Fantôme Pissenlit
Dany, the offbeat brewer at Fantôme, will try anything, and the results are always interesting. A beer made from dandelions would be worth a try if only because no one has ever brewed one before, but the great news is that this is actually a very good beer.
Dany and some cohorts get busy every spring picking bushels of dandelions that grow in the fields around the picturesque farmhouse brewery. The yellow flowers are removed and dried in the sun, then soaked in water for a few days. The thick, dark dandelion “tea” that results is the basis for the Pissenlit, which is made also from traditional barley malt and hops. It resembles a classic saison beer – golden spritzy brew, strong and very flavorful, with a good hop bite. You may have to strain to taste the dandelions, but you know they’re in there.
It should be noted that uncooked, the dandelion has a diuretic effect and is known in France as Pissenlit (literally, "wet the bed" - this also happens to be the British folk-name) for precisely this reason.
Dany and some cohorts get busy every spring picking bushels of dandelions that grow in the fields around the picturesque farmhouse brewery. The yellow flowers are removed and dried in the sun, then soaked in water for a few days. The thick, dark dandelion “tea” that results is the basis for the Pissenlit, which is made also from traditional barley malt and hops. It resembles a classic saison beer – golden spritzy brew, strong and very flavorful, with a good hop bite. You may have to strain to taste the dandelions, but you know they’re in there.
It should be noted that uncooked, the dandelion has a diuretic effect and is known in France as Pissenlit (literally, "wet the bed" - this also happens to be the British folk-name) for precisely this reason.
3.7
730 reviews
Soy-Erezée, Belgium
Community reviews
Bottle. Color: Reddish brown, dense long lasting off-white head. Aroma: Moderate sweet, herbal, hints of caramel. Taste: Over medium sweet, floral, herbal, notes of caramel and sugar, yeasty and peppery hints. Moderate bitterness. Nice sweetish herbal mouthfeel. Full body, average carbonation. Long lasting bittersweet herbal and lightly boozy finish. Very nice Saison.
Bottle. Color hazy orange with big white head. Aroma orange, acid, citrus. Taste acid, citrus, orange, yeast.
750 ml bottle
A very distinct and memorable saison provide a profile that is part Belgian, part French, and totally wild. Fantome continues to impress with a solid release.
Aroma / Appearance - A cloudy rusted base sticks to the glass. Doughy yeast, sourdough pretzels, and dry earthy textures provide the core of a funk infused bouquet.
Flavor / Palate - Yeasty apple pie, funk, and a splash of hay enrich the palate. Wild and untamed aspects bind it together in a pleasant package. The sherrylike body has mellowed with time but still provides a tart finish. It wasn't hard to finish off the bottle.
Decades later, I finally get to try this beer! Vinous nose, sherry like. Flavor also sherry like, but also with raisin/fig notes, herbal bitterness (light) and a very definitely vinous alcohol finish. Very warming. A little cloying.
Orange and hazy beer, funky and spiced smell. A bit oc alcohol warmth and medium body. A good spiced flavour and acidity, a bit sour for the rich saison flavour. No biting from the sourness though, spicy, complex, delicious.
Trübes Orange mit durchschnittlicher Schaumkrone. Leicht malzig, funky, kräuterig, fruchtig, Zitrusaromen, Orangen, etwas Pfeffer, trocken, leicht bitter.
Florals and a little hay. Some lime tang. Amber pour with good head. A bit of booze but well balanced like you passed the walk the line drunk test. Tap at Spveriegn.
75cl bottle at cerveteca lisboa, portugal. Hazy gold to orange color. Medium white head. Thin crispy body. Medium bitterness. Dry body. Aroma and flavour is pepper, yeast, citrus, grapes, spices.
Rami Rami is drinking a Pissenlit by Brasserie Fantôme at Powiśle
Slodkie, pelne, slodowe, lekko przyprawowe, lekko kwiatowe, niemalo alko... daleko od okolic saisona, blizej malt liqor czy inszego czegos:/
Flaska från Brewdog- shop. Grumlig, orange kulör med smutsvit skumkrona. Doft av örter och gräs. Sträv, pepprig och lite besk munkänsla. Smak av örter, peppar, gräs, apelsinmarmelad, zest och maskros.
Flaska brewdogs webshop. Grumlig orange vätska. Doft av hö, örter och jäst. Jordig smak med blommig eftersmak. Jäst och blad. Smått bitter.
Flaska beställd från Brewdog. Orangefärgad med vitt skum. Väldigt svag doft. Torr kryddig smak med eftersmak av maskrosor.
Bb 2019. Hazy bronze, almost no head. Slight funk on the cork and wafting in the air after opening. Doughy strawberry shortcake aroma.
Fruity taste, spices, like a nice bready belgian blonde. Finish has a unique brett flavor, part bitter part fruity. Unique as usual from Fantome. Not sure what the dandelion brings, but it's nice. Not as good as the original saison, but it was refreshing and enjoyable
0.75l bottle thanks to Cristobal37. Hazy orange body with a thin white head. Pretty much like a NEIPA. Funky first followed by a rose hip-like sweet and sour character, shortbread, apricot and citruses. It's even spicy a bit. Interesting beer for sure.
Sovereign, tap: hazy orange with a white head. Aroma is hay, yeast, some fruitiness, toasty, and spice. Taste is sort of sweet. Pretty nice.
Hazy amber color with beige head. Aroma is malty, sweet with brown sugar and dried fruit notes. Taste is also malty and sweet with wheat, sugar and yeast flavor. Medium body and carbonation. A bit boozy with a light cardboard note.
Draft 0.15l at Vrteska festival II Belgrade, Serbia. Thanks everybody for sharing beers. 06.05.2017. Pour it hazy orange color with no head. Aroma peach, saison yeast. Taste sweet, lacto, sourish till the end, quite dry, medium body, thick feel, lively, long finish!
Bottle at home. Golden amber with white head. Sweet malts, floral and herbal, can taste the dandelion clearly. Moderate sweet and bitter. Medium body and soft carbonation.
Draft at Churchkey. Pours golden with a white head. Leaves trace lacing in the glass. Nice floral and grass notes on the nose and tongue with a hint of horseblanket. Solid.
Aroma: slightly floral perfume, farmhouse, barnyard, fresh hay, belgian sweetness. Taste is sweet, very belgian with brown sugar, belgian yeast, alcohol spiciness. Sticky mouthfeel, low carbonation. Nice hybrid between a belgian strong ale and a saison, but too sweet.
Sweet grain and bread malts, caramel, sweet citrus fruits, barnyard. Hazy gold, tiny, creamy, white head. Light bitter. More subtle, slightly sweet barnyard, sweet grain and bread malts, caramel, dark molasses, soft carbonation, medium bodied. Very nice Saison, rich and well-balanced. Bottle from Independent Spirit, Bath.
One of the best parts about this brew is its name. I've been drinking dandelion root tea to promote liver health since college (it's probably a wash because of all the alcohol I consume, but oh well) and I can definitely vouch for the diuretic tendencies of the plant. Happily, Pissenlit didn't cause me to charge to the bathroom although its flavors were somewhat similar to the tea I enjoy. Pissenlit pours a clear amber. Spicy, earthy aromatics. Grainy flavor with some black pepper. Some of that tea-like dandelion comes through - it's toasty and only mildly floral compared to the overly vegetal taste you sometimes get with dandelion beers. Fat malt feel and a touch of bitterness on the back-end. Odd but exceptionally well-done.
Bottle.
A- Caramel, roses, malty.
A- Copper orange color, hazy liquid, off white head.
T- Caramel, rum cake, spices, floral.
P- Medium body, average texture, average carbonation, malty finish.
O- Don't get much in terms of the dandelions. At least the floral bitterness I would perceive. Lots of caramel malt and some spice. Not bad but not really outstanding by any means.
Bottle. Moderate grain, caramel and straw for the malt, light flowers for the hops, light to moderate musty and farmhouse for the yeast, with solvent, ripe pear, green pepper and allspice. Head is small to average, frothy, off-white, with some slippery spotty lacing and is mostly diminishing. Color is muddy, grayish dark tan. Flavor starts lightly to moderately sweet and lightly acidic, then finishes lightly sweet and faintly bitter. Palate is on the fuller side of medium, oily, with a soft to lively carbonation. A more rich and sweet Saison rather than being light and crisp. A very enjoyable beer either way.
[2015 Backlog]. Pours a deep golden body with thick head and lacing. Medium mouthfeel with lively carbonation on the palate and notes of florals, spicy yeast, soft malt and grains.
Extremely cloudy yellow color with no head. Looks like juice. Saison character, moderately sour and fruity. Medium to full body, soft to flat carbonation.
On tap at Vrteška 2017, shared with Višnja 666! Hazy golden, small off-white head. Light yeasty, but bad. Cardboard. Dry and unpleasant. Medium body, soft carbonation, abrupt finish. Something wrong with this one.
Drank again at Majstor za pivo, Belgrade a few months after. Better this time. Dry fruits and alcohol, light yeasty, more like a Belgian ale. Fruity with developing dryness, some hops. Not getting the herbs or flowers. Full body, moderate carbonation, boozy, harsh, light dry finish. A strong saison, maybe to strong, no sourness or spiciness.
Botella. @El Cabanón, Avilés 05/08/2017
Color amarillo oscuro corona de espuma blanca, aromas a levadura y cereal, sabor especiado y algo cítrico cuerpo medio
pours an orange colour, with a light white head
spicy aroma bit clove cinnamon
taste is fruit spicy long spiced finish
ok but not special
Poured from a bottle BB end 2019, drunk on 1/08/2017. Lot no 52a16. Highly anticipated beer right here. Big Fantome fan and Ive never yet had the privilege of this beautiful concoction reaching my lips. Upon prying loose the cork, there is no pop, at first I think it has lost its carbonation but then I see the wee beauty bubbles rising up to the surface. I pour her in nice and gentle like, and we get a nice sized head. Hazy, dark golden colour but not too chunky and murky. Definitely giving off that Fantome aroma, but its not too strong. Theres maybe a bit more bitterness and hay in the nose than the standard Fantome. Taking a sip, Im pretty pleased. This is gonna be a good one. Complex, elegant but also thirst-quenching like you could crush a few of these sitting in the late afternoon sun at a cafe in the Belgian countryside. I would say bitterness is a bit higher, possibly from them bitter dandelions, but gone is a lot of that spice you get from the standard. Sunny peaches, chicken coops, fresh bread is there in its place. I have to say, carbonation is a bit on the low side, especially by the second glass, but it still has a lovely body. Im glad I got to try this beer at last. Doesnt surpass the standard in my books, but nice for a change.