkage

gford217

Georgia

3.98/5  rDev -13.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

2007 bottle poured into a snifter.

It pours a bright, hazy yellow gold with a moderate size fluffy white head that lingers as a ring and swirl for a while. The lacing is minimal.

The aroma is quite sour, with lemons, apricots and a bit of funk - barnyard, hay, etc. Quite a bit like lemon juice combined with some vinegar.

The taste is even more sour than the aroma with a massive acidic lemon kick up front before a little bit of fruity sweetness in the middle, but then back to the massive sour presence that attacks the taste buds and makes the lips pucker in the finish.

The palate is light and dry with a tingly carbonation presence.

Wow, this is a seriously funky and acidic lambic that is pretty harsh on the taste buds. Very tasty stuff.

Serving type: bottle

11-21-2008 02:40:54 | More by gford217

ArrogantB

Colorado

4.7/5  rDev +2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

750ml bottle 2007 vintage $22. Beautiful golden color, hazy. It smells like apricot or peach pits, slight bit of hay, really excellent aroma. Taste is sour apricots, peaches, lemon. Very sour but it doesn't get in the way at all, delicious flavor. The apricot aroma is really my favorite part about this beer but overall this is probably the best Cantillon I have had thus far.

edit 12/2/2012

had this on tap at Zwanze day and had to bump up the taste score. This stuff is really great.

Serving type: bottle

10-27-2008 01:08:29 | More by ArrogantB

mbrandon2w

Maine

3.93/5  rDev -14.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

750 ml bottle brought back from honeymoon in Belgium.
Pours a peachy orange/yellow color. I've never seen a beer this color before; kind of pretty, actually.
Smell is of tangy, sour wheat with a hints of apricot and orange.
Apricot flavor is there, but not overpowering or even entirely noticeable. I wouldn't even be able to pick it out if I didn't know what it was, I bet. Overall it's a soft wheat flavor, with a lightly sweet, moderately sour, very refreshing tartness.
Amazingly drinkable, would love to have this consistently, especially in the summer.

Serving type: bottle

10-18-2008 22:39:51 | More by mbrandon2w

largadeer

Kentucky

4.88/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

750ml bottle, 2006 vintage received from Dyan. Thanks!

Appearance: Pulling off the wrapper, uncapping the crown and remove the cork is always a messy process with Cantillon beers, usually leaving you covered in mold and other foul-smelling matter. This one's no exception, and may even be worse than any others I've encountered. Between the black mold underneath the bottle cap, the white muck under the wrapper and the grey ooze that seeps from the cork, I have to wonder what this beer is doing to my innards. Fuck it all though, with a beer this delicious you can't worry about what it's doing to your stomach lining or general health. Rambling aside, the beer itself pours a milky wheat color, not far off from the appearance of their gueuze. Cloudiness is significant, but then again, I made no effort to let the sediment settle in this bottle. A vigorous pour left me with a couple inches of head with rather large bubbles, and though it leaves no lacing, retention is pretty good for this style of beer.

Smell: Apricots. Sour, unripened apricots. It's remarkable how much the fruit shines through in the aroma. Before opening this bottle, I wasn't sure how well the fruit would stand up against the acidity of Cantillon lambic (astoundingly well, is the answer). Beyond the fruit, there's plenty of signature Cantillon funk too, but the apricots really steal the show. Awesome, maybe the best nose I've come across on a fruit lambic.

Taste & mouthfeel: Intensely sour, like taking a big bite from an unripened apricot. Again to my surprise, there's a ton of apricot flavor here, and it works beautifully with the bracingly acidic lambic. Even by Cantillon standards, this is sour stuff. I can't see my stomach faring well by the end of this bottle, but that's not going to stop me from finishing it (slowly). The mouthfeel is light and bubbly, with all the signature dryness and acidity people have come to expect from Cantillon, and alcohol is never really felt. Simply an awesome beer, one that I wish was available locally so that I could grab a few to cellar.

Notes on other vintages:

2001: With 9 years of age on it, this batch is still very fruity, lactic, lemony. Sharp sourness. Not as fruity as some of the fresher batches, but still excellent.

2003: Unusually turbid and thick. Not a lot of fruit here compared to newer vintages, though it does come through. Strong lactic sourness, funky, somewhat one-dimensional. Not one of the best batches, but enjoyable.

2004: Musty and slightly metallic, big lactic character, strong apricot skin aroma and flavor. Seemed a bit past its prime to me.

2005: Bottled opened early 2011. Extremely sour, one of the most intensely sour batches of beer I've tried from Cantillon, in fact. Moderate funk, little oak or fruit. Enjoyable in small quantities, the acidity is pretty intense.

2007: Extremely sour and simple with mild fruit and barrel character, one of the weaker batches of FF.

2008: Similar sourness to the 2007 batch but with a big juicy apricot character to balance it, excellent.

2009: Big apricot character with restrained sourness compared to previous vintages. Very oaky, tannic, fruity. Quite good, might be my favorite vintage. As of late 2010, it seems to have become more sour and less tannic with age.

2010: Fresh this is very fruity and bright, lightly sour and funky, less oaky than the '09 was fresh. Amazing apricot bouquet. Very enjoyable, sourness should increase with age. Another great vintage.

2011: Fresh, this one is less fruity and slightly more sour than the previous two vintages. Not as interesting to me as the '09 and '10 batches. Still very good.

Serving type: bottle

09-10-2008 01:44:43 | More by largadeer

gkatsoris

Pennsylvania

4.75/5  rDev +3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

A: Super transparent, pale yellow in color, Absolutely no head. But some slight bubbles running up the side of the glass.

S: The smell is honestly like a wet dog (but I like it). Also the longer it sat, the more the fruit came out. Aside of the funky wet dog, it smells like a dried fruits.

T: HOLY CRAP!!! SOUR, SOUR, SOUR!!!! Oh my goodness this is ridiculous!!! Unbelievable.

M: Pucker, pucker, pucker, pucker, pucker. The sour lasted for over 3 minutes too. AWESOME.

D: Honestly, as awesome as this brew is; one and done.

Serving type: bottle

09-07-2008 18:12:55 | More by gkatsoris

DrDogbeer

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev -13.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Had on tap at Ebenezer's Belgian fest. One of teh 3or 4 beers I took notes on before things got out of hand.
Poured into an Eb's snifter a pale yellow with some slight haze and a thin, quickly dissapating head. Aroma is definite Cantillon tart, sour fruit with some definite funk in there. FLavor is of the tartest apricots I could ever imagine. THis one is one of the most puckering beers I have ever tried. Very dry and refreshing, though. One is an experience. Interesting and very good lambic.

Serving type: on-tap

08-30-2008 12:41:36 | More by DrDogbeer

AKBelgianBeast

Alaska

4.72/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

2004 bottle.

Pours a nice clean yellow/light orangey color with a slim stark white head. Nose is pure cantillon lambic funk with some slight fruit. Taste follows with a very present apricot flavor hidden behind a wonderful blanket of tart barnyard funk. Really impressed with the noticeable apricot in here. Mouthfeel is uber dry and super tart. Drinkability is very fine for the style. Overall, this is defenitely one of my favorite brews from Cantillon. A very good offering, I just wish the goddamn price was a little nicer. Very good lambic, strongly recommended for all the sour heads out there. Great.

Serving type: bottle

08-28-2008 02:40:29 | More by AKBelgianBeast

rallison

California

4.5/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Thanks Joey for bringing this 2002 bottle to Carlos' place for the tasting!

Aroma is funky, citrusy and nice sour peach/apricot - none of that artificial fruit you get from some lesser lambics (and I'm not even talking about the horribly sweet Lindeman's versions). Love that funk.

The taste is quite tart and relatively clean. Yummy funk and sour apricots. Soft wheat-like character upon warming.

Sourness is not quite as sharp as on fresher bottles, but you could argue this is a good thing. My preference - nice and sharp. Age treats it very well though, so you won't go wrong aging a bottle.

Still, one of my favorite Cantillon beers. How I need to get some more bottles! I'm also wavering between a 4.5 and 5 for flavor - I think a fresh bottle might bump the taste score to that elusive 5.

Serving type: bottle

07-23-2008 06:51:22 | More by rallison

seaoflament

California

4.72/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to Joey for bringing a bottle of this for the tasting at my house the night of 7/19. A 2002 vintage!

The beer is a hazy, light peach and pours with a decent inch and a half of foam, a little soapy trails as it falls down.

The aroma is pure funk and fruit!! Love it. Apricots in full force, natural and not "pixie stick" candy like other apricot beers I've tried. Cheesy, salt water, peaches, and sour orange.

Sour apricots...period. Apricot flesh and skin, salt, and a bit of wheat after it warms up.

Near perfect mouthfeel, slightly syrupy but a good level of carbonation livens this one up enough to be very drinkable. Pure indulgence.

Pucker up!!!

Serving type: bottle

07-21-2008 03:39:39 | More by seaoflament

ccrida

Oregon

4.7/5  rDev +2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

2004 cork dated 750ml bottle poured into my large St. Feuillien goblet, Fou' Foune is a hazy, darker gold with a off-white collar and skim.

Smell is super funky, pushing burnt rubber, but in an enticing manner for lambic lovers. As it warms, it gains a soft honey sweetness, although it's very faint. Finally, the apricots flirt through, very nice, wow!

Taste fails to disappoint, this is about as funky as it gets. Four years in, any traces of the famed "Bergeron" apricots are long gone, but I've always preferred pure lambics to fruit ones anyways. As the palate adjusts to the intensity of the sourness, the sweetness starts to cut through, but any hints of the fruit are probably subliminal - if I didn't know the label, I wouldn't recognize them now. Still, I love sours, and this reigns supreme.

Mouthfeel is puckeringly tart, with a medium body for the style.

Drinkablity is precious, if you've come this far and shelled out the dough ($30 in my town) then you'll probably wish you'd be able to drink another bottle. Chances are, you can't. I'm saving the dregs for homebrew. If I come close, I'll drink it all day long, albeit not terribly quickly. This is as sour as it gets! A special vintage bottling indeed.

Serving type: bottle

07-04-2008 07:23:32 | More by ccrida

jastack

Connecticut

4.7/5  rDev +2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Popped the cork on this bottle to find out that it was from early 2006. Poured this one into a Cantillon glass to a bright golden color similar to what you would get in a pilsner with a small white head that dissipates after about a minute to just cover the top of the beer. The smell is quite exceptional with a slight funk fading into a great apricot sweetness, almost exactly what I expected it to be. The flavor of this beer was even better than the aroma. Right up front you get a great dryness that quickly fades into a mouth puckering sourness. This eventually turns tart and the after taste gives you the apricot sweetness. The mouthfeel is quite full considering the beers color with lively carbonation. This beer is a pleasure to drink and a geueze/lambic that would please connoisseurs and novices alike. Although the price was a bit high, this was well worth it.

Serving type: bottle

03-16-2008 17:44:15 | More by jastack

SacoDeToro

California

4.83/5  rDev +4.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured a slightly cloudy orange with a rocky white head.

The aroma was bursting with sour funk, apricots, and citrus notes.

The flavor was intensely sour - more so than almost any sour I've had before. Simply awesome. The flavors of tart apricots were bright and punchy. The fruit bleneded well with complex brett funk, lacto, and pedio sourness with a slight, but pleasant cheesiness faint in the background.

The beer had prickly carbonation with a light mouthfeel. The beer finished very dry and had a mild astringency that complemented the sour charateristics.

A wonderful fruit lambic with some of the most intense sour flavors I've ever had in a beer. This may be Cantillon's sourest. Dope.

Serving type: bottle

03-10-2008 22:33:39 | More by SacoDeToro

beerthulhu

New Jersey

3.83/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

$20 bottle 22 oz.

A: Hazy lemon/orange color with very thin white head.

S: Tangerine aroma with some spicy tartness. Tart sour grapefruit flavor, like drinking lemon juice straight from the bottle. Wow.

T: Wicked lemon flavor that is overbearingly strong makes this beer truly one dimensional in flavor. It only gets more sour when it warms but in a good way. Truly an acquired taste and for the seasoned Belgium drinker. Wow.

M: Thin body but extreme sharp/acidic lemon flavor. Makes your eyes squint just bringing the glass up to your mouth from the aroma.

D: 1 bomber is plenty for anyone i would guess. really extreme flavor and smoothing sourness. Price is a little steep to justify.

Serving type: bottle

02-17-2008 18:27:47 | More by beerthulhu