Bar Tending & Beerspectives
by Matt Martinkovic
| Brewsearch & Development - |
| Whenever the bar I work at has a Gueuze on tap I'm asked several times a night just what kind of beer is it? The bar by the way serves mainly craft beer and has a clientele that knows quite a bit about it. Still, this one kind of beer confuses some of them. So I thought this would be a good forum to explain it all them and to you the readers of Bar Tending & Beerspectives Let me start by saying that Gueuze is an unfruited sparkling form of lambic. If you're unsure of what a lambic is here's the standard definition - it is a very unique style of beer that is only produced in a very small region of Belgium. The name Lambic comes from the name Lembeek which is a town near Brussels. While most commercial beers are made with carefully selected strains of yeast, brewers of Lambic beer tend to leave things up to chance. This gives Lambic beer its distinct qualities and makes every single bottle unique. Belgian Lambic beer is left in open vats where wild yeast and bacteria are encouraged to take up residence. In fact yeast is never added directly to the wort. Instead wild yeast that is unique to the region is simply allowed to fall into the vats in a process known as spontaneous fermentation.After fermentation has begun the beer is stored in barrels and allowed to age Now back to Gueuze which is sometimes called “the champagne of Belgium,” Gueuze is a blend of two or more lambics of different ages, with the younger beer providing the sugars needed for refermentation in the bottle. Gueuze almost certainly predates champagne and was probably originally served directly from casks. Today, with some rare exceptions, it is considered a bottled beer by definition. The traditional gueuze flavor is dry, sharp, and earthy, close to that of unblended lambic, but bottle conditioning and the resulting carbonation give it perhaps even greater complexity and finesse. Like blending wine or Scotch whisky, blending lambics to make gueuze is an art form. The base lambics having been spontaneously fermented, each barrel will have an individual character. Upon tasting, the blender will need to decide whether to use the beer now or hold it further or whether to use the beer for straight lambic or for gueuze. Young lambics provide fermentable sugars and bright vibrant flavors to the blend. Aged lambics lend complexity of flavor along with enzymes created by the dozens of microorganisms at work in the cask; these enzymes will break down complex sugars into simple sugars that yeast and bacteria can work upon to create carbonation. The proportions of young and old lambic in gueuze differ from year to year and from one brewer to another. Some brewers use approximately 50% 1-year-old, 25% 2-year-old, and 25% 3-year-old lambic. Others prefer to use two-thirds 1-year-old lambic and one-third 2- or 3-year-old lambic. Special blends may include only 10% young beer. After blending, the beer is bottled and laid down in cellars for at least 4 to 6 months of refermentation. Some may not be released for many years. When they are eventually served, the bottles may come to the table in a horizontal position; this allows the yeast deposits to remain in place while the beer is poured out sparkling and clear. My favorite Gueuze is from Cantillon. It is the quintessential Belgian beer – a perfect blend of one, two, and three year-old lambics. Tart and slightly acidic, Cantillon Gueuze is the real champagne of beers. It is fermented only with wild airborne yeasts from the Senne Valley in Brussels and is aged in centuries-old oak casks. It also certified organic in Belgium. A true world classic that will thrill the true beer connoisseur. During the late winter and early spring, the Cantillon family brewers will match and blend one, two, and three-year old lambics to arrive at a balanced texture and flavor. Generally, younger lambic is thinner, livelier, and milder on the palate; the older lambic is harder, more complex, and resoundingly sour. The beer in every cask is unique, however, and one three-year old lambic may taste radically different from another. There is no formula for blending, and no expectation of consistency from year to year. Master brewer Jean-Pierre Van Roy says merely that he hopes to achieve the same “harmony” each time. The artfully blended lambic is bottled immediately, and another wondrous event occurs: the mixture of lambic from several different casks sparks a second fermentation in the bottle. This is the essence of the méthode champenoise by which champagne is made. The end product is called “gueuze.” A few months’ time in the bottle “conditions” the beer – building carbonation, and concentrating and organizing the flavors. Under proper storage conditions, fermentation in the bottle will continue for years. It's fairly easy to find a good Gueuze today on your beer store shelf however it's most difficutl to find Cantillon. If you see it don't hesitate but it! It's worth every penny. ================ Cheers, Matt |
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| Matt Martinkovic is not only a recognized beer authority but an agricultural consultant on, of course, the growing of hops. His personal hop garden currently features Magnum, Crystal, Cascade, Centennial,Mt. Hood, and Chinook hops.. |
| More From Matt: Beerspectives #1. #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13, #14, #15, #16, #17.#18, #19, #20, #21, #22, #23, #24, #25, #26,#27,#28, #29, #30, #31, #32, #33, #34, #35,#36, #37, #38, #39, #40, #41, #42, #43, #44, #45, #46, #47, #48 |
| What Is Gueuze? |
| To all my readers and friends many thanks for all your support. Also special thanks to two great breweries and the many fine people associated with them: Conclave Brewing and Kane Brewing. Come back soon for more of my take on what's happening in the beer world with my insights derived from many years in the industry. Cheers! |
| Matt is on vacation. This month's article was written by Rich O'Reilly |