Can from Livonia Liquor. Pours a clear deep gold with a finger of white foam that dissipates quickly. Nice lacing down the glass. Big perfume-y yeast esters on the nose with banana bread and floral aromas. Palate is similar, carbonation is a bit muted and mouthfeel is soft. Smooth and easy drinking. Lingering Belgian yeast phenols with just a touch of clove - leans more into the banana bread floral side. Enjoyable without being overly cloying.

On tap at De Gouveneur Maastricht. Hazy amber brown colour lasting beige head. Apple aroma. Over the usual guldren draak beer. Some alcohol strength is present and a little heat in the finish. Its a malty srong Belgian beer with some pleasant apple fruit green apple edge. It does have a heat on the finish though. Interesting. Warming. A finishing beer.

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.

Draft. Amber beer with a cream head. Caramel and light yeast aroma. Caramel and light yeast flavor with banana. Medium bodied. Caramel and light yeast linger with light banana.

500ml draft at Cambrinus Cafe, in Brugge, Belgium. Pours an opaque dark gold color with a tight off-white head and excellent retention. Belgian yeast aroma. The taste is similar to the nose. Typical Belgian blonde ale profile with yeasty flavor up front and fruity esters in the finish. Not my preferred style. Medium-heavy body. Medium-light carbonation. Light bitterness. Good for the style?

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.

Bottle. Clear golden amber with a dense white head. Doughy aroma with spices and gentle citrus. Fairly sweet with rich, slightly caught dough. Smooth and malty before a moderately bitter finish. Refined and tasty enough.