Canadian Brewers Creating New Lambic-Style Designation “Niambic”

Much like Champagne can only be named Champagne if it comes from the Champagne region of France, a true Lambic must come from Lembeek, Belgium…so why not brew one in Canada and call it a “Niambic?”  Details from Macleans:

For Lackey, McOustra and the three other Ontario brewers involved in this opus (Jason Fisher and Jeff Broeders of Indie Alehouse and Sam Corbeil of Sawdust City Brewery), the old-world brewing process required major new-world expertise. “It takes a whole lot of science to dumb it down to the way it was done back then,” McOustra says. “It’s like throwing away everything we learned about brewing.”

If all goes well, the brewers will end up with 800 l of wild sour beer, a wholly unique flavour more tart than sour, crisp and often fruity. They’ll name it “Niambic” (McOustra says you can call a beer lambic only if it was brewed in that region of Belgium). Plans are under way for next year’s wild brew at the same vineyard. “In a few years we can start blending the different vintages, while still maintaining the authentic localness of it.”
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