Lambic Discussion Thread

[Joel66]

I can barely read let alone count so you do the math and report back

 

[HenrikO]

I've definitely noticed the increase in smug bilberries posts around the nets.

Sorry, my bad. Apparently everyone knows that Blåbaer is made from bilberries AND JEPPE'S SEMEN.

 

[huskermike12]

Sorry, my bad. Apparently everyone knows that Blåbaer is made from bilberries AND JEPPE'S SEMEN.

That explains a lot.

 

[tehzachatak]

I'm still new to this game. These two are shelf turding at my local shop.

They are both in the teens for price. Any good or pass?

I quite liked the geuze. Haven't pulled the trigger on the kriek yet, but probably should do that soon!

 

[falc0n26001]

Maybe I just missed them all before, but it sure seems like there's been a lot of threads in various places over the last week or so that mostly amount to people showing off how "smart" they are because "bilberries, not blueberries". Maybe it's just annoying pedantry that's on the rise, not actually knowledge of that fact.

I don't mean to be pedantic, I am just interested in accurate information being put online as opposed to the conjecture that is 90% of beer discussions online.

 

[sacrelicio]

Bilberries and blueberries are two distinct species, but if you pull up this page:

http://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blåbær

and translate it to English...you get:

 

[sacrelicio]

most of the cicerones i have met have been complete Homies

They givin' out them certified BJs

 

[falc0n26001]

http://www.mirtoselect.info/public/bilberry_blueberry.asp

 

[BadJustin]

Ok experts, Doesjel bottled 02/23/2006. Score?

 

[mrk_d]

Ok experts, Doesjel bottled 02/23/2006. Score?

2006 750mL is drinking great in my experience. Apparently 375s aren't as good.

 

[BadJustin]

2006 750mL is drinking great in my experience. Apparently 375s aren't as good.

right on, got a 375 as an extra today after mentioning we don't get shelton distro in my area.

 

[LukeAleTime]

Grabbed an Oud Beersel Oude Kriek today and there was no bb date. The last ones we had were 2012 but I think this is a different shipment. Anyone know of an alternative way of telling?

Cork has "PL 30" on it, there is a number on the front OB05B01 and on the back above the barcode it says OB06B02

It's also got the WBA09 World's best Kriek stamp on the front.

Related news, same shop had 2010 Boon Marriage, and 2011/12 Gueuze for $10 per 37.5cl. A steal.

 

[ridglens]

Grabbed an Oud Beersel Oude Kriek today and there was no bb date. The last ones we had were 2012 but I think this is a different shipment. Anyone know of an alternative way of telling?

Cork has "PL 30" on it, there is a number on the front OB05B01 and on the back above the barcode it says OB06B02

It's also got the WBA09 World's best Kriek stamp on the front.

Related news, same shop had 2010 Boon Marriage, and 2011/12 Gueuze for $10 per 37.5cl. A steal.

Very nice! We've been getting '09 marriage parfait here the last month or two, about $8-9 a 375, Sid for the price/convenience for sure.

 

[LukeAleTime]

Very nice! We've been getting '09 marriage parfait here the last month or two, about $8-9 a 375, Sid for the price/convenience for sure.

Comparatively we pay between 5 and 9 for a 33cl IPA or something so $10 gueuze is great.

 

[mrk_d]

Finally had a 2010-2011 Tilquin last night. Dear lord that stuff is awesome. I've always enjoyed fresh Tilquin but if that bottle was indicative of how Tilquin ages I am going to begin stockpiling more now (although I know that it's only 2 year blended lambic so maybe it's an anomalous batch).

Anyone have 2011-2012 recently, and if so, is it following the same trajectory as 2010-2011?

 

[Envelopes]

Finally had a 2010-2011 Tilquin last night. Dear lord that stuff is awesome. I've always enjoyed fresh Tilquin but if that bottle was indicative of how Tilquin ages I am going to begin stockpiling more now (although I know that it's only 2 year blended lambic so maybe it's an anomalous batch).

Anyone have 2011-2012 recently, and if so, is it following the same trajectory as 2010-2011?

Were all the batches from 10/11 a 2 year blend? I've got a 750 of 10/11 (bottled 02/18/2011) and it says "1, 2 & 3 year old lambic" on the back label. Did they all say this anyway? Was the 2 year blend just the first batch? Was the 2 year blend exported?

 

[mrk_d]

Were all the batches from 10/11 a 2 year blend? I've got a 750 of 10/11 (bottled 02/18/2011) and it says "1, 2 & 3 year old lambic" on the back label. Did they all say this anyway? Was the 2 year blend just the first batch? Was the 2 year blend exported?

Interesting, I thought I heard 2010-2011 were all 1 and 2 year but I must have that wrong. Wish I would have checked what batch I drank yesterday.

 

[jmarce]

Interesting, I thought I heard 2010-2011 were all 1 and 2 year but I must have that wrong. Wish I would have checked what batch I drank yesterday.

I opened the one I recently bought from Etre today which is from 4/12/2011 and it says 1, 2, 3 year old blend on the back label. I haven't tried this vintage fresh so I can't say if it's just better from the start than the more recent batches but I'll be interested to see how the 2011-2012/2012-2013 bottles I have stashed age now. I prefer similar aged 3F, Hanssens and Cantillon in that order to 2011-2012/2012-2013 Tilquin bottles I've had but this b1 bottle is right up there with 3F.

 

[Pneill3161]

Finally had a 2010-2011 Tilquin last night. Dear lord that stuff is awesome. I've always enjoyed fresh Tilquin but if that bottle was indicative of how Tilquin ages I am going to begin stockpiling more now (although I know that it's only 2 year blended lambic so maybe it's an anomalous batch).

Anyone have 2011-2012 recently, and if so, is it following the same trajectory as 2010-2011?

Yes to both vintages, plus had the batch. 2 questche recently. All were drinking far better then fresh. As for the 2/3 year blend question, I believe the first year was only a 1 2 blend dispite the label due to pressure from the investors to get a product out sooner. There is also a 2010 batch they did for promotions.

 

[tehzachatak]

Drinking St. Louis Kriek Fond Tradition for the first time. This is way better than I expected. Does Van Honsebrouck make their own lambic? I seem to like Geuze Fond Tradition way more than most too, maybe there's just some house lambic character here I like. There's no depth/funk at all, for sure, but there's also nothing offensive about it. It's solid. And for a 7 dollar shelf kriek, I will bang this many times. Lot of residual sweetness, I feel like this would age decently for a bit.

 

[tehzachatak]

Also, there are no lees whatsoever in the bottle. But it says unfiltered. Something is wrong, here..

 

[BusinessSloth]

Someone explain to me the proper steps to use a lambic basket. Am clueless n00b.

 

[tehzachatak]

Someone explain to me the proper steps to use a lambic basket. Am clueless n00b.

Well, first, you have to have had the bottle horizontal for at least long enough for the lees to settle to the side of the bottle, rather than the bottom. If you cellar your lambic horizontally, it won't be an issue, but if you cellar it vertically, you're gonna need to make sure it's sideways as it chills, or whatever. As long as possible, IMO, given that the entire reason you're using a lambic basket (besides the fact that it looks cool) is to minimize sediment in your glass.

Then, of course, you chill your bottle to desired serving temp. The next step, I'd love to get input on from those more experienced than myself to hear how they do it - but for everything I don't need a corkscrew for (e.g., Cantillon), I then lay the bottle in the basket, angle the basket upward slightly, and pop the cork/cap, then pour in one smooth motion until I am happy with the amount of lambic in my glass. Then I put the basket down - and the idea, now, is that because you've had to change the angle of the bottle very little to pour, and aren't changing it very much as you set it down because of the basket, it will pour clear on a second pour as well, whereas if you store/open your bottle vertically, you have to move the bottle 45 degrees (roughly) to pour, and then 45 degrees the opposite direction to put it down on its base, allowing sediment to move around.

I find this process gets significantly more complex for Cantillon, as I have not yet mastered the use of a corkscrew horizontally, so I typically set the bottle on its base briefly to extract the cork after I've pulled it from the cellar, and then angle it back down to put it in the basket. For all I know, I may be totally defeating the purpose by doing this.








tl;dr It doesn't matter it just looks cool

 

[BusinessSloth]

tl;dr It doesn't matter it just looks cool

That's pretty much why I bought one. Legit as fawk.

 

[tehzachatak]

That's pretty much why I bought one. Legit as fawk.

Plus, you can use it completely unnecessarily for things like HF saisons!

 

[matedog]

I was corrected at the Cantillon tasting room for how I poured with the basket. Pretty embarrassing.

 

[csano]

I was corrected at the Cantillon tasting room for how I poured with the basket. Pretty embarrassing.

Details, please.

 

[kscaldef]

Well, first, you have to have had the bottle horizontal for at least long enough for the lees to settle to the side of the bottle, rather than the bottom. If you cellar your lambic horizontally, it won't be an issue, but if you cellar it vertically, you're gonna need to make sure it's sideways as it chills, or whatever. As long as possible, IMO, given that the entire reason you're using a lambic basket (besides the fact that it looks cool) is to minimize sediment in your glass.

Then, of course, you chill your bottle to desired serving temp. The next step, I'd love to get input on from those more experienced than myself to hear how they do it - but for everything I don't need a corkscrew for (e.g., Cantillon), I then lay the bottle in the basket, angle the basket upward slightly, and pop the cork/cap, then pour in one smooth motion until I am happy with the amount of lambic in my glass. Then I put the basket down - and the idea, now, is that because you've had to change the angle of the bottle very little to pour, and aren't changing it very much as you set it down because of the basket, it will pour clear on a second pour as well, whereas if you store/open your bottle vertically, you have to move the bottle 45 degrees (roughly) to pour, and then 45 degrees the opposite direction to put it down on its base, allowing sediment to move around.

I find this process gets significantly more complex for Cantillon, as I have not yet mastered the use of a corkscrew horizontally, so I typically set the bottle on its base briefly to extract the cork after I've pulled it from the cellar, and then angle it back down to put it in the basket. For all I know, I may be totally defeating the purpose by doing this.

A couple comments:

1) master using a corkscrew horizontally. I find this is much easier with a waiter-style corkscrew.

2) The better baskets will have just the right angle so you don't have to lift it up at all when opening the bottle.

3) IMO, even for vertically stored bottles, you will still get clearer pours laying it into a basket and pouring from there, versus returning the bottle to upright in between every pour (particularly at tasting events where there might be 6-10 people taking pours).

 

[matedog]

Details, please.

Unfortunately I don't remember the exact details, but it was something like the bottle was out of the basket too much or I wasn't holding the basket handles to pour properly.

 

[BusinessSloth]

Unfortunately I don't remember the exact details, but it was something like the bottle was out of the basket too much or I wasn't holding the basket handles to pour properly.

Did they demonstrate "proper" technique?