Cantillon Blåbær Lambik
Description
Cantillon Blåbær Lambik is a lambic with bilberries added and originally produced for Ølbutikken (beer boutique) in Copenhagen, Denmark in 2005, at the request of then owner Jeppe Jarnit-Bjergsø, who also provides the fruits. In the two decades since the first bottling, Blåbær has only been released to the public during physical release/pickup events in Denmark. It was never officially sold to any other shops or bars outside of the designated release locations. Some bottles were, however, available for drink-in at Brasserie Cantillon in Brussels, but never to-go.
The original release location, a beer store called Ølbutikken in the central Copenhagen district of Vesterbro, closed in 2017. The beer was then sold at Himmeriget (kingdom of heaven), a bar in Copenhagen's neighboring Frederiksberg. From 2017 onward, the labels read 'brewed for Himmeriget'. After Jarnit-Bjergsø's distribution company Drikkeriget (kingdom of drinks, wholesale)/Drikbeer (drink beer, webshop) was bought out of Himmeriget, the bar also lost the Blåbær release. Since 2021, the beer has been released at different locations every year. The system also moved from a 'first come, first served' queuing basis to pre-orders via Drikbeer. Initially it was only available to subscribers of their monthly beer box, but was later made available to all customers. The labels since read 'brewed for Drikkeriget'.
In 2021, Blåbær was released at Drikkeriget's former warehouse in the southern Copenhagen district of Kastrup, next to Danish craft brewery Amager Bryghus. In 2022, the release was held at the Amager Bryghus Taproom in Islands Brygge, Copenhagen. In 2023 and 2024, bottles could be picked up at the new Drikkeriget warehouse in Rødovre, west of Copenhagen. In 2025, the release will take place outside of Copenhagen municipality for the first time: Mig & Ølsnedkeren in Aarhus (Denmark's second biggest city) will be hosting.
It is produced in very limited quantities and generally released sometime in early autumn. It is released in both 375 mL and 750 mL bottles and is 5% ABV. The fruit concentration is about 300g to 350 g/L (it starts at 350 g, but depending of the result, lambic will be added in different quantities to bring balance and consistency to the profile through all of the different bottlings).
History / Other Notes
Blåbær Lambik was first released in 2005 and has been released every year since then except 2006 and 2008. In 2007 and 2009, two different batches were released. Though the word blåbær translates in English to blueberry, the fruit used in this lambic is the European bilberry which is very similar to the American blueberry. The fruiting process for this lambic consists of putting fresh bilberries directly into the barrel with the lambic.
The beer was originally supposed to be called "Blueberry" as a nod to the name of the French-Belgian cartoon character created by Jean-Michel Charlier and Jean Giraud who is a cowboy, similar to the one appearing on the label. Due to copyright issues, it had to be changed to its Danish translation.
Bottle Log
| Batch | Cork Date | Bottle Size | Label / Notes | Image Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Batch 1 | 2005 | 750 mL | No vintage on label, Gold Foil, 50 bottles released | N/A |
| Batch 2 | 2007 | 375 mL 750 mL | 2007 cork. Black foil | N/A |
| Batch 3 | 2007 | 750 mL | 2007-II written on front label - Gold Foil | N/A |
| Batch 4 | 2009 | 375 mL 750 mL | 2009 written on front label | N/A |
| Batch 5 | 2009 | 375 mL 750 mL | 2009-II written on front label | N/A |
| Batch 6 | 2010 | 375 mL 750 mL | 400 litre barrel with 100kg bilberries added. No vintage on the label. | N/A |
| Batch 7 | 2011 | 375 mL 750 mL | 400 litre barrel with 100kg bilberries added. No foil. Label reads "11" | N/A |
| Batch 8 | 2012 | 375 mL 750 mL | 400 litre barrel with 100kg bilberries added. New label material | N/A |
| Batch 9 | 2013 | 375 mL 750 mL | 13 written on front label, new corks | N/A |
| Batch 10 | 2014 | 375 mL 750 mL | 14 written on front label | N/A |
| Batch 11 | 2015 | 375 mL 750 mL | 10th anniversary label, 2015 vintage on label | N/A |
| Batch 12 | 2016 | 375 mL 750 mL | N/A | |
| Batch 12 | 16/17 | 375 mL 750 mL | First labels that say Himmeriget instead of ølbutikken. 75 bottles sold at release day. | N/A |
| Batch 12 | 16/17 | 1.5 L | First labels that say Himmeriget instead of ølbutikken. One sold to the second in line at release day. | N/A |
| Batch 12 | 16/17 | 3 L | First labels that say Himmeriget instead of ølbutikken. One sold to the first in line at release day. Another sold as a fundraiser for winemakers suffering from the bad grape harvest. | N/A |
| Batch 13 | 17/18 | 375 mL 750 mL | N/A | |
| Batch 14 | 18/19 | 375 mL 750 mL | Blend contains 10% raspberries | N/A |
| Batch 15 | 2020 | 375 mL 750 mL | N/A | |
| Batch 16 | 2021 | 375 mL 750 mL | For fun, approximately half of the bottles in this batch have a teal hue label. | N/A |
| Batch 17 | 2022 | 375 mL 750 mL | N/A | |
| Batch 18 | 2023 | 375 mL 750 mL | N/A | |
| Batch 19 | 2024 | 375 mL 750 mL | N/A |
Label and Origin
The label for Blåbær Lambik is a take on the Belgian French language comic Blueberry, written by Jean-Michel Charlier and illustrated by Jean "Mœbius" Giraud. The comic follows the adventures of the main character Mike Blueberry as he moves throughout the American West.
Tenth Anniversary
The 2015 release of Blåbær was its tenth anniversary, and a new label with extra text on the side created for the occassion. Officially, only sixty 750 mL and seventy 375 mL bottles were sold to go. The 10th anniversary label and text are presented below.
Label text:
10 years ago, shortly before we opened Ølbutikken in Copenhagen, Denmark we approached our friends at Cantillon and asked them if they would make a special beer for our little store. 50 bottles came out of that first batch.
10 years later we make the same beer once a year and this is the 10th Anniversary vintage. We are happy about our continued friendship with Jean and his family and are excited about every years [sic] new batch! Enjoy!
Jeppe Jarnit-Bjergsø
