I participated in a lambic tasting today in Baltimore, set up by Tom
Cizauskas of Legends, Ltd. We were in two groups, a mixture of beer, wine,
and food people, tasting 10 lambics each -- gueuze, unblended, and fruit --
completely blind. I don't even know how many lambics there were; we didn't
get the same ones in each group. I had to leave before full results were
promulgated, but some interesting raw results were given out. My group was
mostly beer people (self-selecting, we just happened to sit together); our
second-lowest score went to Frank Book Kriek (we thought it was too sweet,
not very complex), which was the one ranked highest by the group with almost
all wine people. Our two favorites were Cantillon Lou Pepe and Hanssens
Kriek, and I don't believe the wine people liked either of them. Can't wait
to get the rest of the results.

Great tasting, very well handled, and intense in the discussions. We
generally agreed on things in the beer group, though Steve Frank (another
writer, from Mid-Atalantic Brew News) and I tended to want more hardcore
stuff in the lambics. I've only done two tastings similar to this; my first
"serious" tasting back in 1992, with 12 gueuze lambics, and the Monk's
all-lambic dinner some four years ago, with 11 lambics. Excellent
opportunity, and my thanks to Tom for inviting me. I hope to write this up
for Ale Street News.

--
Lew Bryson

www.LewBryson.com
Author of "New York Breweries" and "Pennsylvania Breweries," 2nd ed., both
available at <www.amazon.com>
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