Boon Oude Geuze - Brouwerij Boon

brendan13

Australia

3.65/5  rDev -6.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A - Poured from the 375ml corked and caged bottle into my one and only stange glass an orange golden colour with a couple of centimetres of rocky white head that falls away rather quickly.
S - Earthy & sour aroma hits first followed by some ripe apple & citrus fruit notes.
T - Funky, earthy yeastiness also in the taste with quite a dominating lemon sourness.
M - Light bodied with a pretty high carbonation level.
D - A very interesting beer. Not something to drink everyday but well worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

07-22-2008 10:47:07 | More by brendan13

Jerico

New York

3.78/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a Bordeaux wine glass.

A - a bit on the clear side for gueuze. A lot of head too (although it disappears quickly).

S - Spritzy and cidery. Settles into a mild musky funk.

T/M/D - smooth and dry, low on carbonation (for gueuze). A bit less bold than others of its brethren, but more approachable as well.

Serving type: bottle

04-26-2008 01:25:34 | More by Jerico

ShareANevada

Ohio

3.58/5  rDev -8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

On tap at the Beer Engine in cleveland (lakewood). Not something I expected to see on the tap list. 7 bucks.

Served at a very reasonable temp in an open mouth glass.
Your normal hazy golden color with a fairly low head on this.

I've had this in the bottle before, and truly truly enjoyed it, counting it as spectacular. I had high hopes for it on tap.

Maybe I expected too much here. It seemed that this was not as carbonated as the bottle, and that it lost a bit of its zing. That crisp sour I so loved just didnt come out in this one. The flavor was all there, just not pronounced like I expected.

Chatting with the bar manager, (without stating the above opinion yet) he stated that he preferred this from the bottle.

Very excited to see this on tap, and with such hardy competition on the tap bill, this was a must have for me, but it just didn't quite live up to its total potential. Drinkability was hurt a little by its lack of pronunciation.

I will definitely still stock a couple of these in the basement, but next time I will likely pass on the tap on this one (at least when theres such other amazing choices on tap).

Serving type: on-tap

04-24-2008 15:25:30 | More by ShareANevada

RblWthACoz

Pennsylvania

4.28/5  rDev +10%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a slightly colored golden brown with a big head that recedes somewhat quickly. Smell is extremely sour with a strong yeast presence. Flavor is not as sour as I would have expected considering this is the first geuze I have ever had and that the nose was so sour toned. This is actually extremely drinkable and I like it quite a bit. It is thinner on the mouth and not very heavy at all.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2007 05:50:39 | More by RblWthACoz

oakbluff

Manitoba (Canada)

3.98/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Taste courtesy of piscator34. Light straw colour. Nose is of light funk and citrus. Taste- quite tart with lemon, green apple and some horse blanket. Mouthfeel- High carbonation as expected making for a spritzy dry treat. Very refreshing and tasty gueze

Serving type: bottle

12-16-2007 23:36:17 | More by oakbluff

thierrynantes

France

4.5/5  rDev +15.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Beer bottle (37,5 cl), tasted in 2007.
Appearance: apricot colour, trouble, aroma forested, well saturated (small bubbles).
Smell: floral aroma
Taste and mouthfeel: Taste rolling, acid and bitter, recalling some cider.
Drinkability: Excellent traditional gueuze lambic, very rough

Review added 10-29-2007, translated from french 1-27-2008.

Serving type: bottle

10-29-2007 10:38:26 | More by thierrynantes

biegaman

Ontario (Canada)

4.1/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Roughly 5 years old, this 2002-2003 Brewing Season Vintage was purchased at Bier Tempel in Brussels. And with a best before date of 08/2025 this beer is set to "go bad" exactly 18 years from now!

375ml bottle with no front label. Good sizzle off the pour but no head remains. An apricot complexion, the body mostly orange but with an almost ruby trim around its edges. Through the light it shines a crystal red onto my fingers. Clear bodied.

A funky as all else funky aroma. 'Old socks soaked in urine' is not to be taken sarcastically. As immature as that may sound it isn't far from the truth. (The smell of a REAL gueze is really something)

The mouthfeel is dry like champagne but with a slight oily, olive oil like, texture. It does manage to be satisfying before it become too dry. Aside from being just dry, the mouthfeel is also spritzy with the same feel as mineral water. Perhaps the age has mellowed it some, but for a gueze this is neither intensely sour nor insanely tart - rather, it is stingingly spritzy. The extra bit of alcohol can be detected and there is a stomach wrenching acidity on the finish.

The taste is far more passive than the mouthfeel. Notes of sour green apple make for a cider like profile. Indeed the flavour is full of rotting fruit, apple especially, and given its dry but sweet character this does resemble a cider in many ways. A short lived note of ripe citrus and dried out orange also hits the palate.

Five years aging hasn't hurt this one bit. Neither did not having time to finish the whole bottle and leaving a little in the fridge over night! I've never tried the Boon Oude Gueze fresh but I'd imagine this extra time has only helped. This was really good - guezy - stuff!

Serving type: bottle

08-27-2007 15:44:45 | More by biegaman

khiasmus

South Carolina

2.63/5  rDev -32.4%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 2

A- Very pale, cloudy yellow with beautiful white frothy head.

S-Gross. Skunk, predominantly, and then the sour as a close second. Honey, barn and straw... that's about it.

T- Lemon, skunk, vinegar... on and on with sour, but much worse. Not as sour as it should be. Aftertaste of vomit.

M- Clean and smooth, slightly creamy.

D- Awful. I won't have it again.

Serving type: bottle

06-07-2007 04:09:19 | More by khiasmus

nickfl

Florida

3.45/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A - Light orange amber color. Pours with a huge, off white head that settles down quickly.

S - Musty, earthy aroma. Very acidic, complex and enjoyable.

T - Begins a bit more watery than expected. Some acidity and a surprising lingering bitterness. Unfortunately reminicent of water with a wedge of lemon.

M - Very light body with medium carbonation. Does not linger on the palate.

D - Easy to drink relative to other examples of the style because of a strangely subdued flavor profile. The aroma is excellent but the taset did not live up to its promise and I would have prefered a stronger sour character.

Serving type: bottle

05-15-2007 03:01:09 | More by nickfl

warmstorage

Georgia

3.95/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

37.5cl bottle, corked and caged, 1,35 euro at a Brussels supermarket, states 6.5%.

Massively, gigantically carbonated. Hazy deep yellow, huge, moderately dense white head, light, erratic lacing.

Sour and tangy brett nose.

Taste is sour, tangy, funky brett goodness. A problem comes out in the finish: it's too musty/dusty, bordering on dirt-like. A weird combination. But solid gueuze goodness, for sure.

Mouth is tangy tingly.

Something I'll buy again, but not my favorite gueuze.

Serving type: bottle

04-12-2007 04:05:12 | More by warmstorage

beakerboy

Kentucky

2.88/5  rDev -26%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Bought as a corked 12oz bottle.
There is a lot of carbonation in this beer. The head started at 2 finger and grew to 3 as I write this first couple sentences. The head is quite thick adn an ivory color. The beer is a cloudy apricot. The smelly and taste are quite funky. This is the first Guauze I've had, so I don't have much of a baseline. I can taste and smell the "horse hair/barnyard" aspects from the wild yeast. It tastes a lot like some really bad, infected homebrew I once made. I really like belgian beer, but guauze might be streatching it a little.

Serving type: bottle

01-23-2007 02:09:44 | More by beakerboy

cypressbob

United Kingdom (Northern Ireland)

4.47/5  rDev +14.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottled, At the Porterhouse Dublin

375ml, corked

Pours with a coppery body, some amber hues, whispy fizzy head with good retention. Fizzy effervescent body

Smell, fresh tart fruit, grapefruit and lemon, little bit of barnyard funk, slightly musky, sherbet. Little bit of fresh grass on the nose too

Taste, dry as a bone, crisp sour grapefruit character, agressive carbonation, lemon and lime. Intense sour bitterness, some earthy notes also

A brilliant gueuze, even better than the standard boon offering

Serving type: bottle

11-24-2006 12:42:40 | More by cypressbob

wl0307

United Kingdom (England)

3.75/5  rDev -3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This was the very first Old Geuze I tasted during my study trip in Belgium some two years ago. And immediately I fell for the beer and the style. This 375ml bottle is 2002-2003 brewing season, 6.5%abv., BB 24/11/2025, served lightly-chilled in a straight imperial pint glass, as it's more like the way the Belgians drink it~~

A: dirty/murky dark orangey amber in colour, full of streams of tiny and large fizz; the pillowy white beer head breaks like
S: bitter-sour lemon and dried grapefruit peels, plus an exceptionally flowery+peachy note at the same time, plenty of aromas of wheatish malts and a funky edge just like any lambeek~~ akin to the smell of a dirty kitchen cloth. Pleasantly bitter and fruity, yet very softly-textured at the same time, but somehow not as complex as I remember it.
T: tannic and dry-ish bitter zesty upfront, with a touch of crushed grapefruit/lime seeds, lots of funky yeasts, while a mild flow of bittersweet edge of malted wheats creeps up from behind to balance with the bitter fruits. Maybe the ageing through these years has softened the texture greatly, that I can't really pick up any sharp sourness at all... yet the lingering dryish zesty and tannic bitterness throughout still makes this a pleasant and thirt-provoking drink.
M&D: overall the mouthfeel is pretty standard, refreshing enough and very mild in carbonation, showing good efforts on bottle-conditioning. And yet the complexity of this bottle seems to be lacking, compared with numerous bottles tasted before... But nothing will stop me from trying this beer over and over again. It's like a good honest session bitter in the world of geuze for me~~

Serving type: bottle

10-31-2006 20:08:19 | More by wl0307

haz77

United Kingdom (England)

4.03/5  rDev +3.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours a light amber with an inch of white head. This drops after about a minute to a thin layer. Small bubbles of moderate carbonation.

S - Acidic sourness, farmyard, light citrus, apple.

T - Initial burst of citrus is overtaken by lively carbonation. Tart grapefruit-like sourness starts to come through and lingers until the end and on into the aftertaste, along with a twang of bitterness.

M - Light body and medium carbonation.

D - Good stuff. Doesn't have the puckering sourness of other gueuzes, but is probably a nice introduction to the style. Very sippable.

Serving type: bottle

06-24-2006 17:52:25 | More by haz77

mdagnew

United Kingdom (Northern Ireland)

4.18/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

375ml bottle bought from www.belgianshop.com.... bottle dated 2002-2003...

Poured a golden yellow / amber colour... Slightly off white head poured pretty big and foamy then faded to nice thick layer. Lots of spritzy carbonation rises rapidly to the surface.... some patchy sticky lacing..

Aroma - Sour with a slight sweetness coming through, citrusy (lemony), flowery, acidic, cider hints, barnyard notes, can just about make out some faint hops, some leathery notes...

Taste – Nice sourness, fruity - notes of grapefruit, lemon and maybe some ginger, slight saltiness, some faint nuttiness, grassy, no bitterness and no real maltiness...

Feel - Sharp and dry.. light body. Very refreshing and pretty drinkable...

Overall - An excellent gueuze.... one of my favourites... Very refreshing and definitely worth a try...

Serving type: bottle

06-12-2006 09:18:11 | More by mdagnew

Crosling

Colorado

2.93/5  rDev -24.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Rusted orange. Full foaming, wispy and creamy head. Aromatically vibrant, with horsey, fruit (lemon) and barnyard aromas. Typical lambic aromatics. Flavor is much more approachable, less acidic, less sour, sweeter and generally less flavorful than lambics from say 3F, Girardin, Cantillon, Hanssens. I haven’t been impressed by Frank Boon thusfar, to be honest.

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2006 00:11:03 | More by Crosling

stcules

Italy

3.88/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Orange-amber color, with an exceptional foam for a geuze, even creamy and compact.
In the smell: pepper, fennel, and then the typical geuze notes, leather, sweat.
The taste is maybe less strong and intense than the smell. It reamins in the geuze territory (tart, citric), but maybe, paradoxically, too delicate.
Decent body.
In the aftertaste: leather, tannin, sharp. And overall, a good and sharp tartness.

Serving type: bottle

07-25-2005 18:51:33 | More by stcules

Beersignal

Quebec (Canada)

4.55/5  rDev +17%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Neck label states that it was from the 2000-2001 brewing season. As I undid the cage, the cork exploded from the bottle in a loud pop, fit for new year's eve. I'm feeling festive already;)).

Peach coloured hazy liquid with caramel tints under a medium cream coloured head of respectable hold (enough time for a photo). Dwindled to a film and left no lace.

Aromas were splendid! Orchard fruit and tart lemons under wet hay up front yielding to notes of oranges and apples. A resurgence of the smells occurs and jostles with gentle (yes gentle) barnyard aromas. Really, well done.

Dry and bracing tart mouthfeel is followed by an onslaught of citrucy fruit flavours. Oranges, limes, grapefruit and a touch of green apples parade around leaving behind remnants of vanilla cream. The finish is mellow and bitter/fruity of grapefruit rinds.

I love this stuff! To me it is the perfect match between the traditional qualities of a well blended gueuze and the drinkability that would allow me to enjoy quite a few bottles of this stuff in the same evening. I love and worship Cantillon and Drie Fonteinen for their craftsmanship and the characterful gueuzes they produce. Oude Geuze, with its more subtle style characteristics becomes the best gueuze to initiate those who are only mildly adventurous.

Santé

Serving type: bottle

07-05-2005 23:55:15 | More by Beersignal

Bierschenker

Belgium

4.33/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This bottle contains Geuze from the 2001-2002 brewing season.
This beer pours out with a large fluffy head. And the colour is a misty light amber copper. It has a very strong sour-bitter acidic smell that does not fade away.
The Boon has a very wild and strong wine like taste. It’s vulgar but at the same time at peace with itself. A bold flavour that can best be enjoyed by true Geuze drinkers. You could also describe it as a bitter-sour sticky taste. And so too is the aftertaste.
This beer is a great geuze, but (in my opinion) so are all the Boon beers.

Ut Vivat, Crescat, Floreat.

Serving type: bottle

05-19-2005 12:57:12 | More by Bierschenker

downes51

Cyprus

4.58/5  rDev +17.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

I'm surprised this beer hasn't been reviewed before. I think it's outstanding. But a warning.... it's a pretty uncompromising gueuze style, and it definately will NOT appeal to drinkers who have not already developed a taste for gueuze via a more approachable route. So if you don't already enjoy Belle Vue or Morte Subite, then come back when you do! Right now it's replaced Duvel as my favourite Belgian tipple. Here in Antwerpen the Berenbak only sells it in 750cc bottles, and that's the review sample here. (It also comes in smaller ones.) Anyway, the top comes off this big bottle and straight away you notice the foam building up, with evidence of solid yeast. Pop some into the beaker and you get a foamy drink which soon settles down to a nice pale colour. It's not perfectly clear by any means, but hell it's a live one, what do you expect? The aroma next.... hard to describe this. Vaguely citrus. Cooking apples. Then the flavour... this stuff is really quite sharp. Did I really pay money for this? I'd better pretend to like it... Once the initial shock has passed you realise you want more. And more. It's quite easy to drink a whole big bottle all by yourself, in fact yesterday afternoon I got through 2 of them. And being only around 7% it's not such a big deal. Highly reccommended.

Serving type: bottle

03-16-2005 20:28:29 | More by downes51