After being pleasantly surprised - and I mean seriously surprised as we are talking Van Steenberge here - by a vermouth barrel aged version of Fourchette, in itself a blend of witbier and tripel, I deciced to have a go at its brother, aged on Sauvignon Blanc wine barrels. Corked 75 cl bottle with muselet, from De Pickere in Zele. Snow white, intricately 'Brugse kant'-like lacing, initially very thick and rocky (tetra hops!), slowly thinning yet still very stable head on an initially clear pure pale golden blonde robe with strings of visible sparkling, turning misty further on. Aroma of ripe Durondeau pear, brioche bread, grape skin, demi-sec wine, even a whiff of white port, Latundan banana, lime zest, something soapy in a 'natural' and inviting way (like jasmin blossoms in spring), fresh apple peel, a whiff of the old 'buxus' metaphor used in oenology, fresh croissants on Sunday morning, ripe pepino, clove, something vaguely but intriguingly camphor-like faraway in the background - and nothing unpleasant, remarkably. Spritzy onset, lots of sparkling wine-like minerality from the start, hints of sweet and mildly sour with impressions of green grapes and gooseberry next to ripe pear, apricot and a dash of apple banana, all mingled in very lively, crémant-like effervescence; smooth body, full enough, with a cereally and white-bready core as well as some residual sugars floating on top, but penetrated by this white wine barrel treatment early on, in the form of a 'deep' vinous fruitiness, including the flavours of indeed clear Sauvignon Blanc (the gooseberry-ish and grassy effect oenologists tend to refer to), complemented with clove-like phenols and something very subtly sherry- or port-like possibly coming from oxidation of the beer itself within those barrels. Hops provide a grassy background bitterness while woodiness unfolds, though not in a severely tannic way; still, a clear wood flavour keeps lingering till the very last drop so this one clearly did spend time in barrels. Lightly warming alcohol and lingering 'white fruit' effects top things off in the very end. Like most of their beers, Fourchette originated out of laziness, by blending witbier and tripel together, but Van Steenberge admittedly invested a lot of money in its marketing - which from the beginning was aimed at restaurants and home tasting more than pub consumption; I was not too impressed by that, but I do need to admit that its offspring, namely this wine barrel version as well as that vermouth version, amazed me in being quite refined and showing no serious faults or off-flavours. Both lack the crudeness, yeast bitterness and roughness I usually dislike in Van Steenberge beers and show that even this brewery is, when given enough time, capable of coming up with something enjoyable even to discerning beer tasters. That said, do not get overly excited either: in saturation and booziness, this is still a very Belgian semi-tripel of sorts, like the basic Fourchette; it is, however, a version significantly polished and embellished by the barrel treatment. Do not go out of your way to find this, but if you do stumble upon it somewhere, give it a try, it is worth it. More or less.

Ultra dense & thick, slightly yellowish head, ultra stable over very well-carbonated, hazy golden beer, lacey. Vinous nose, clearly the winebarrels. Hints at spoiled wine, even Bretts. Again quite vinous, with a delicate fruity, grapey sweetness, almost as a dessert wine. The Brett-hint is vaguely present in the very back. Well bodied, well carbonated, and very slick-oily. As the Vermouth, a very well done beer by VS, and pushing the ordinary Fourchette into oblivion.

Pours unclear blonde. Medium, very stable white head. Scent is mildly spicy, herbal. Dry and fine, yet with a sweet base. Taste is fairly sharp, spiced, but balanced. Cardamom, mild banana. Complex. Only mildly sweet. Better than I would have ever expected. High carbo. Decent, clearly building on the abbey type yeast, but the vineous character really helps and works very well, to create something different. No real oakyness, but the wine influences are there. Bit too tripel-typical to me to really stand out in the crowd, I can see the appeal though, and I can see how this would work in foodpairing. The biggest surprise here however, is how well the beer is balanced and refined, something I wouldn't have ever expected from a Vansteenberge beer.