Lambic

Lambics are spontaneously fermented beers native to the Senne Vally of Belgium which are made from barley malt and unmalted wheat (30-40%) and aged hops. They form the base of a number of lambic products including unblended lambic, g(u)euze, and fruit lambics including kriek and framboise.

Types

Unblended

A spontaneously fermented unblended ale that is indigenous to the Senne Valley of Belgium, a large portion of wheat brings out the crispness though the flavor is dominated with a unique tartness from the wild yeast and bacteria that inoculate the brew from both airborne and tainted barrels that they ferment in. Light bodied with little hop flavor or bitterness. Look for hard cider, white wine or similar tartness. Lambics are aged before consumption to ensure that the tartness has mellowed.

Average alcohol by volume (abv) range: 3.0-6.0%

Fruit

In the case of Fruit Lambics, whole fruits are traditionally added after spontaneous fermentation has started. Kriek (cherries), Frambroise (raspberries), P�che (peach) and Cassis (black currant) are common fruits, all producing subtle to intense fruit characters respectively. Once the fruit is added, the beer is subjected to additional maturation before bottling. Malt and hop characters are generally low to allow the fruit to consume the palate. Alcohol content tends to be low.

Some breweries opt to use fruit / sugar syrups vs. whole fruits, producing very nontraditional sweet versions of the style.

Average alcohol by volume (abv) range: 3.0-8.0%

See Also

Additional Articles on MTF Wiki

• Spontaneous Fermentation
• Gueuze
• Gueuze and Lambic Character

External Resources

• "Flemish Red Brown Beers", Presentation by Rudi Ghequire at CBC 2012. (Contains differences with Lambic)