I made a visit to Brasserie Nonsuch's patio this past summer but unfortunately had only time for a quick sample so I had to skip the best burger in the entire city, Le Burger - It was one of the few times where they had multiple beers on tap all calling my name.. In the end, I had to try their Tripel Fruited that was just tapped that week - it made me happy for a brief moment, it was a classic Belgian Tripel but also had a fruitiness that paired well with being in the moment.I was in Winnipeg again a couple weeks ago and stopped at the taproom to pick up a couple of bottles to review or aged. I picked up a Barrel Aged Saison, I think an Old Ale X or Bourbon Barrel Aged Belgian Strong, and finally a Tripel Fruited.
From the label: Enjoy our classic Tripel aged for eight months in Chardonnay barrels then naturally soured and infused with strawberry, apricot, mango, as well as Brettanomyces. Enjoy at 7C with fresh fish. 9.2% ABV
Appearance: Pours a murky fruity jelly (reddish peach hue) with a fizzy head on top as I'm pouring the beer but the head goes down to just a thin layer beige bubbles on top. Tad bit of lacing as the beer is sampled.
Aroma: Definitely more tart than your typical Tripel. The notes I get first and foremost are strawberry and apricot followed by a hint of vanilla from the barrel, a hint of funkiness and a bit of a sharp red wine/vinegar vibe at the very end.
Taste: Definitely more complex than what I remembered. The first thing I get is a rich heavy oakiness to it, which also gives a hint of vanilla. Moderately boozy and it's warming me up a tad as I sample this. There's some fruitiness popping out, pretty much a tart strawberry and apricot fruitiness to it. The Brett gives off a funkiness to it but the sweetness hits at the end for the aftertaste.
Overall Thoughts: A beer like this is a very rare treat to me - we don't get many corked and caged beers in Brandon anymore. I suggested to Matthew at Nonsuch just the other day that they should start canning the Saison so it will be easier to find.. but in reality - almost all Belgian beers are best out of a corked & caged bottle.. which is why I've lost excitement over Unibroue beers in the past few years.
Oh, back to the beer: when I had this on tap it was giving off more of a fresh pûréed strawberry/fruited presence, making it pretty much a fruity Tripel, while out of this bottle it's a combination of oakiness, red wine, vanilla, lots of fruit (of course) but also some funkiness from the Brett. At 9.2% ABV - this is a bottle to share.. but when you don't have friends right nearby.. more for me 🤷🏻♂️
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