Lambic

Unlike conventional ales and lagers, which are brewed using carefully cultivated strains of brewer's yeasts, Lambic beer is brewed with wild yeasts which are native to the Senne valley, where Brussels is located. These wild yeasts, some eighty-six microorganisms in all, give the beer its distinctive flavor: dry and cidery, with a slightly sour aftertaste.

Lambic is brewed from 70% barley malt and 30% unmalted wheat. When the wort has cooled, it is exposed to the open air and spontaneous fermentation takes place. This is only done between October and May; in the summer months, there is too much unfavorable bacteria in the air.

After the fermentation process starts, the lambic is syphoned into old oak or chestnut barrels from the Porto or Jerez[?] region of Spain. The lambic is left to ferment and ripen up to two years.

Lambic beer is widely consumed in Brussels and environs; it is also frequently used for cooking in Belgian cuisine.

Types of Lambic

Lambic (pure)

Unblended lambic is a cloudy, uncarbonated, slightly sour beverage available on tap in only a few locations.

Gueze lambic

A mixture of young and old lambic which has been bottled. It undergoes secondary fermentation (so-called (method champenoise), producing carbon dioxide.

Faro

A low-alcohol, slightly sweet table beer made from lambic to which caramel has been added.

Fruit

Lambic with the addition of cherry, rasberry, peach, or cassis, either whole fruit or syrup. Usually bottled with secondary fermentation.