Beer tasting sessions

on the base of beers of spontaneous fermentation

Lambiek beers : This kind of beer belongs to the group of oldest beers in the world and is unique for Belgium. The brewing process of the beers, from the Zenne valley and South-West Brabant, differs from the processes in the traditional breweries. The brewer uses perennial hop, which is less bitter, and wild yeast that can be found in the air (therefore ‘spontaneous fermentation’). The ‘lambiek’ is brewed from November to March because the necessary micro-organisms or wild yeast are only active in the colder months. These beers ripen in oak barrels (up to 3 years). In the first phase the necessary fermentation takes place, that in the end lead to the fermentation of alcohol and the sour character. Only after this the real ripening starts. Because of the evolving beer culture, the traditional ‘Lambiek’ brewers, who use the ancient recipe, needed a legally registered name. So now they are allowed to add the word ‘oud’ of ‘oude’ to their names. This proves that their beer is made with at least 30 % of wheat and that it has gone through an integral spontaneous fermentation. When younger and older ‘lambiek’ are blended, we get ‘geuze’. This kind of beer is also combined with (black) cherries, raspberries, strawberries and sugar (faro).