Meet Lambic beer
Origination and production
It is generally believed that the name of Lambic beer originated from old Belgian town Lembeek famous for its brewing traditions.
There are more than 250 popular and rare types of this unique drink in our Brasserie. The word «unique» is not a figure of speech at all. The distinctive feature is that beer yeast is not used in its production, this is the beer of self-existing fermentation. Fermentation happens in oak barrels from wine thanks to local wild yeast — microorganisms existing in the air and then struck root into the walls of the barrels. That is why the geographic range of Lambic beer producers is narrowed to a single province near Brussel.
Dried hops is used for making beer in addition to regular components — malted barley and wheat grains. At first it is aged for at least three years to reduce its bitterness and aroma. The production is limited by the seasons, because the wort can ferment in open air only during cool time — from October to May, since many foreign bacteria appear in summer, which can ruin the beer taste and take the fermentation process out of control.
Blending
One more special feature of Lambic beer is mixing beer of different aging periods to get a new beer type. Sometimes Lambic can consists of beer aged from five to six different years. Fruits and herbs are added into some beer types. Lambic differs in complex composition, but the beer can be always recognized by «branded» light sourness unique only to it. It is difficult to talk about Lambic, you have to try it.
The most popular brands
Pure Lambic is a non-fermented non-carbonated drink, young beer aged for not more than a year, and which is not mixed up with other beer types. It has a dry slightly sour taste.
Gueuze is a mixture of one-year and more aged Lambic. Usually, it undergoes secondary fermentation, therefore it has its classical taste very well balancing between young and aged beer.
Oude Gueuze is old Lambic (aged 1 to 10 years when mixing) with a thick and rich taste of aged beer.
Faro is an original blend of light and aged types with addition of brown sugar, caramel and sometimes special herbs. It has a sour and sweet taste and just noticeable hops bitterness.
Bertinchamps is black beer with mild creamy head. It has a dry, moderately bitter, thick taste with tones of liquorice, coffee, caramel, chocolate and fruits. It has astringent finish.
Kriek is one of the most popular types of Lambic, which is made using dried cherry. It gives beer deep rich colour and a velvet taste with a light nuance of almond. It takes it about one year to age in bottles.
Fruity lambics are drinks with addition of any fruits and berries. Peaches (Lambic Peche), raspberries (Lambic Frambozen), black current (Cassis Lambic), grapes (Muscat), strawberries and other fruits are often used.
Origination and production
It is generally believed that the name of Lambic beer originated from old Belgian town Lembeek famous for its brewing traditions.
There are more than 250 popular and rare types of this unique drink in our Brasserie. The word «unique» is not a figure of speech at all. The distinctive feature is that beer yeast is not used in its production, this is the beer of self-existing fermentation. Fermentation happens in oak barrels from wine thanks to local wild yeast — microorganisms existing in the air and then struck root into the walls of the barrels. That is why the geographic range of Lambic beer producers is narrowed to a single province near Brussel.
Dried hops is used for making beer in addition to regular components — malted barley and wheat grains. At first it is aged for at least three years to reduce its bitterness and aroma. The production is limited by the seasons, because the wort can ferment in open air only during cool time — from October to May, since many foreign bacteria appear in summer, which can ruin the beer taste and take the fermentation process out of control.
Blending
One more special feature of Lambic beer is mixing beer of different aging periods to get a new beer type. Sometimes Lambic can consists of beer aged from five to six different years. Fruits and herbs are added into some beer types. Lambic differs in complex composition, but the beer can be always recognized by «branded» light sourness unique only to it. It is difficult to talk about Lambic, you have to try it.
The most popular brands
Pure Lambic is a non-fermented non-carbonated drink, young beer aged for not more than a year, and which is not mixed up with other beer types. It has a dry slightly sour taste.
Gueuze is a mixture of one-year and more aged Lambic. Usually, it undergoes secondary fermentation, therefore it has its classical taste very well balancing between young and aged beer.
Oude Gueuze is old Lambic (aged 1 to 10 years when mixing) with a thick and rich taste of aged beer.
Faro is an original blend of light and aged types with addition of brown sugar, caramel and sometimes special herbs. It has a sour and sweet taste and just noticeable hops bitterness.
Bertinchamps is black beer with mild creamy head. It has a dry, moderately bitter, thick taste with tones of liquorice, coffee, caramel, chocolate and fruits. It has astringent finish.
Kriek is one of the most popular types of Lambic, which is made using dried cherry. It gives beer deep rich colour and a velvet taste with a light nuance of almond. It takes it about one year to age in bottles.
Fruity lambics are drinks with addition of any fruits and berries. Peaches (Lambic Peche), raspberries (Lambic Frambozen), black current (Cassis Lambic), grapes (Muscat), strawberries and other fruits are often used.