I just started getting into beers pretty recently, and so far I really enjoy the flavors of lambics. I was just wondering if you guys could tell me of good year round lambics that I should try.
All depends on where you live unless you're trading or buying online. 3 Fonteinen, Cantillon, Lambickx, & Gueuzerie Tilquin are some of my favorites, though not always easy to find.
These are the top notch lambics and are very hard to get your hands on. Look for Boon. The frambroise is good but the mariage parfait is amazing. I have a case sitting at down stairs.
Thats right, though you can find these from time to time (aside from Cantillion) on many of the online shops like letspour.com and craftshack.com. I've seen them all (again, aside from Cantillion) on the shelf at my old whole foods in DC
I am huge fan of Hannsens and Beersel. They are fairly easy to obtain and priced well. Can't go wrong with either in my opinion. Lambics rule!
Faminepony, I started drinking craft beer due to sampling a Kriek my friend made, aged, then gave me the last bottle of at around 3 to 4 year old. It was unlike ANYTHING I had ever had. Flat out blown away! I then went on the hunt to duplicate it with a commercial bottle but he made such an unusual batch, it just hasn't happened in over 2 years. However, it has been a fun ride! What he made was a little more than a double! I have never even HEARD of a double or triple kriek. To date, NOTHING has EVER even come close! Well, maybe the Rodenbach vintage 2010. Since I have been trying so many, I ran out of ones to try and my pallet has changed so now I am hooked on Belgian dark beers. Just a warning com-padre', once you open up your mind to experiment, things you thought you didn't like now make you want to hop a ship to Denmark and hang out at Mikkellers or something crazy like that. If you try something that you don't like, remember that Lambics can cover quite the spectrum from yummy candy like to a super sour, funky assault on your pallet with that wonderful "wet leather, grassy puke in your mouth component. They come plain, mixed (young with old), fruit steeped and all are aged for YEARS compared to others. I can hear you rereading the "puke in your mouth" statement and are thinking, "What the hell?!" I said the same thing too in reading reviews but it IS much like that. I is just one component of the entire complexity of such a crafted brew. After a few, you'll get it. It's not a bad thing, just sound like it is. From all of this, I have found that I like sours. Lambics with fruit are considered a sour but there are others too. IF you can find them, try: -Jester King, RU55 -Rodenbach (any will do but the 20 to 30$ limited and vintage releases are spectacular!) -The Bruery, Tart of Darkness -Panil Barriquée (Sour from Italy) -Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales, La Roja For a Lambics: Lindemans and Boon products are very delicious but not very authentic, more like liquid candy! There are Belgians (the real deal) and others in Europe like Mikkeller in Denmark (Mr. Rock Start Brewer extraordinaire!) There are American Lambics too, like Cascade from OR. (with flavors like Kriek/Cherry, peach, blueberry and others) THEN, if you want to assault your pallet, try Hansen's Oud Kriek. If you don't like that one, reuse it as an awesome salad dressing! I hope all of this helps. It all depends on what you like about it. If you want some more suggestions, hit me up. I certainly am 'Kriekkrazzed'.
I do like it, when gueuze-brewers other than Cantillon stand in the spotlight, because those should be most of the time easier to get in the states, for a lower price. In addition to that, they deserve it, as they deliver the same quality (with a different taste of course).
