Revision as of 17:34, 27 April 2014

Welcome to Lambic.Info

Welcome to lambic.info. This page endeavors to gather information about lambic breweries past and present, beers, events, and locations into one spot. Just like lambic, this page is continuously developing with new information and entries.

This site is not intended to replace the wide variety of books, research, and information out there, but to instead serve as a portal to that information.

What is Lambic?

History

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Senne/Zenne Valley

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Pajottenland

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The Language of Lambic

Main article: ''The Language of Lambic''

The language of lambic can be as complex as the beer itself. Belgium is a country divided up into very distinct linguistic regions whose inhabitants have their own words for many of the commonly used terms associated with the lambic tradition and process. Both Dutch and French speaking brewers and blenders operate today leaving many curious lambic drinkers wondering how this all came to be.

Brewing Lambic

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Styles

• Unblended lambic

Unblended lambic, or pure lambic, is the result of the brewing process and spontaneous fermentation of the wort. After the lambic wort is left in the koelschip to pick up the wild yeast it is then transferred to oak barrels to begin aging. Though much of the lambic brewed goes to the production of geuze, some is held back to age and can be released in various stages.^[1] Pure lambic can take on different names at its various ages including jonge lambic (young lambic) and vieux lambic (old lambic). Though pure lambic is not as prevalant as other forms of blended lambic, breweries such as Cantillon and De Cam regularly release pure lambic in bottles at approximately 2-3 years of age. A characteristic of pure lambic is that it is generally flat, without any carbonation. In certain cases, sugars may be added to the pure lambic at bottling to produce a secondary fermentation in the bottle creating carbonation.

• Gueuze/Geuze

Main article: ''Gueuze/Geuze'' Gueuze (or Geuze) is the result of blending a young lambic (approximately one year old) with an old lambic (approximately two to three years old, or older). The blending of gueuze is a precise practice for which each blender has their own process. The resulting blend of lambics typically ends up in either 750ml or 375ml bottles that are laid to rest in the brewery's cellar to referment in the bottle. This secondary fermentation in the bottle produces a finely carbonated drink that is traditionally served from pouring baskets. Generally gueuze is a blend of one, two, and three year old lambics, however 3 Fonteinen has released a Golden Blend that consists of a small portion of four year old lambic as well. Sometimes the resulting gueuze blends do not carbonate in the bottle resulting in "lazy" beers that can remain flat for years. See Cantillon's Loerik, 3 Fonteinen's Doesjel and Golden Doesjel and Lindemans Loerik

• Fruited lambic

Various fruits have a long history of augmenting the taste of lambic. Traditionally, fruit lambic is made my macerating whole fruit with young lambic in wooden casks. A second fermentation of the sugars from the lambic and the fruit then takes place. After maturation the lambic is typically bottled with with a small amount of young lambic or liquor to aid natural carbonation in the bottle.^[1] Some breweries such as Lindeman's and De Troch also use various fruit syrups to flavor their lambics.

Kriek (cherry), Framboise (raspberry), and Druif (grape) are all commonly used among lambic producers. Other fruits include peach, black currant, apricot, apple, and a wide variety of more exotic fruits such as Cantillon's use of blueberries in their Blåbær Lambik and and Neill and Ross's use of blackberries in Shot in the Dark.

• Faro

Historically Faro is a lower-alcohol, sweetened beer made with a blend of lambic and another freshly brewed beer (sometimes called a mars beer) in varying amounts.^[1] Faros are also known to have candy sugar, brown sugar, or cane molasses added to enhance the flavor. According to Guinard, Faro "was a blend of equal amounts of lambic and mars... and was a sweet, light table beer that had to be brewed and sold before the heat of summer to avoid fermentation accidents and spoilage." Non-lambic beers that were blended in to create the Faro were only brewed until the month of March, from which these beers derived their name. The custom of blending in mars beers into contemporary Faro has subsided and they are now a blended version of young lambic sweetened with dark candy sugar and caramel coming in around 4.5% ABV. ^[1] Recent commercial examples include 3 Fonteinen's Straffe Winter and De Cam's Oude Faro De Cam

Lambic Breweries and Blenders (Commercial)

Brewers

• Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen
• Brasserie Belle Vue
• Brouwerij Boon
• Brasserie Cantillon
• Brouwerij De Troch
• Brouwerij Girardin
• Brouwerij Lindemans
• Brasserie Mort Subite
• Brouwerij Oud Beersel
• Brouwerij Timmermans

Blenders

• De Cam Geuzestekerij
• Hanssens Artisanaal bvba
• Gueuzerie Tilquin

Lambic Breweries and Blenders (Experimental)

• H.erte
• In de Verzekering tegen de Grote Dorst
• Neill and Ross
• OWA

Lambic Breweries and Blenders (Closed)

Lambic Bars

• Akkurat
• De Heeren van Liedekercke
• Ebenezer's Pub
• In de Verzekering tegen de Grote Dorst
• Moeder Lambic
• One Pint Pub
• Pikkulintu

Lambic Events

• Cantillon Open Brew Days
• Cantillon Quintessence
• International Geuze and Kriek Festival
• Nacht van de Grote Dorst - Night of the Great Thirst
• Toer de Geuze
• Weekend of Spontaneous Fermentation

Equipment

• Barrels
• Baskets
• Koelschip

Storage / Cellaring

Learn More

• Books
• Glossary
• HORAL
• Research

References

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3} Jean-Xavier Guinard, Classic Beer Styles: Lambic, 1990 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "Guinard" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "Guinard" defined multiple times with different content