Lambic Beer Tasting – Episode #519

August 14, 2008

Gary Vaynerchuk sits down with Alec from Wine Library again to go over Lambics.

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Comments on this episode(182) Leave a comment ›

“every time i see this episode i just want to scream,”stop spiiting out…” by gibb brown
“Umm? Classic beer geekiness, less on the annoying side (good),(Russian…” by benricosan
View all 182 ›

Beers tasted in this episode:

Cantillon Gueuze
Cantillon St Lamvinus 2005
Russian River Supplication batch #3
Lindeman’s Framboise

If you’d like additional help with the above beers or would just like to know a little bit more, please email Alec Yankus ( ayankus@winelibrary.com ).

Cheese mentioned in todays episode.

Belletoile

If you’d like additional help with the above item or would just like to know a little bit more, please email Justin Novello ( justin@winelibrary.com ).

182 Responses

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June 5, 2009

gibb brown
every time i see this episode i just want to scream,”stop spiiting out the really hard to get beer”.
June 3, 2009

benricosan
Umm? Classic beer geekiness, less on the annoying side (good),(Russian River comments withstanding). Beer ep’s could be WAY better (obviously?).

The Benricosan
February 14, 2009

nnothing
QOTD: very good…. do more belgian styles in the future…
February 14, 2009

Shane
I love the antithesis these two guys bring, and how, in appearances alone, they are already breaking drinking stereo types. You’ve got the nerdy guy in an argyle sweater and a more intense, loud, fun lovin guy in a t-shirt and arm band. If I saw these guys for the first time, I would peg Alec as the wine guy and Gary as the beer nut.

GREAT example that quality drinking and knowledge is for everyone. Great job guys!

GARY, COME TO LILLE, FRANCE AND DO A TRAPPIST BEER SHOW WITH ME! (hint: I have two crates of Westvleteren Trappist beer, basically impossible to find outside of Belgium).
January 19, 2009

Dessert Wine Nerd
Shocking show to me. Im not a beer fan at all. Had a fair amount of the cheap US beers, also some well-known mircobrews amd not cared for a single one. Not even a little. These def. piqued my intrest. Hopefully my wine shop will have one! QOTD: You did a damn good job. Lots of knowledge there. Thanks!
November 2, 2008

Jay
Very cool episode. Appreciated you two dropping the knowledge about Lambic beers!
October 16, 2008

Daniel Kemp 4 Earth Emperor
That was pretty cool with the color bar image.

I can’t wait for your videos on Gourmet Library.

QOTD: I liked it. You did a good job.
September 12, 2008

yowens
GV- youre way off, argyle is totally 2008/2009
September 6, 2008

RDHUDAK
Killer show. I have been a beer nut before beer was cool. Have has many lambics and enjoyed many. Actually have some of the Boone Marriage series from 15 years ago in the cellar.
Alex, you rocked it! You were very knowledgeable on the subject and did a fantastic job. BTW, also digged the way you slugged them back. Made Gary look like your shy date. lol
September 1, 2008

Karl Laczko
The power of suggestion, you actually made me open a beer (although the only one I had in the house was a Grolsch Oud Bruin, so at only 2.5% you could argue it isn’t really a beer).

Gary, eating bacon & cheese & wearing a Vegan.com T?

Those beers sound exactly what I’d like…never had a Lambic beer before, I may have to look for one to try. Great show!

QOTD – Alec, you were great….the shirt & tank-top combo not
August 31, 2008

James
I love the beer coverage and would like to see more. Not crazy about Alec; he’s trying a little too hard and needs to relax some.
August 31, 2008

JudeMurphy
You’re doing great Alec, but that thing you’re wearing is not stylish or classy!!
haha
Nice one, good show!
August 28, 2008

David
Forgot to mention a Wisconsin producer, New Glarus brewery. Distribution generally in WI and neighboring states. They have a raspberry and a cherry that are a little more tart than the Lindemans offering. Both include a good amount of sediment in the bottle.
http://www.newglarusbrewing.com/beers.cfm?BeerID=10
http://www.newglarusbrewing.com/beers.cfm?BeerID=11
August 28, 2008

David
The show was a nice departure from the typical wine show. same energy and all that but a different perspective, more inquisitive on Garys part instead of the usual boat of confidence. (not that this is bad) Point is this, different fermentation methods and ranges of flavors and combinations present us with new experiences and take our head out of its usual place and perspective.
August 27, 2008

ex-lurkdawg
Alec, I think you’re great on the show. Thanks for talking about Lambic beers so more people will know they’re not all sugary fruit. I’m also glad you mentioned Allagash Brewing. I’m biased because I live right near Portland, Maine, but they are my favorite brewery.
August 27, 2008

JayZee
Good show, but I am not a big fan of lambics.

QOTD: I do like the BeerTV shows as long as they aren’t too frequent and Alec rocks it out!
August 26, 2008

Blake W
QOTD: Keep it going man!…My fiance is in complete love with ALL of the Lindeman’s products…a bit too fruity for me but I definitely agree with you in that its a great beer for someone who isn’t a beer fan or much of a drinker. Great Ep!
August 25, 2008

Ilse
Just as Eva en Koenraad (fellow comment writers) I’m Belgian and for us lambic beers are a lot more common of course.
But I wouldn’t say the Russian River brew is lambic, for it is NOT beer which has fermented spontaneously. It is actually closer to a typical Belgian red ale, which is also a very sour beer : Rodenbach.

This type fermentation for beer (which is limited to Pajottenland and Brussels) is similar to the way Roquefort blue cheese is made…so, no yeast is added, it’s all in the air! This makes a lambic ;gueuze and other lambic based beers (kriek, framboise…) are actually blends of different ages of lambic (hence the “méthode champenoise” and gueuze named the champagne of the beers). By the way, in Belgium we name gueuze and kriek/framboise for those blends which are bottled; the “primitive” non blended beer is “lambiek=lambic” for us : sweet lambic (very young), kriekenlambiek (the one used for kriek) for instance. I do not like gueuze but I enjoy the lambiek a lot, so the taste is really different.
Looking at the comments, it might have been wise to start by telling this in the programme.

As a number of other people said…Cantillon is one of the best true lambic brewers still active and they are in the centre of Brussels and can be visited. What’s really very attractive about cantillon is 1/ that they still use the classic recipies (i.e. adding fruit and not sirop to the beer being formed), and 2/ that they make a lot of “once only” brews for clients. A couple of years back, I went to Stockholm and Akkurat, a fameous beer bar there had had a batch of lambic made with typical swedish berries.
Lindemans is a commercial lambic maker and it is one of the first brewers who jumped onto the new trend (to make young people like beer again) : make the stuff very sweet! Definitely not done for real beer lovers.
So, please feel free to make a programme about trappist beers, or saison (to Scott : the only thing lambic and saison have in common apart from some ingredients is really the period of the year they are made in, namely winter!) or white beers or… but NO sweet fruit beers…that’s like making a programme about breezers!
I’m now living in Spain but twice a year I bring a car load of beer from Belgium…wonderful )!
August 25, 2008

Andrew D
QOTD:
GV – 92pt (+1/2pt for drinking from the bottle at the end)
Alec – 93pt

Cheers
Andrew
August 24, 2008

Sean
WOW, i just gotta say WOW. Went out and got my first Lambic last night, the Framboise was the only one they had. Holy FRUIT BOMB, wasnt expecting that much fruit. Its awesome though, definitely something for after dinner, im hooked.
August 24, 2008

Neil D
I’ve been waiting for a lambic episode for ages, and I think I might have recommended you try some lambics when I commented on the last beerlibrary episode.

QOTD: Alec, doin good, I like how you pound the glass of beer that Gary pours you.

I LOVE GUEUZE, Cantillon is one of my favorites. Maybe one of these days we can get Gary to try an Oude Kriek (the sour one, not one with all the sugar, like Lindeman’s and Liefmans)
August 23, 2008

Oakmon's BF
I just tried the Lindemanâ€™s Framboise. It really does taste like cough drops. The novelty of that wears off very quickly. Itâ€™s not something I ever need to try again.
August 22, 2008

Dan Harms
Great show. I would love to see a nitrogen charged vs. carbonation charged beer challenge… which might require kegs and taps etc… but it would be fun to have a pub show. great stuff!
August 22, 2008

josermj
Lindemanâ€™s Framboise finally something sold in my area that I can try. good show
August 22, 2008

Friar_Nurgle
Love the Beer Shows. Alec, you’re going great. Nice sweater. I’m a big Guinness fan. How about doing a stout/dark beer show.
Thanks