Lambic Discussion Thread

[Dsal891]

Have a few loons on the way. What is everyone favorite (in order) of these


Iris
St lam
Iris
Bruoscella
Rose de gam
Mamouche

 

[Michigan1]

Have a few loons on the way. What is everyone favorite (in order) of these


Iris
St lam
Iris
Bruoscella
Rose de gam
Mamouche

St lam
GCB
Rose
Iris






Mamouche

 

[cparles]

St lam
GCB
Rose
Iris






Mamouche

You forgot Iris.

 

[Dsal891]

St lam
GCB
Rose
Iris






Mamouche

Looks like I'll start with mamouche

 

[Michigan1]

You forgot Iris.

Oh right!


St lam
GCB
Rose
Iris
Iris





Mamouche

 

[Dsal891]

I'm the worst

 

[ridglens]

Looks like I'll start with mamouche

mamouche is not bad... it's just very different / polarizing. Some love it, some don't. the first time i had it i didn't care for it for about 2 oz, but it started really growing on me... but then i ran out haha.

up to you, but you might start with a classic or the GC, so you get the "base" sort of flavor, and then get the variations from there.

 

[Dsal891]

mamouche is not bad... it's just very different / polarizing. Some love it, some don't. the first time i had it i didn't care for it for about 2 oz, but it started really growing on me... but then i ran out haha.

up to you, but you might start with a classic or the GC, so you get the "base" sort of flavor, and then get the variations from there.

Sorry, I'm very noobish. Gcb is the base of their fruited lambic?

 

[stupac2]

Sorry, I'm very noobish. Gcb is the base of their fruited lambic?

Yes and no. Bruocsella is an unblended lambic that they think is of particularly high quality, and I believe it's 4 years old (it might be 3, I forget). The base lambic for the fruited beers is typically 2 years old. So it's sort of the base beer, but it also sort of isn't. (I'd say it mostly isn't.)

As for the first question:

Mamouche
St lam
Rose de gam


Iris







Bruoscella

 

[SeaWatchman]

GCB can be anywhere from ~two years to four years old when it's bottled based on what I've seen in terms of bottle dating versus vintage labeling.

For me that order goes:

Iris/St Lam/GCB
Mamouche
.
.
.
.
something something darkside
.
.
.
.
.
Gambrinus

 

[ridglens]

Sorry, I'm very noobish. Gcb is the base of their fruited lambic?

What Stu said... (no worries about being noobish, **** man it's lambic, just enjoy it!) the GC is not quite the base but probably the closest one you've got on that list... hard to tell, you've got some very different bottles there!

You could get a classic gueuze, which i would consider the most "basic"...but of course that's not really the base either, rather a blend of old and young base lambic (and i would imagine, though don't know really, that different characteristics are targeted when picking lambic for fruiting and lambic for blending into geuze)...

Those are all pretty different bottles, so i wouldn't worry too much about order, though i think St Lam is generally very highly regarded, so if you were looking to "save one" for last, you probably won't go wrong with that?

 

[Rowingbrewer1]

St Lam
Rose
Iris
BGC
Mamouche

 

[cparles]

Oh right!


St lam
GCB
Rose
Iris
Iris





Mamouche

I *just* realized that you're Michigan and not MarkIntihar.

 

[SeaWatchman]

I *just* realized that you're Michigan and not MarkIntihar.

Pretty much the same people.... the worst.

 

[cparles]

Pretty much the same people.... the worst.

Point taken.

Also, I agree with your rankings pretty much exactly, though St Lam's position moves up and down for me...but I haven't had a fresh one in a while, so maybe I should do that.

 

[Der Fuchs]

Have a few loons on the way. What is everyone favorite (in order) of these


Iris
St lam
Iris
Bruoscella
Rose de gam
Mamouche

I like them all equally.

 

[PurityControl88]

So while we're admitting our Lambic noobishness, when do you guys think Cantillon's Bio Gueze is best?

 

[Michigan1]

So while we're admitting our Lambic noobishness, when do you guys think Cantillon's Bio Gueze is best?

When it has apricots in it.




but srs. I like it fresh. It's bright, sour, fresh, and grassy

 

[stupac2]

So while we're admitting our Lambic noobishness, when do you guys think Cantillon's Bio Gueze is best?

I like it more with age, fresh it has this soapy taste that I don't love. Though with the really old stuff I'm not totally certain how much of that is the switch from JPVR to JVR doing the blending. I'm aging a bunch to get a better idea myself.

 

[PurityControl88]

I just scored my first bottle, wasn't sure if I should drink it with just a few months on it or wait a few more until it's about a year old. I might just pop it open once it gets warmer.

 

[stupac2]

I just scored my first bottle, wasn't sure if I should drink it with just a few months on it or wait a few more until it's about a year old. I might just pop it open once it gets warmer.

If it's your first bottle it doesn't matter a lot when you drink it, because it's impossible to predict which you'd like better. Just save it for a good time (I opened my first one for my 200th beer on Untappd) and enjoy it.

 

[MordorMongo]

So while we're admitting our Lambic noobishness, when do you guys think Cantillon's Bio Gueze is best?

It is never as good as 3F or Tilquin or DeCam.


Zero ***** given.

 

[PurityControl88]

It is never as good as 3F or Tilquin or DeCam.


Zero ***** given.

Let's hope so, as those are going to be way easier to get than the Cantillon stuff. Either way I'm excited to find out.

 

[LukeAleTime]

So while we're admitting our Lambic noobishness, when do you guys think Cantillon's Bio Gueze is best?

Controversially, I like all gueze fresh. Someone blended it to taste that way; who am I to tell them they are wrong.

 

[matedog]

I like it more with age, fresh it has this soapy taste that I don't love. Though with the really old stuff I'm not totally certain how much of that is the switch from JPVR to JVR doing the blending. I'm aging a bunch to get a better idea myself.

Approximately when was the switch?

 

[mrk_d]

Controversially, I like all gueze fresh. Someone blended it to taste that way; who am I to tell them they are wrong.

A lot of those blenders encourage aging or at least state that geuze will develop and age well for a decade or more. Armand even holds back good batches of OG and labels it OGV.

 

[PurityControl88]

Controversially, I like all gueze fresh. Someone blended it to taste that way; who am I to tell them they are wrong.

What was it the La Folie lady said about not being able to improve Armand's blends by aging? That you can't improve the blends and that they're as good as they're going to get or something like that?

A lot of those blenders encourage aging or at least state that geuze will develop and age well for a decade or more. Armand even holds back good batches of OG and labels it OGV.

That's what some of the labels said on the bottles I got. That they can develop for quite a while if store properly. I figured I'd taste a few before deciding if they're worth setting back.

 

[MordorMongo]

What was it the La Folie lady said about not being able to improve Armand's blends by aging? That you can't improve the blends and that they're as good as they're going to get or something like that?



That's what some of the labels said on the bottles I got. That they can develop for quite a while if store properly. I figured I'd taste a few before deciding if they're worth setting back.

I'd kill to have a window into the future.




No seriously, tell me who to kill to acquire such sorcery.



IN.

 

[drgarage1]

What was it the La Folie lady said about not being able to improve Armand's blends by aging? That you can't improve the blends and that they're as good as they're going to get or something like that?



That's what some of the labels said on the bottles I got. That they can develop for quite a while if store properly. I figured I'd taste a few before deciding if they're worth setting back.

She also decided to pasteurize all New Belgium sours, though, so I'm pretty sure her word isn't gospel here.

 

[stupac2]

Approximately when was the switch?

I think late 90's early 00's, but someone like callmemickey or SeaWatchman might know for sure.