Besides the fact that true Lambics are intensely complex, flavorful, and delicious beers, they can serve a higher purpose. The Lambic could have been designed to prove to the wine guy/gal that beer can be good. (1) Let’s start with the name of the Lambic, in this case the Framboise that I drank this past Saturday: Framboise. It is not pronounced as one might expect. It is foreign. Fancy. Enlightened. It screams of sophistication. (2) This beverage is not contained in some low brow brown bottle or can. No, the Lambic chooses a much fancier vessel. The champagne bottle. Certainly only a dignified beverage would dare to occupy such a distinguished bottle. (3) Upon opening, the bottle avoids a disgraceful fizz and pops into the air. (4) The flavor. This can’t be beer…can it?
Joking aside, if you ever meet a wine guy/gal who thinks beer is for the birds, give them a Lambic and they just might end up discovering the vast world of beer.
I chose to drink Lindemans Framboise out of necessity…it was the only Lambic my local beer store had in stock, and I was not in the mood to drive out of the way for a larger selection. Besides, having sipped this beer plenty of times before, I knew it would be great.
The Pour:
The beer pours a deep purplish red that reminds me of the color of pickled beets. It is crystal clear, highly carbonated, and thin. A huge billowy pink head fills the space between the liquid and the top of the glass and sticks around for a while, eventually leaving very thin delicate lacing on the glass.
The Nose:
The first smell is the Framboise; the raspberry. It is so exceedingly powerful, but very fresh and natural. There is nothing artificial about the fruity tones of the beer. There are strong bready yeast aromas and hints of funky oaky brettanomyces. The fact that this is a sour beer is not fairly obvious from the aroma, but there are hints of tart acidic and vinegar aromas.
The Taste:
Could a Lambic be considered a session beer? By ABV standards and the drinkability, I’d say yes. But when I think of session beer, $6 for a 12 ounce bottle doesn’t compute. Regardless, for me personally, this beer drinks like a session beer. I could easily drink Lindemans Framboise all day long. While I normally don’t like overbearingly sweet things, the incredible sweetness of this Lambic is balanced by a profound tartness that really hits you as you swallow. In fact, the first sip made me pucker a bit. While raspberry is the predominate fruity flavor, there is a lemony/citrus flavor to it. it is surprising how sour the beer really is. Vinegar lurks behind every sip, giving it lactic quality that reminds one of red wine.
Overall Thoughts:
Besides Sam Adam’s cranberry Lambic (which isn’t really a Lambic) I have yet to meet one I don’t like.
Nate’s Rating:
Overall Satisfaction: 
Among other Lambics: 
I hate to admit that I’ve never tried this one before, which is silly – it’s available everywhere. But maybe that’s what’s stopping me – I know I can always get it, so I don’t. Or maybe I’m just stoopid.
Anyhoo, great review. I’m going to have to give this one a go. I just had Founders Cerise and it combined with the hot weather has put me in a fruity mood (for beer).
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I’m the same way Jim…we are a fickle breed, all right.
It’s really a great beer. I had Cerise a few weeks ago and found myself loving it. After your use of the term “Anywho” I’m glad you added the qualifier “for beer” following “fruity mood,” else-wise my suspicions would have been piqued.
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[...] Posted by admin | General | Posted on June 4th, 2010 Besides the fact that true Lambics are intensely complex, flavorful, and delicious beers, they can serve a higher purpose. The Lambic could have been designed. Read more here: Lindemans Framboise Review | Thank Heaven for Beer [...]
This is beer is a divisive one. I constantly see it’s “lambicness” attacked and denigrated. People complain about the sweetness or fruit syrup/puree being used, etc. I don’t know all the details about it making. What I do know is that I’m personally a fan of this. While I’d normally go for a less sweet lambic, this one really does hit the spot sometimes.
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Framboise: I like it; it makes me happy. But, it can only do so in small quantities. A pint of this divine beverage is just too much intensity in one sitting. It’s a great beer for sharing with a good friend and good conversation.
I for one, don’t get why this beer is divisive or controversial. Maybe it’s just that I ain’t up on what “TRUE lambic-ness” is. It’s sweet. It’s sour. It’s intense. That pretty much does it for me, except for something off the wall like a banana lambic.
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I liked this beer! I think it was Micheal who suggested it to me way back when! (Shameless plug here) http://thebrewclub.com/2009/07/13/lindemans-framboise-raspberry-lambic/
I read a lot of trashing of this beer too. Something usually about how its dumbed-down for the American market. I’d like to try other ‘more realer’ lambics to see what the fuss is about, but for now I think its a neat beer that gets you to think about what beer can be. BTW, nice SNIFTers Nate!
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I’ve never understood it but now I know I’m not alone in hearing the trashing. I think it’s an utterly charming and seductive beer.
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