Lambic Discussion Thread

[DariusDaBone]

SeaWatchman how were the J&J, the 08 Cantillon Gueuze, and the 02 OGV? That lambic.info instagram story was a legend revue of lambics.

 

[SeaWatchman]

SeaWatchman how were the J&J, the 08 Cantillon Gueuze, and the 02 OGV? That lambic.info instagram story was a legend revue of lambics.

Funny you should ask, I just posted some quick notes on the 3F bottles!

Had a great time ticking a trio of 3F geuze blends from days gone by with crosamich last night as he was passing through town! First up was OGV bottled 13 April 2002. This bottle was fantastic with a perfect carb level accompanied by classic aged 3F OG characteristics of mushroomy earthiness, wood, and some sherry notes. Not quite oxidized, but definitely starting to show its age ever so slightly. Next up was Blauw, and it was amazing to revisit this one after almost 6 years of not tasting it. Cork popped off with a whispy cloud of carbonation but wasn’t heavily carbed on the pour. This geuze could be smelled across the room. Notes of orange zest and citrus rinds on the nose with an infinitely funky taste - wet stone minerals, a crispy citrus note of grapefruit, wet grass, and a bready yeasty finish. An absolutely perfect bottle. Finally the youngest of the bunch, Armand & Tommy. No other geuze in the last decade can touch this blend. Huge amount of carbonation that never died down in the glass, white pepper and mint on the nose with an underlying petrichor note. Taste is seemingly back to what it was when it first released - bright citrus, white wine sweetness, lots of brett character, and a nice grapefruit finish. This blend is a little heavier in the mouthfeel, but it is absolutely a stunner.

 

[tommyguz]

View attachment 5308

Had a box shipped to me recently from Belgian Happiness. Prices were great. Box was trash, very wet (not their fault) and not much than cardboard dividers, when it arrived. 2015 3F was the only causality. Messaged them and told them the situation and they emailed back quickly with apologies and voucher equivalent of the bottle. I don’t believe it was their fault in this instance but the packaging was weak comparatively.

Not sure if this adds anything

Was just going to say they gave me a voucher for a broken bottle once before too.

 

[2plums4one]

Was just going to say they gave me a voucher for a broken bottle once before too.

That is crazy as I've ordered from them 4 times and every time the packaging was insanely good.

 

[gueuzelife]

Posted this bottle in the DDT, but figured I’d comment over here. Noticing how much color this has lost. Bottle is still fairly young 16’ and the color has really dropped off! Becoming a ruddy brown. Smell and taste are still wonderful though.

Was this blend 11 bottled on 12/20/2016? I opened a blend 11 last Friday and had the exact same experience. Still a good bottle but the color was definitely turning brown.

 

[andrewdrinks]

Tavour now has Cantillon. $35 for a RdG 75 is a bit much for me though.

 

[NClambicguy]

Tavour now has Cantillon. $35 for a RdG 75 is a bit much for me though.

That's about half the price of the hommage that just hit here. I would probably do that if we had Tavour here. Especially if I were adding it to a crate with b3k

 

[The Red Viper]

Science-ignorant (maybe just plain ignorant) follow up to the storage discussion from earlier. Is there a practical difference in terms of humidity between storing on shelves open to the air or porous crates vs “sealed” (not totally airtight of course) bins?

I bought a few each of two different sizes of milk crates and of a generic Sterilite hard plastic tub with snap-on lid to play around with and see what works. First impression is the milk crates work better for wine bottles (with non-protruding corks) and 375mls and the Sterilite tubs work well for 750ml lambic/champagne bottles. The Sterilite tubs hold ~2 cases and remain movable (~3 and the lid will still fit but can’t safely be lifted/moved). They stack too so this feels like a good solution for storing sets of bottles I have a case + of and don’t need to be able to pick and choose from, just move a tub and grab off the top. I’m just trying to think through whether there are factors to consider beyond convenience. Of course I can use the tubs with the lids off but then they don’t stack.

Will the tubs with lids snapped on stay close to ambient humidity or would they trap moisture that can’t evaporate or...?

 

[RuckIt]

Science-ignorant (maybe just plain ignorant) follow up to the storage discussion from earlier. Is there a practical difference in terms of humidity between storing on shelves open to the air or porous crates vs “sealed” (not totally airtight of course) bins?

I bought a few each of two different sizes of milk crates and of a generic Sterilite hard plastic tub with snap-on lid to play around with and see what works. First impression is the milk crates work better for wine bottles (with non-protruding corks) and 375mls and the Sterilite tubs work well for 750ml lambic/champagne bottles. The Sterilite tubs hold ~2 cases and remain movable (~3 and the lid will still fit but can’t safely be lifted/moved). They stack too so this feels like a good solution for storing sets of bottles I have a case + of and don’t need to be able to pick and choose from, just move a tub and grab off the top. I’m just trying to think through whether there are factors to consider beyond convenience. Of course I can use the tubs with the lids off but then they don’t stack.

Will the tubs with lids snapped on stay close to ambient humidity or would they trap moisture that can’t evaporate or...?

A container that can make a decent seal (Sterilite tubs) could be good (assuming controlled humidity) or very bad (trapped humidity, no air flow). You can get those little moisture packets you find in clothes (and were featured in that Seinfeld "Speed Dial" episode) which work for a couple months at a time, or toss some loose rice in there which I imagine would serve a similar purpose.

With that said, humidity fluctuation probably isn't an issue if you've got somewhat decent moisture control in the area.

 

[tylerk88]

The more I read about storing lambic the more I feel like my cellar is a major "at risk" situation. I guess I could toss something into the Sterilite tubs to absorb moisture... Better yet, maybe I finally commit to a proper wine locker somewhere.

 

[Lamnic]

Loon 4 pack on BiaB. 10 Euro more than last time.

 

[IndianaJones]

Loon 4 pack on BiaB. 10 Euro more than last time.

90 euro + shipping for RdG, Kriek, Geuze and GCB 75s. hard pass

 

[NClambicguy]

90 euro + shipping for RdG, Kriek, Geuze and GCB 75s. hard pass

And you're taking a gamble on whether or not the box is going to arrive in one piece. I swear they make them out of leftover cereal boxes.

 

[steinbbr]

Was this blend 11 bottled on 12/20/2016? I opened a blend 11 last Friday and had the exact same experience. Still a good bottle but the color was definitely turning brown.

Yeah an assemblage 11, sourness was starting to come up too.

 

[jbdpsu82]

And you're taking a gamble on whether or not the box is going to arrive in one piece. I swear they make them out of leftover cereal boxes.

FWIW, I bought the 4 pack the first time it showed up last week. It actually came in a double-wall corrugated cardboard box. So perhaps they stepped up their box game, at least for smaller boxes (only ordered the four bottles). That being said, it was the usual pool noodles inside and the only additional packing was a 3/4" sheet of styrofoam on the bottom and on top of the bottles. So they were sort of loose inside.

 

[The Red Viper]

FWIW I’ve ordered dozens of BiaB boxes and don’t think I’ve ever had a bottle break. Have had a number of broken bottles one Etre boxes including one just the other day. Ymmv but what looks like a mess seems fairly effective in practice...

 

[jbdpsu82]

So BiaB apparently threw in two 375mL gueuzes and bumped up the cost of that Cantillon six pack to 110 euros...

 

[GetchaPull]

So BiaB apparently threw in two 375mL gueuzes and bumped up the cost of that Cantillon six pack to 110 euros...

Wow.

 

[matedog]

Wow.

That's 10 euro per 375 added right? Doesn't seem outrageous.

 

[NClambicguy]

That's 10 euro per 375 added right? Doesn't seem outrageous.

They were 7 euro on Etre so it’s about a 50% markup on top of pricing for the other bottles in the set that’s already 50% higher than Etre.

 

[Digita7693]

2 yr lambic, instead of wort, added to cognac barrels and aged for a year. Tons of cognac, will likely be a new version of 50N.

 

[Gaseous Clay]

2 yr lambic, instead of wort, added to cognac barrels and aged for a year. Tons of cognac, will likely be a new version of 50N.

Was it wort added directly to the battles for past batches of 50n? I was under the impression it was lambic added to the barrels to further mature. Either way very cool to see more 50n coming down the line!

 

[jbdpsu82]

Was it wort added directly to the battles for past batches of 50n? I was under the impression it was lambic added to the barrels to further mature. Either way very cool to see more 50n coming down the line!

I hope it finds its way into an online sale like last time.

 

[stakem1]

Was it wort added directly to the battles

May we never forget the battle of Stalingeuze

 

[BadJustin]

So BiaB apparently threw in two 375mL gueuzes and bumped up the cost of that Cantillon six pack to 110 euros...

After still seeing reports of people not getting their Loon proxies, BiaB can get ****** IMHO

 

[JCastle1]

After still seeing reports of people not getting their Loon proxies, BiaB can get ****** IMHO

Wait what reports?? That ******* sucks, I used Etre for mine and it all arrived safely and super quick.

 

[BadJustin]

Wait what reports?? That ******* sucks, I used Etre for mine and it all arrived safely and super quick.

People still, to this day (not so much as of late but fairly recently), comment on BiaB FB posts that they have gotten no communication back regarding the proxies.

 

[RuckIt]

BIAB was an absolute mess with the proxies. Not only the communication side, but also the execution. I've heard from someone I trust that some people got 2 sets sent to them instead of 1... so I'm sure it was at the expense of someone who's bottles never made it.

 

[jbdpsu82]

After still seeing reports of people not getting their Loon proxies, BiaB can get ****** IMHO

Wow. That's news to me, and apparently others here. That's really unfortunate.

BiaB really stinks with communication. For the Cantillon four-pack last week I got charged the PayPal fee twice. I left a comment on the order asking about it, hoping for a refund. No response. Bottles showed up though, so I figured I wouldn't sweat the extra $8 cost. But the fact that they just ignore questions about orders is obnoxious and extremely unprofessional.

 

[steinbbr]

People still, to this day (not so much as of late but fairly recently), comment on BiaB FB posts that they have gotten no communication back regarding the proxies.

Took a FB dogpile with the help of some you to finally get my proxy bottles.