At one point in history, all beer was sour, but for the past century of brewing, Belgium has been the primary locus for spontaneously fermented beers. To answer changing tastes, Belgian brewers have a long-established history of adding fruit to their lambics—a history and tradition brewers are now drawing on as they explore new fruits and more intense fruit flavors. Charles D. Cook talked to five respected Belgian brewers and blenders—Timmermans, Tilquin, Oud Beersel, Drie Fonteinen, and Cantillon—about these new approaches to fruited lambics, developed to meet the rising demand for these sour brews.
Belgium’s fruit lambics—produced mainly in Brussels and the Payottenland, to the south and west of the city—are some of the most sought-after sour beers on the planet. Bottles that beer drinkers once overlooked now sell out in minutes, and the amount of money beer aficionados will spend and the effort to which they will go to obtain these rare brews never cease to amaze.
The Belgian lambic breweries and blenders have noticed the dramatic rise in popularity of traditional lambic beers and other sour brews. Here, we look at new approaches five of those highly coveted breweries and blenderies are taking to this traditional style.