Fantôme de Noël
A very dark and entirely unique holiday seasonal beer, at a whopping 10% alc. by volume. Reportedly spiced with honey, caramel, coriander, black pepper, and other secret ingredients. The alcohol content probably goes a long way toward explaining that very warm and satisfied feeling one finds on the very first sip. A rich, dark-flavored beer with lots of deep-roasted chocolate malt, but still fairly dry, with a hint of sourness at the core. It is very spicy, with some winter spruce flavor in the bargain. The wild yeast sourness also adds to its welcoming character.
3.7
802 reviews
Soy-Erezée, Belgium
Community reviews
hazy brown colour, medium sized dense, though not too stable beige-ish head; aroma and taste of chocolate, dried cherry, red wine and some clove; spicy alcoholic aftertase; more like a mixture of dry red wine and dark chocolate bonbon filled with dried cherry, than a beer, but still really enjoyable
750ml bottle pours out brown topped with a sand head. Nose has tons going on pepper spice over ripe citrus fruit and dark pit fruit sweetness. The crazy nose carries over to the taste earthy notes pit fruit citrus all sorts of spices.
Bottle. Dark brown with a large light brown head with good retention, lace and regeneration. Brown bread, light coffee, wood, twigs, light earthy, tobacco and malt drops. Medium to full body, medium sweet and bitter with mild acidity and warming alcohol. Hides the alcohol well and has depth.
Copenhagen 14/9 2018. 75 cl bottle with both a Cork plug and a metal cap (better safe than sorry) from Ølhandleren in Give (Hørning). Drawing of Santa in his cane full of presents and a Phantom lurking in the background.
Pours hazy brown with red hue and big off-white head. Settles as 1,5 cm thick layer of dense foam. Clinging to the side of the glass. Moderate Lacing.
Aroma is moderately intense and sour. Citrus, metallic alcohol, Black pepper. Lightly boozy. Quite acidic.
Light carbonation. Slightly thick and quite flat texture.
Flavor is quite sweet for a Saison followed by prominent sourness. Alcoholic burn. Aftertaste is bitter and a little rough. Lingers a bit.
Quite strange take on a Christmas Beer as I do not expect a Christmas Beer to be sour. But now I am dreaming of a sour Christmas.
750ml bottle. Pours dark reddish orange with a smooth head. Aroma of spices, earthy notes, berries, fruits and earthy notes, hints of funky yeastiness. Taste is funky, earthy and slightly sour with some berries spices and yeast. Finish is yeasty, spicy and earthy with some earthiness and berries with some sourness. Okay.
Bottle with friends. Dark clearish brown with light gray head. Sweet nose with apples and apricot. Smooth with raisin, apple and apricot. Quite nice for a saison.
Bottle from Etre Gourmet. Brown head, white head. Bitter taste with citrus, malts, ripe fruits, nuts and toast. Bitter finish with citrus, toast, ripe fruits, toast, nuts and yeast. Very nice brew.
750ml bottle. Murky reddish brown with a ring of beige foam. Flavors are banana, nuts, chocolate and spices with fruity notes. Gentle lactic acidity. Medium body, soft carbonation, watery texture.
Turbid/opaque orange/dark brown beer with a slight beige head. Medium aroma; taste starts medium sweet and ends slightly bitter and dry. Mostly consists of malt, chocolate and Saison yeast.
Draft at the Sovereign. Hazy reddish amber with a small beige head. Aroma is nice, Christmasy, mulling spice, spiced cider, earth, overripe fruits. Flavor is sweet, spicy, dark fruits. Fuller body, fairly smooth.
brown with small off-white head; aroma is fruity and slightly tart, spices, orange zest, malty background; taste is sweet and fruity, quite hoppy, slightly spicy, but not boozy; texture is thin and a little sticky with medium carbonation and a rather light body
Watery, sour, low carbonation. A very strange beer. I generally don't like wild yeast beers but this is a new low. Will not try again. Reading some of the other reviews, I get the impression that either the brewery has problems with the consistancy of quality for this one or some of us beer enthusiasts just don't "get" this beer.
Bottle from Bine & Vine in San Diego, CA. Aroma is dark fruit, cherry juice, milk chocolate, vanilla, mild cloves. Taste is dark fruit juice, smooth chocolate malts, slight booziness. Reminded me of a chocolate cherry Quad. Excellent stuff for the holidays.
Bottle from 2014. This has aged well. Pours a lightly hazed dark brownish color with tan colored head. Christmas spices, nutmeg, cinnamon, with some dark fruits, fig, plum, and a light earthiness on the nose; follows onto the palate. Medium bodied. Finishes with a nice dark fruit and spice finish, the aclohol is now very well hidden, does not drink like a 10% beer.
Very grapey. A touch tart. Very strong alcohol. This is a boring review but it was also not the best beer I’ve had from fantome. Maybe because it’s hot out?
Bottle a brown colored beer with a white head aroma malts caramel dark fruits spicy yeast and hops flavor malts caramel dark fruits yeast ripe fruits and hops
750mL bottle. Pours reddish (almost purple) brown with no head, but some sudsy bubbles. Aroma is yeast, cherry, berries, caramel, spice, yeast, clove, and brine. Taste is chocolate, spice, honey, pepper, cherry, dark fruit, brine, nutmeg, yeast, and red wine. Initially lightly sour, the beer then grows sweet before an earthy, herbal finish with just a touch of bitterness. Full body. Soft, barely-there carbonation. Mouthfeel is silky, creamy, and smooth.
Light beige creamy head. Brown colour. Aroma is fruity malty with dates, raisins and spicy and licorice notes. Flavor is malty too, fruity with raisins, dried fruits and licorice and chocolate tones, ending in a moderately spicy finish. Medium to full bodied.
I honestly hope that I got a bad bottle of this beer. Poorly carbonated, pale nose and no head at all. Blush dishwater colour in red tones and completely flat. Taste light sour with some herbal notes like coriander or alone. Palate non existing and a great disappointment. Will rerate if I can get another one.
Pours opaque purpleish brown with light brown fluffy head. The aroma is deep fruits, treacle, fruitcake, spice (grains of paradise). The flavor is Carmel, figs and raisins, cinnamon and spice, maybe oaky. Very smooth body and easy to drink and alcohol is well hidden. Not at all overspiced as the seasonal Christmas beers sometimes tend to be. Very very good beer.
Bottle from.... hm either a shop in Belgium or Systembolaget in Sweden, forgot which one :P Fruity and yeasty spicy smell. Similar taste. A bit rough flavour profile.
750ml bottle. Brown hazy beer, almost no head. Nose is fruity, spices and a hint of tartness. Flavor is cherries and berries, tartness, spices, chocolate. Herbal notes, mild bitterness and tartness in the finish. Remarkably drinkable.
750-ml bottle from binnys Hyde Park. translucent honey color, good head, fizzy at first, classic funky saison nose, saison lemon-pepper, clear but restrained spices, sweet, super balanced, medium body, herbal finish, drinkable. joyeux noël à tous.
0.75l bottle. Hazy dark brown body with no head. Aroma of chocolate, cloves, nutmeg, red wine and cherries. Taste of chocolate, cherries, spicy hops, nutmeg with sone tartness in the finish. Basically no carbonation. Interesting beer for sure. Some sips even makes me to think this is actually a red wine :-) Definitely nice though
3 oz pour at Hops & Pie. Clear orange appearance with a tan head. Aroma of light caramel malt, toasted grain, mild herbs/spices, toffee, light citrus zest and a touch of peppery spice. Similar flavor, adding mild malt sweetness, light to mild bitterness and a hint of acidity. Medium to full body with a light dry feel and a lingering, mildly spiced, light yeasty finish. Pretty solid stuff overall.
Bottleshare: pours dark hazy orange with white head. Aroma is yeasty and sugary. Taste is kind of too sweet with the candied sweetness. Some light bitterness. Not that great.
750ml capped and corked bottle between five at the December 2016 Shrewsbury Beer Exchange Group meeting in Chez Sophie. Cheers Mat for another interesting beer. Muddy brown/amber body, small off-white topping. Fruity, spicy and semi-sweet: Rhubarb Fool came to mind mid-sip and the thought/flavour never left my head. Like all/most Fantôme beers, you never really know what is going to come out of the bottle!
75cl bottle @ monthly tasting, Chez Sophie, brought by me, given to me by Dany himself. Thanks Dany. Pours deep reddish amber, thin foamy off-white head. Floating grimbly bits. Aroma of light spice. Taste ironically not as spicy as other Fantomes, considering this is a Christmas beer. Some honey, pepper, caramel, malt. A bit drying, not too flavoursome and seems a bit lacking in the vibrant spicy yeast flavours I’ve come to love. Not Fantome’s best unfortunately.
Bottle (from Pothouse). Pours murky brown without head, looks ugly. Aroma is sweetness, spices, malt, vanilla, some booze. Flavor is sour and sweet, malt, spices, coriander, fruits, plum juice. Carbonation is on the low side, drinkability is excellent despite the ABV. Some booze is noticeable, but not too bad. Overall: very good.
750ml bottle. Thanks, Kaspar. Pale brown colour. Thin head. Slight sourness, caramel, bready notes in the aroma. Slight herbal touch as well. Caramelly notes at first. Sour, bready notes in the middle. Touch of kvass. Caramelly, sour, slightly spicy finish. Notes of caramel and berries in the end. Rather medium bodied, low carbonated, descent and interesting brew.