What is Faro? Take your traditional lambic and add of sugar, simply put. They are usually well-carbonated and sweeter than gueuze.
A few years ago I got a hold of a 1988 Faro from a closed brewery, Eylenbosch. It was a cool experience, here are some pictures and my review of it.
750mL bottle pours a clear copper with no head but visible carbonation.
Aroma is signature Faro, in a good way. Both the sweetness and the barnyard funk of a lambic are slightly muted. Just light sweetness, does not presently poorly (probably hiding the age). The lambic aspect is leafy with barrel wood apparent, and some olive-like flavors (which I attribute to age). A nice lightly sour, lightly dry aftertaste. The body is light and the beer goes down very easily. I doubt too many Faros can age this well and I am surprised with this bottle. Just a little bit of sediment, almost none, at the end of the bottle. I suspect the Faro must have been pasteurized, otherwise live lambic and sugar would lead to a bottle bomb. The sugar must be fighting slow oxidation from becoming apparent while the lambic is still detectable.
To place it in a tier, I enjoyed this old Faro a little more so than the Girardin, Cantillon, and Lindeman's and a good standard deviation above Boon's version. The only other fresh Faro I liked as much was surprisingly the Mort Subite version I had on tap at the cafe.
Photos courtesy of my buddy Andy D.
