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spr ing
keep unwanted microorganisms out of their beer, lambic brewers invite
all microorganisms into the fermenting liquid. The term “lambic”
refers to the family of wild beer styles but also is its own unique style.
In the strictest sense, lambic only comes from the Senne Valley of
southwestern Belgium and is spontaneously fermented, aged for two to
three years then served unblended.
The Senne Valley contains a unique microflora that makes it ideal
for spontaneously fermenting beer. Unlike yeast, the microorganisms in
lambic have the ability to consume wood sugar. This means that they
will burrow deep into barrels and even the wooden walls and beams of
the brewery. The microflora sets up a diverse community that creates a
unique identity to the barrel or brewery and helps form a house character.
In fact, lambic brewers are afraid to clean the wood in their breweries,
in case they disrupt the microflora. These historic establishments remain
untouched with spider webs and dust decorating the walls.
After brewing, the unfermented beer is pumped to an open-air
rectangular fermenter, called a
coolship
, located in the attic of the
brewery. Air passing over the wooden rafters causes the microflora to
float down like flour from a sifter, dusting the surface of the liquid and
inoculating the brew. Since yeast is not being added by the brewer, this
process is known as
spontaneous
or
wild fermentation
. Today, brewers
can purchase an individual strain or a blend of microorganisms from
a yeast bank. They then dose their barrels with the desired cultures.
This means that it will have a more controlled “wild” character and is
not being spontaneously fermented, though it does allow brewers from
around the world to replicate the unique characteristics of the lambics
found in the Senne Valley.
Although there are a few bottled versions available, straight lambic
is unblended and most often served on tap – which means that it usually
does not leave the Pajottenland region, where the Senne Valley is located.
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