Drucken på fat på Bishop Gustaf Malmö. Opak svart vätska med högt krämigt beige skum. Doft av fat, trä, mörka bär och mörka semitorkade körsbär. Torrare än en oud bruin och mindre stenfrukt. Mjukt fyllig och vinäger där den acetiska syran är så inbäddad mjuk malt och frukt att den känns harmonisk på ett sätt jag aldrig upplevt tidigare. I eftersmaken mörksens lätt rökig torvor smak. Finstämd och komplex och väldigt god

Bottled blend of dark lambics - a concept unknown to mankind before the Great Lambic Revival, though I have often wondered why in those days... 3 Fonteinen's first batch of Nocturne, created for the Toer de Geuze of 2017 so almost a decade ago now, was not just one of the very first 'Twists of Fate' but also one of the very first dark lambics ever made (even though Cantillon already made an attempt with their Zwanze 2015); I tasted it one week after the Toer de Geuze event, poured by the late Armand Debelder himself, who proceeded to explain to me that the net result of brewing lambic with dark malts is very close to 'oud bruin'. Apparently - and I am ashamed to admit that I missed out on this completely - they did elaborate a bit on the theme afterwards, including this bottled blend of dark 'Nocturne' lambics. Shared with Bart A. and Daniel at Lambik-o-Droom. Irregular, yellowish pale beige, moussey, slowly deteriorating but still generally stable head on an initially clear, dark chocolate brown robe with burgundy red glow at the edges. Aroma of dry caramel, passionfruit, medium dry sherry, blackcurrant, dusty attic, brown bread, wild blackberries from a forest, old wood, dried fig, vanillin from oak, autumn apple. Tart onset but rich and dense, strongly dark-fruity with blueberry, fresh fig and crabapple impressions, finely carbonated with smooth yet full and vinous body; caramelly core, beech nut and brown bread crust effects too, deeply penetrated by yoghurty lactic tartness and fruity acidity, though nowhere too sharp or astringent. Lingering brown breadiness towards the finish, lots of wood and an earthy 'leafiness', but more than anything, a beautiful, rich and ongoing dark fruitiness, which along with the overall vinosity (of old red wine or sherry) makes for a very complex, layered ending phase. I still hesitate to refer to a dark beer of spontaneous - as opposed to mixed - fermentation as 'oud bruin' (or 'Vlaams rood' or whatever), also because it almost feels like an unjust comparison, because this fascinating brew gives an impression of being even more deeply penetrated by the fruity and yoghurty effects of the fermentation(s). There is something fundamentally different going on here - as an oud bruin with another dimension added in some way... Even by 3 Fonteinen standards, I believe this product is spectacularly inventive and innovative - and clearly underrated, in my opinion. Absolutely lovely, pure, rich and perfectly conveying what it intends to be.