Hello guys.  For today’s craft beer review I’m going to be drinking the Fantome Hiver brewed by the Brasserie Fantome located in Soy, Belgium.

I have yet to try anything from Fantome, however I’ve heard nothing but good things about them.  I’m real excited about trying this brew.

The website, fantome.be, was not written in English, so I had to refer to ratebeer.com for the commercial description. 

Fantome’s winter offering, available December through March or so. Brewer Dany Prignon changes his recipes every year, so we can’t say for sure what this year’s beer will be like, but it is sure to please lovers of Dany’s beers.

Time for a pour.  You guys ready?

This brew has an ABV of 8.0% and it comes in a 25.4 oz. bottle.

It poured a very cloudy pale amber to orange color.  The head was white, soft, fluffy, rocky and a bit soapy.  It had an excellent size, a tremendous retention time and it left behind some awesome lacing.  A thin film of foam was left on top of the liquid for the duration.  This beer looked great sitting in the snifter that’s for sure.  One of the most aesthetically pleasing beverages that I’ve seen in quite some time.

The nose presented a very, very light hint of “funk” along with a relaxed peppery spice.  Lemon citrus and light sour apples as well as some lemongrass tones added some bright aspects while zips of yeast and grain coalesced nicely with a floral tone.  The aroma wasn’t nearly as strong or robust as I thought it was going to be, however it was harmonized, suitable and balanced superbly.  Solid all around to say the least.

The taste was more of the same.  Subdued funk intermingled with a spice of pepper.  Savors of lemon and green apple.  A very “easy” tartness and sourness was found along with some “earth”, yeast, breads and grain.  Like the aroma, very well balanced, yet somewhat relaxed.  It tasted mighty fine though.    

The mouthfeel was medium bodied.  Very dry, snappy, crisp and refreshing.  The carbonation was lively and I found a very light touch of warmth from both the spice and the alcohol.  A decent amount of flavor was left covering the roof of the mouth, tongue and throat after each sip.

I’ll tell ya.  This was a very good beer.  It was a little light as far as the nose and the taste for what I was anticipating, however it was still very solid, sturdy, fitting and worthwhile.  It wasn’t extremely intense or overpowering, which made for an easy drink and one that would meld well throughout the entire year.  Some beers of this style can become a bit tiring after awhile when trying to finish a whole 750 mL bottle all by yourself, however I had no trouble at all with this one.  The Fantome Hiver is definitely worth a try if you can obtain it.  It really represents the style well.  I know I’ll be picking it up again sometime soon. 

Thanks for reading and commenting everyone.  I really appreciate it.

Until next time.  Cheers.

Score:  4.1 out of 5
Grade:  A-