Petite Gueuze Tilquin
Description
Petite Gueuze Tilquin is the first gueuze ever conditionned in a can (a few kegs were also produced). It is a blend of 70% 1-year-old light Meerts and 30% 2-year-old lambics, all spontaneously fermented and matured in oak barrels. Unfiltered and unpasteurized, this beer was given 2 months to spontaneously refermented in the can.
After running into some troubles to find someone willing to can lambic because of the fear of cross-infection, it was finally canned with the help of Brasserie Minne (Somme-Leuze).
For the first release, 12.450 cans were produced.
History / Side Notes
Pierre Tilquin describes the beer as a lighter gueuze, a "no-brainer" refreshing version meant to be enjoyed over summer or on the go without thinking too much about it. It is not meant to replace a classic gueuze.
To make the conditionning in can possible, 6 years of work were necessary. First, to make sure the liquid wouldn't cause any dammages to the can's lining (and cause any danger to consumers) : indeed test have been conducted in the US regarding sour beer in cans, with results that all highlighted the problematic role of acetic and lactic acids in the degradation of the can after a while. Since lambic has low level of both, researches were necessary to establish safety levels, and results were promising, in particular with a lower ABV as it is the case here. A lower Meerts had to be produced by Boon to make it work. Another issue was stability and refermentation as lambic is fully spontaneousely fermented, so the right level of fermentation had to be calculated and tested in order to make fully sure the final product was stable. Thankfully, as a blender, Tilquin has access to a wider range of flora and bacterias than most, which helps getting a full attenuation / fermentation rather easily even with lower alcohol levels, which assures the stability of the beer of the product when canned at the right time.
Bottle Log
| Bottle date
(mm/dd/yyyy) |
Bottle Size | Label / Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 10/16/2024 | 330 mL | First can ever produced |