Ambreus only got out of the starting blocks a couple of years ago but is now increasingly producing less obvious lambics, like this elderblossom one - in a very small tradition kicked off by Cantillon's 2009 Zwanze, still in existence today under the name Mamouche. Very loose and large-bubbled, irregular, off-white 'collection of bubbles' rather than a true head, dissolving quickly and completely over a cloudy peach blonde robe with rusty hue. Aroma of green plum, unripe nectarine, sorrel, elderblossom indeed but not overpowering, unripe mandarin, stale lime juice, peach kernels, wild blackberry (bushes), kefir, crabapple, wet or even mouldy wood, raw onion indeed, damp straw, sweat, wet clay. Tart, fruity onset, lots of unripe grape, hard nectarine and green plum, wild apple and gooseberry too, seamlessly connecting with a deep, very yoghurty lactic acidity, softly carbonated with vinous body. The drying effect of this pronounced lactic acidity runs through the whole, carrying the stonefruit and sour apple effects with it - but also an underlying minerality as in a very dry white wine (Chablis); rounded malts form a firm but supple background structure while the elderblossom effect grows, though it somehow remains subtle and subordinate to all the green stonefruit effects that dominate till the end, enriched with a tannic woodiness, bacterial funky notes (pond water) and aromas of sorrel, overripe lemon and wet leather. Dry, tart, very fruity finish with underlying old hop bitterness and this typical 'green weed' effect I got in other Ambreus blends too - no doubt coming from the De Troch lambic. The elderblossom acts sharply 'green' here rather than blossomy (in comparison with e.g. Lindemans Blossom Gueuze), but remains altogether subtle, perhaps even too subtle, accentuating the unripe stonefruit, pond water and wet green weed aspects of this lambic rather than expressing itself properly. I was also expecting a more fiery carbonation - which I think in this case would have been beneficial to the overall flavours. Needs some finetuning I guess - elderblossom can be delicate and refined, but perhaps the bitter plant-like flavours that typify De Troch are a bit too crude to do it justice.

Medium, off-white head, fed by lively carbonated hazy orange-amber beer. Putteke², horseblanket, floral, gurkins, really complex nose. Orangepeel, onion (especially retronasal), lemon, wheat, gooseberry, wet wooe, elderberry flower. Warming up something as almost decaying strawberries. Very spritzy carbonation, tittilating. Acidthinning and -burn. Good fruitgueuze. But I gladly would have skipped the onionflavour. Txs to Stef!