While
Mikkeller officially hails from Copenhagen, Mikkel Borg Bjergsø, Mikkeller’s
brewmaster, manager, et al., brews beer in a variety of locations throughout
Europe and the United States. Mikkeller’s Spontanale is brewed at De
Proefbrouwerij, which lies in a small rural village just a few kilometers
northeast of Ghent. You might say that this site is a bit off the mark for
brewing what is essentially a lambic gueuze – a style traditionally brewed in
Belgium’s Senne Valley, where the “wild” yeasts from the Senne River, along
with wild yeasts lurking within the brewery, spontaneously feed on the
sugar-rich worts of some of the region’s finest breweries. This process gives
rise to those sour, cidery, and super dry lambic beers that people love, hate,
or have yet to try. My particular encounter with Spontanale was with a friend,
and we both arrived at similar conclusions: While Boon, Cantillon, and
Lindemans brew measurably better lambics, Mikkeller’s Spontanale is a damn good
attempt at making what some see as the most complex, if not funky and offensive
beers around.
Popping the
cork and pouring it into a glass reveals the unmistakable lambic signatures: The
body appears as a translucent amber color with a rather large, fluffy, slightly
off-white head. The lacing is a bit thin and runny, which seems to be the case
with most lambics I’ve tried. The aroma slaps you in the face even when sitting
a meter or so away from the glass. For Spontanale, the nose is a bit less
“wild” than some of the more robust lambics out there. To be sure, the pungent
smells of barnyard, vinegar, wet hay, horse blanket, etc. accompany
Spontanale’s nose, but it’s certainly far less aggressive than a Cantillon gueuze,
for example. The same can be applied to the taste: While the sourness is
aggressive, it has less potential to offend, disgust, and sicken; amaze,
arouse, and instigate; or amuse, enchant, and gratify when compared to that
same Cantillon. Not surprisingly, the mouthfeel comes with lots of carbonation,
and the finish is quite dry, as with any respectable lambic.
I certainly
recommend trying Spontanale if for no other reason than to show your support
for Mikkel’s ceaseless capacity to make some of the most interesting,
innovative, and complex brews around. If you’ve never tried a lambic,
Spontanale might be a nice, somewhat mild and well-balanced introduction to
something you will probably either love or hate. But, if you want to dive right
into the seriously rougher side of beer, then I do suggest going for the more
aggressive Cantillon gueuze instead.
Links
Mikkeller:
http://www.mikkeller.dk/
Image credits
Drekk.no: http://www.drekk.no/
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