Slightly hazy pale purple. Fresh vinous nose. Effervescent, but also a big grape character, nice dryness but also some tartness.

Poured from 750mL bottle (2022 cork). Hazed copper red with small white head. Nice grape skins, gentle funk, nice balance.

This year's Zwanze day brought not one, but two different Zwanze beers to the world's Cantillon community, both flavoured with a herbal liquor normally used to make vermouth, by a French producer; in congruence with the 'bianco' and 'rosso' variants we all know from actual vermouth (think Martini), a 'blanche' was created from pure lambic and this 'rouge' from kriek. I sadly missed the actual Zwanze event this time but found myself lucky enough to try both these 'vermouth lambics' at Cantillon itself two weeks later. Medium thick, tiny-bubbled, pale pinkish, moussey head, lacing in shreds and slowly dissipating over a lightly misty, deep ruby red beer. Aroma of ripe sour cherries and tons of them, cherry juice, ripe elderberries (strong - but not actually present, unless one of the non-disclosed herbs is elderblossom perhaps?), rose buds I guess (one of the actually disclosed ingredients of the liquor!), unsugared fruit yoghurt in general, wet oak wood, hay, lemon juice, grapefruit zest, vermouth 'à la' Martini Rosso but very subtle - the ripe cherries get to shine here and the vermouth element (herbs and other) is notably less obvious in the nose than was the case in its 'white' equivalent. Very crisp onset, bursting with ripe sour cherries, tart but in a juicy, smooth way, again ripe elderberry and also wild blackberry impressions, medium carb with vinous, supple body. Cereally core deeply buried under huge cherry juiciness, tart but nowhere sharply sour, dry-woody with extra tannins from the cherry pits and skins - but the sheer juiciness of the cherries keeps this in check. Yoghurty, lightly funky (damp hay) and woody flashes colour the finish, while the vermouth creeps up silently, bringing this herbal accent but operating more 'backstage' than in the Blanche version. Generally, this feels like a high quality 'oude kriek' by Cantillon with a subtle extra layer of flavour, something herbal and 'added bitter' shoved underneath, making it all the more intriguing in a blind tasting I imagine. Not Cantillon's most accessible creation perhaps - but a wonderful 'kriek' variant in all respects. Maybe its relative 'mysteriousness' in comparison with the Blanche makes it even more interesting - opinions were divided among the tasters present (with most favouring this one); I myself am still out on that question, but in Cantillon's case, this is probably a meaningless one to begin with.

Cantillon lambic blended with a herb liquor used by a vermouth producer in Besançon to fortify their wine and thus create their vermouth - another original concept concocted by this legendary brewery to celebrate their semi-annual Zwanze event, which this year encompassed not just this 'bianco' version, but also a 'rosso' one (fruit lambic), so for the first time ever two different Zwanze beers were presented simultaneously a few weeks ago. I missed the event itself but fortunately got a catch-up at the Cantillon bar, where bottles of both versions are still for sale at the moment. Tiny-bubbled yet dense and moussey, snow white head, slowly opening and retreating over an initially clear yellow-golden robe with apricot tinge, turning misty in the end. Aroma of grapefruit peel, subtly 'urine'-like Brettanomyces, wet oak, indeed recognisable vermouth with its dozens of herbs (almost absinthe-like in its core but sweeter here), dried hyssop, dry hay, unripe pear, green plum, apricot, young mugwort, rhubarb. Mildly tart, restrainedly estery onset, smooth unripe apricot, grape skin, lime and green apple flavours, quite 'bright', refinedly but 'actively' carbonated, moving into a supple, vinous middle with fruity lactic sourness and elegant woodiness adorned with very clear, yet somehow not overpowering herbaceousness from the vermouth (or its part used here) - with vague angelica, sweetflag and wormwood impressions, mingled into one 'kruidenbittertje' without the bitterness. Dry, vinous ending, light green-fruity and dark green-herbal, but with every element only reinforcing the other - nothing overpowers, nothing contrasts too much with something else, all is working exceptionally well here. Much to my surprise, I must add, as I am not a great lover of either vermouth or overly 'herbed' beers... Radiant, elegant apéritif of sorts, much better than I was anticipating to be honest.

Purplish, just slightly lighter than st lam. This is more vinous and light herbals. Same on palate. Sangria, vinous, the herbs downplayed until the finish, and some nice bitterness.

Dull, pale amber. Very herbal aroma, quite peppery and spicy. Very vermouthy. Bitter, earthy, excellent.

Pale. Massive black pepper aroma, only a little more restrained on the palate. Again, tannic and not overly buggy. But this is a beer that I buy whenever I see it, just so I can smell it.

Hazy, thin head. So hoppy. It’s hoppy on the nose but super hoppy on the palate. Very expressive. Holy shit that’s good. Not the buggiest or it would be a wild sour ipa. Beautiful.