Additional notes 12/28/24 (pictured)

At Sergio’s. Post BBB labels. Grabbed this one at Sergio’s as a throwback. No way to date this bottle I fear, BUT it is a Shelton Bros. import so that gives us a certain window.

Nowhere near the pepper element that I reported back in 2007. This is much smoother in this batch/at this age, and it drinks easily and beautifully. Herbal notes are full on, but it’s smooth and easy. This makes this particular Fantôme bottle less challenging than many others, but it’s just as delicious and infinitely drinkable.

Original notes 01/13/07

Fantôme BBB White, $9.95 Green’s Atlanta, GA, USA. 750 mL corked and capped.

Nice orange, slightly clouded pour with excellent high head in the Duvel tulip. Head retention and lacing is not great, but OK.

Aroma is very peppery and this is a pre-cursor to a MASSIVE pepper flavor. There is a mixture of mild funk, light grapefruit, slight hops and perhaps a little cilantro but the white pepper is what prevails. It’s a very prevalent taste and feature of this beer. It even extends to the aftertaste where the pepper sits on the end of my tongue, giving some extra tingling sensations. Light on the mouthfeel which is OK because it adds to the tart refreshing nature.

This is true to the Fantôme brand in as much as this is a very unusual beer and I bet this can vary greatly from batch to batch. In truth, I’m not mad about it, but having said that, despite the fact it is such an odd beast it was still surprisingly drinkable.