Cantillon Cuvée Des Champions 2003-2004

Was given a sample of this last night: one of the best lambics I've had outside of Belgium.

Cuvée (lit. "vat") in the wine world refers to a blended batch of wines; when applied to lambics, the term seems to be a bit more flexible. This particular cuvée consists of 2001 lambics, aged for 2 years. This means it should be less sour than a gueuze (a mixture of young and old lambic), but this particular bottle was quite sour, leaving me salivating for five to ten minutes after taking a sip. Probably had something to do with adding more sugar on bottling -- gives the yeast something to munch on. Those unfamiliar with lambics should check this out.

Also had a sample of the Nøgne Ø Imperial Stout, brewed by some kids in Norway. This is a fine imperial stout that I've had a few times in the past, and it is always impressive.

Backing these two up were an Avery Reverend, an Avery Maharaja, and a Kwak (in the proper glass) -- no need to go into too much detail, but all excellent beers.