Unibroue Blonde de Chambly - 2015 Vintage

I age a lot of beers, whether it be accidental or for a certain purpose such as a future tasting session, especially if I have multiple bottles of the same beer from other years.. to do a vertical of the beer. This beer, Unibroue's Blonde de Chambly Saison is something I've mainly been wanting to age because it's no longer available in 750mL bottles in Manitoba since 2017, which is a shame as this is an absolutely solid Belgian-style Saison. I took a look at the bottle's label last week and the bottling code is C31151906Q, making this beer exactly five years old as of today, bottled on March 31, 2015 at 7:06PM Eastern Time. I would have loved to sample this the very second it was bottled but I was too antsy to open this up as this bottle has been staring me in the face for years and years.

I miss the old Unibroue logo from this beer as well as the back label but they completely modernized the branding only months later. From the label: "Blonde de Chambly honours the heroic Filles à Marier (marriageable girls) later known as Filles du Roi (King's daughters). These brave single young women came to Nouvelle France in 1665 to help populate the colony. Many of them married officers and soldiers of the Carignan-Salières Regiment, who built Fort Chambly on the Richelieu River and forged the legendary Iroquois peace of 1667. Most French Canadians are direct descendants of these extraordinary ancestors. Mild and refreshing Blonde de Chambly has a floral nose and a light citrus bouquet. With its foamy white head and lively effervescence, it is an ideal partner for an unforgettable sensoray experience." 

Appearance: Pours a dark orange body with a bit of a copper red hue to it. It's not quite cloudy or opaque nor is it really clear, you can see slightly through it but barely. Moderate amount of carbonation in the body. The head is fairly light right from the very beginning. It has a light amount of snow white appearance near the glass but only a couple bubbles here and there near the middle.

Aroma: Sweet but definitely past its prime as it immediately gives off a wet cardboard aroma to it. Past the cardboard aroma, there's notes of caramel, bubble gum, a bit of iron, lemon and a bit of a spice that reminds me a bit of ginger. There's a bit of a grassy/floral hop presence at the very end.

Taste: Bit of an irony taste to start things off, notes of bubble gum, a hint of nuttiness, a bit of bubble gum, fairly sweet, a bit of straw, hint of caramel, lemon, and a bit of a grassy hop presence at the end. Blonde de Chambly has a decently dry mouthfeel and a bit of a grainy/pear aftertaste at the end.

Overall Thoughts: It's interesting to see this beer change over the years, but seeing this one aged, it's definitely better fresh than five years old but this aged alright but not amazingly in any sense. The last time I had this beer (a week ago) it had more of a Belgian yeastiness, a bit more sugary sweetness and much more present notes of bubble gum and peppery spice. Aside from certain styles, it's can be very interesting to check out a beer several years after it was made. One thing I miss aside from their old label is the story behind the beer on the back of the bottle, those were the days.

https://www.unibroue.com/en/our-beers/blonde-chambly/6