Fantôme Chocolat

Brewed By: Brasserie Fantôme in Soy-Erezée, Belgium   

Purchased: 750ml bottle bought at West Lakeview Liquors in Chicago, IL; 2013

Style/ABV: Saison/Farmhouse Ale, 8.0%

Reported IBUs: ?

I'm excited for tonight's beer. I'm excited that Fantôme has become more widely available in my area, which makes little to no sense. What is Fantôme? 

Fantôme is a brewery based out of Soy, Wallonia, Belgium, that was founded in 1988 by the mad man and mastermind, Dany Prignon. The brewery is located in a crumbling farmhouse in the Marche-en-Famenne district of Luxembourg province, and Fantôme's beer just might be more popular in the United States than it is in Belgium. Dany brews one type of beer: Saisons/Farmhouse Ales. Each of his Saisons have a unique twist, and he often brews his beers using herbs, spices, juices, and other off-beat ingredients. Their website is so hardcore it only comes in French, but check it out anyway. 

Tonight's beer, the Fantôme Chocolat, is an amber Saison brewed with local chocolate from Derfoimont. Clocking in at 8.0% ABV, this beer is supposed to reveal an "original bitter cocoa." The front of my bottle says, "brewed with cocoa and chili pepper," so we will see how that goes. A lot of reports indicate that the chocolate isn't all that noticeable in this, but it's possible that a fresh bottle might have a stronger chocolate presence. Lastly, as with all corked bottles (as this is), be wary of the gush!

Fantôme Chocolat

In low light this beer pours a hazy amber-brown color, with two fingers of thick, Belgian-esque, orange-tinted head. There's a ton of carbonation streaming upwards in the hazy body. In bright light, the beer's body takes on an orange-amber color, and the head is clearly off-white with hints of orange. Head retention is great, and the body's hazy body is the stuff Saisons should be made of.

The aroma is subtle, and very funky. I'm pulling off earthy spice, dirt, pepper, a lot of Brett funk: sweat, mild butcher shop, leather, some barnyard, and BIG wet hay. I'm getting some pear, grass/wheat, melon, and peach as well. I really wasn't expecting to get chocolate/chili in the nose, but maybe in the taste?  

Interesting...aside from the typical Saison-esque notes, which include some nice citrus, grass, hay, and Brett funk, I'm pulling out an almost smoked malt flavor in this. It reminds me a touch of a Rauchbier, or peated/smoked wheat malt. This has lovely lemon, wheat, wet hay, a touch of musty/sour funk, and big barnyard notes. The back end rounds out with that hint of smoke, smoked/peated wheat malt, and a touch of denseness which I can only assume is the chili/chocolate. EPHIPHANY: I'm pretty sure the smoke I'm tasting can be best described as an ancho chile flavor. Think chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. You get all your funky Saison trimmings up front, and a hint of smokey, ghostly (ohhhh) ancho chile in the back. 

This is a refreshing, quaffable, light-bodied beer. The mouthfeel is damn near perfect, with great supporting carbonation, and a strong palate depth. The complexity is the beer's shortcoming, and the promised chocolate and chili doesn't really deliver. Still...this is an easy-going Saison, and pretty dangerous at 8.0%. You get sexy Brett-funk, wet hay, barnyard, lemon, tart lemon, very mild sour up front; that rolls into musty funk and wheat; the back end turns into light smoke, and that ancho chile ride. 

Rating: Above-Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

This is a very Light Above-Average. It's not a bad beer by any means...obviously. The Saison part is banging, albeit maybe in need of a little more spice. But this beer advertises chocolate and chili...and in that regard, it falls a bit short. But, the ancho chile flavor in this is nice, assuming that is what I'm tasting. To that end, I would pair this beer with authentic Mexican food (I wish), or maybe some homemade chili...which I haven't done in a while. I'm due for some chili. Not really a summer food though.

Random Thought: So, I know the Midwest isn't exactly the utopia for beer, but we have some good shit. What confuses me is how we are able to import Fantôme, but other Belgium brands like Cantillon are only shipped out to the East Coast. I don't get it.