As all lambic brewers will tell you, lambic is much more than the yeasts themselves. The brewing process for lambic is completely unique, and involves the following:
• *The unique turbid mash brewing process• *An extended boil, designed to develop proteins and amino acids that protect against oxidation and acid formation, creating a wort where only certain micro-organisms can survive <ref name=“GeuzeKriek”>Jef Van den Steen, [[Books#Geuze & Kriek: The Secret of Lambic Beer|Geuze & Kriek: The Secret of Lambic Beer]], 2012</ref> • *A limited brewing season controlled by seasonal temperatures• *The use of a coolship and spontaneous fermentation• *Spontaneous fermentation in wooden barrels, ripe with wild yeast• *The terroir of the building itself, from the ceiling to the floor as well as the local surroundings• *A complex aging process, in which different wild yeasts impact the liquid differently at different phases of the beer’s development• *A blending process involving multiple barrels of lambic, often from multiple years, to create a product that will mature into something great
This process is as much a tradition as a recipe. With the intense physical demands, the constant attention and care required, and the seasonal brewing cycles, being a lambic brewer is not just a job, but a way of life. This is passed down from generation to generation.
:: ''“But don’t despair; believe it or not, you can spontaneously ferment beer anywhere in the world. Jean-Pierre Van Roy of the Cantillon brewery in Brussels told me so on my first visit. I just didn’t know what to make of the statement at the time. Since then, Van Roy’s revelation has become a great deal clearer. Van Roy told me you must develop a taste for your own local lambic, although he never had to taste one result of his suggestion.”''<ref name=“WildBrews”>Jeff Sparrow, [[Books#Wild Brews: Culture and Craftsmanship in the Belgian Tradition|Wild Brews: Culture and Craftsmanship in the Belgian Tradition]], 2005</ref>
Despite the recent rise in the use of coolships and spontaneous fermentation outside of Belgium, there is still significant variation in the processes and techniques used to produce these new wild ales in other regions. With this experimentation comes a wide variety of wild ales. Often they lack the complexity, or do not age and develop in the bottle well, or are significantly out of balance. They often taste very different from a traditional lambic. Often, these beers are brewed specifically with sour as a goal, as opposed to allowing the beer to develop naturally in a variety of ways, with a tartness being one of those bi-products.
==The Culture==