Spaghetti lambic

Beershop Venezia is a sparsely stocked little boutique on a heavily trafficked street near the Rialto bridge in Venice. The wares are expensive and nothing really grabbed me from perusing the shelves. At the same time it would have felt wrong to leave empty-handed so I ended up dropping €15 on this half litre of Italian sour beer, Lambiclegni, by Birrificio Oldo.

Its claim to be "lambic style" is what intrigued me. How faithful to the uniquely Belgian brewing vernacular would it be, assuming that the method of spontaneous fermentation and barrel-ageing was followed? The first impression was: not very. It poured out almost completely flat, looking like a still cider in the glass. The nose has a certain oaky spice, but muted, presumably because there's no fizz pushing it up. The cider comparisons continue in the flavour: it's smooth and tannic with a sour pinch but missing the nitre and saltpetre that, for me, is the key attribute of lambic. The flatness again makes it seem rather lifeless and there's also a slightly unpleasant gastric twang in the finish.

Following the method won't necessarily get you a lambic, then. I'm not a subscriber to the notion that the Senne valley has a unique biome which ensures lambic can only be brewed there. Really what we taste when we drink good lambic is the skill of the brewer, as much in the maturation and blending as in the production. That's what missing from this Italian attempt. That, and carbonation.