Pruim - Mirabelle
(has 5 batches)

Plum lambic by 3 Fonteinen (« blend n° 11 ») using not real plums, but Mirabelle plums (grown at Hoenshof), which is at least a different subspecies and according to some botanists, a different species of plum. Thanks David! Virtually no head apart from some off-white bubbles that quickly disappear, misty warm yellow-golden robe with apricot hue. Aroma of indeed plum – in both a ‘green’ and unripe way and a yellow and ripe, sweet way, flanked with green gooseberry, unripe pineapple, damp hay, yoghurt, lemonbalm, lime peel, sourdough, wet wood. Utterly fruity, like biting in a plum which is not quite ripe yet but close by, soft carb but not flat, side hints of green apple and gooseberry; bready malt (and wheat) core carrying on this truckload of yellow-green ‘plumminess’ to a more astringent finish, where woody notes appear along with tannins from the fruit’s seeds and skins, but the inherent sweetness and fleshiness of the fruit absorbs an important part of this astringency, always paired with a crisp lemony sourness on the sides, ending very elegant, quenching and juicy. Rich fruit lambic as always with this brewery, thoroughly enjoyed it but I did not expect anything less...

billies craft beerfest 2021

Pours unclear blonde, small white head. Smell is full, midlly tart, very oaky. Taste is sharp, tart, mild sweet side almost. Fruity (yellow fruits ) Bit earthy, nice sour aspect as well. Not sure if the online listed ABV is correct ( aboive 9 % ? ) but if it is, it wasn't noticed when tasted this without any info on the beer.

Another plum lambic in this endearing and dynamic Spelingen van het Lot series - or rather, mirabelle plum, which is technically not a real plum but a different, albeit closely related plant species. This Spelingen series is not just about lambic experiments, it also bears a whole cultural dimension, in highlighting and reintroducing old local fruit varieties that are hardly ever cultivated anymore - yet another reason to remain in ongoing fascination about what they are doing at 3 Fonteinen these days. This one was limited to only 50 bottles and must therefore be among the rarest of them all. Snow white, creamy and dense, stable head on a cloudy peach blonde robe with somewhat khaki-like tinge. Infinitely fruity aroma, a basket of ripe autumn fruit, ripe yellow mirabelle plums and lots of them, ripe apricot, pineapple, sour grape, cooked pear, green apple, lemon juice, white wine, minerals. Very expressively fruity onset, tons of ripe mirabelle, juicy, fleshy and mildly tart, the latter element playing interestingly with the lambic's own tartness and astringency, reminiscent of raw pineapple and unripe pear; fizzy carbonation, supple body, tad vinous. Bready core under a megastructure of mirabelle plum fleshiness and juiciness, with an acidic lemony effect at its sides; astringent fruit peel and plum kernel effects tie up with some tannic woodiness in the end, creating a bone dry, but ever-lasting, perfectly balanced finish. Fantastic fruit lambic by 3 Fonteinen - once again. Long live the mirabelle plum, something I thought I would never encounter again after having eaten them a long time ago at my grandmother's place in my early childhood.