Sign of Summer
Summer’s in full swing, and the lemonade stands are a common sight from little Johnny’s down the street to those big lemon shaped kiosks seen at summer festivals and county fairs. Who doesn’t love a refreshingly tart drink during the dog days of summer? Now’s a good time as any to savor sour, one of the taste sensations that many drinkers enjoy from their beer. While sour beers are a relatively ‘new’ taste sensation among beer drinkers in the US, sour styles in Europe have been around for quite some time.
So much attention has been paid to all things hoppy and hazy that other taste sensations often get less mention. European brewers have been making sour beers for centuries, brewing in similar fashion to brewing’s beginnings thousands of years ago. The German Berliner Weisse, Belgian Oud Bruin, Flanders Red, Belgian Lambics and American Sours are different types of sour beers worth investigating. Particularly interesting is the Lambic, a beer so unique that it cannot be made anywhere else but in a region west of Brussels. Lambics are fermented by the action of naturally occurring wild airborne yeasts of the region, usually in wooden barrels. This spontaneous fermentation process contributes to the taste characteristics of the beer. While these beers do contain hops, they’re used primarily for their preservative characteristics and not hoppy tasting at all. Some Lambics are blended with fruits such as raspberries and cherries to give it a sweet-sour profile. Related is the Gueuze, is a blend of old and new Lambics that are bottled and aged for two to three years. This process gives it a sharper sourness than that of an unblended Lambic. Since they are rare and fermentation takes longer, some varieties may be harder to find and a bit more expensive than other beer choices. The pursuit and price is worth it, as these beers have a wonderful tart flavor that works well with cheeses, fruit, salads and dessert. A popular fruit Lambic readily available here is Lindeman’s Framboise, a raspberry lambic that is fruity and tart. Look also for Kriek, a cherry Lambic, and if you can find a Gueuze from Cantillon or Brouwerij Fonteinin 3 you’re one of the lucky ones!
American Fruited Sour by Local 315 Brewing, Syracuse, NY
Two German styles that are wonderfully sour are the Berliner Weisse and the Gose (pronounced ‘goes-UH’). A regional specialty from Berlin, the Berliner Weisse is increasingly popular in the US, and not so much in Germany. It’s a low alcohol wheat beer with a sour, quenching finish which makes it very easy to drink in the summertime. The Gose is unique in that it is seasoned with coriander and salt, which enhances body and mouthfeel. American craft brewers certainly appreciate sour beers and interpret their own styles in a number of ways. Brewers experiment with a variety of yeasts, fruits and fermenting in steel and oak barrels. The result is a unique, American crafted sour. Some of these beers might be harder to identify if you don’t know what to look for, so you might have to do a little digging online or at your local beer store. A good resource comes from liquor.com’s “The 12 Best Sours to Drink in 2021,” found here. There are so many different kinds to choose from, so let the exploration begin now! What are you waiting for? Cheers!
