[Belgium] Fruit Beer

 

Icy cold beverage would be the best choice during summer. Champagne or Sparkling wine would be nice, but there isn’t always an occasion to drink Champagne or Sparkling wine. At this time, a bottle of cold fruit beer would suit summer drinking; it can quench thirst at summer time. Fruit beer has many different types, like Belgium has the famous Fruit Lambic.

Lambic is a Traditional Belgian beer from Southwest of Brussels, located in Pajottenland region. It is brewed with 70% wheat / 30% malt and uses old dry hop. Then, it will be put on cool ship to cool down for one night. During the night time, the wild yeast in the air will work on spontaneous fermentation. This kind of wild yeast can only be found in the air of Pajottenland. Next day morning, when the wort is ready, it will be placed in oak barrels for maturation of around 4 to 5 months or 1 to 2 years. Fall and winter are the best time to brew Lambic because the wild yeast is hard to control in the summer.       

Different kind of fruit has been used to brew Fruit Lambic, such as cherry, raspberry, apple, peach, strawberry etc. Cherry beer named as Kriek Lambic. The name is come from the Flemish word “Schaarbeekse Krieken”, a type of Belgian cherry. Traditional Kriek is made with Schaarbeek cherry but this type of cherries is getting hard to find. Some brewers use other varieties of sour cherries. Kriek used young and old Lambic beer and add cherries for 2^nd fermentations. The cherry sugar will bring new yeast. When the yeast swallowed the pulp, leaving the stone only, the fermentation completed. Then, it will be filtered and bottled. In bottle, the residual sugar can be fermented one more time. So the total, it has 3 times of fermentation. That’s why I say, besides Champagne, we can choose Fruit Lambic. It can provide the similar feeling of complexity of champagne. The traditional Kriek tasted sourer and less fruity. 

This time, I tasted different Fruit Lambic from brewery of Lindemans. I tried Kriek, Framboise (Raspberry), Apple and Peachersse (Peach). Currently, there is limited availability of Schaarbeek cherries. Lindemans brewery made Kriek with natural fresh cherry juice, which is made directly from unfrozen cherries. Then, the juice will be blended into Lambic of different age. Compare to traditional Kriek, Lindemans brew less sour and fruitier Kriek Lambic. For the other flavors, Lindemans also used fresh juice to brew.

My Taste Note: 

I like Kriek the most, it has strong fruity cherry flavor, light acid and mild sweet, color is clear pink-red. The 2^nd one I like is Framboise (Raspberry) Lambic. Same as Kriek, it has strong raspberry flavor, fresh acid and light sweet, color is hazy wine red. After drinking, both have precipitate left in the glass. 

Apple Lambic has strong and obvious apple flavor, acid and after taste, the color is hazy golden. The last one, Pecheresse has light peach aroma and flavor, light acid. 

All of it didn’t have beer bitter, only a little bit for Apple Lambic. Maybe it was because of using the old and dry hops, it made less beer bitter. When I drinking Kriek or Framboise, I feel like drinking Champagne with cherry or raspberry flavor. Overall, they are easy drinking and fruity, very suitable for summer drinking.   

夏天時候的第一選擇,一定是冰凍的飲品. 香檳或氣酒會是首選,但是我們不是常常有機會可以喝香檳或氣酒. 除了這兩款酒,一瓶冰凍的水果啤酒會很適合夏天飲用.在炎熱的天氣下,它可以止渴和有帶來水果香氣.水果啤酒有好幾款. 比利時有一款著名的水果啤酒叫Fruit Lambic.

Lambic是一款來自布魯塞爾(Brussels)西南邊Pajottenland區域的傳統比利時啤酒. 這是用了70% 小麥/ 30% 麥芽和一些比較舊和乾的啤酒花來釀製. 釀成麥汁的時候, 會放在四方形的銅盤上, 讓它冷卻了一個晚上. 在晚間的時候, 在空氣中的野生酵母會開始為麥汁自然發酵. 只有Pajottenland的空氣中帶有這種野生酵母.第二天早上,當麥汁準備好時,將會被放木桶內,成熟約4~5個月或1~2年. 最好的季節釀Lambic是秋冬的時候,因為野生酵母在夏季會比較難控制.

Fruit Lambic會採用多種類水果來釀製,例如車厘子, 覆盆子, 蘋果, 桃, 等等. 只有車厘子會稱呼為Kriek Lambic. 這個名字的來自佛蘭芒語 (Flemish) 的 “Schaarbeekse Krieken”, 它是一款比利時車厘子的名稱.傳統的Kriek是用Schaarbeek車厘子, 不過這款車厘子都很難找到,所以某些啤酒廠都改用其他品種的車厘子.Kriek採用新和舊的Lambic啤酒再加上新鮮車厘子,然後進行第二次發酵.因為車厘子的糖份會產生新的酵母.當酵母吞噬了所有果肉只剩下果核的時候,這代表發酵已經完成.然後它會進行過濾和裝瓶.在瓶內還残留了一些糖, 可以再發酵多一次.這樣計算,總供發酵了三次.所以我覺得除了香檳和氣酒之外, 我們可以選擇Lambic,它都可以提供到一些類似的感覺和類似香檳的複雜性.傳統的Kriek味道是高酸度和比較少果味.

這次我試了來自Lindemans 不同味道的啤酒, 有Kriek (車厘子), Famboise(覆盆子),蘋果和Pecheresse (水蜜桃).目前Schaarbeek車厘子是有限供應, 所以Lindemans的Kriek是用另一款車厘子的天然新鮮果汁.這些車厘子果汁是直接取自沒有冷藏過的車厘子果實.然後果汁跟不同年份的Lambic啤酒一起合成. 比起傳統的Kriek, Lindemans釀的是低酸度,多果味的啤酒.其他的水果味道的Fruit Lambic都是用新鮮果汁來釀製.

我的品酒筆出記:  

我最喜歡就是Kriek,它有強烈的車厘子果香, 輕微的酸,和溫和的甜, 顏色是清晰粉紅加紅色. 第二喜歡是Famboise(覆盆子) Lambic, 跟Kriek 一樣有強烈的覆盆子味道, 鮮明的酸和輕輕的甜, 顏色是朦朧的紅酒紅.飲完後, 兩款都有一些沉澱物在杯底. 

苹果有強烈的新鮮蘋果味道,酸和Aftertaste, 顏色是朦朧金色. 最後一枝是水蜜桃, 有輕微的水蜜桃香氣和味道, 低酸度.  

以上所有的Fruit Lambic 都沒有啤酒苦,只是蘋果有一點苦.可能是因為他們用了乾或舊的啤酒花, 所以沒有這麼多啤酒苦. 當我在飲Kriek 和Framboise 時候, 我感覺到好像在飲加上車厘子或覆盆子的香檳.整體就是它們都是輕鬆飲用和濃郁果味的啤酒.