Lambic

Mariage Parfait... soury goodness

I am one of those odd people who loves lambic beer: not the ones full of fruit and sugar, but the sour kind that give people queer facial expressions. My friends refer to them as toilet duck, which is an apt summary for anyone unfamiliar with such beers. Anyhow, given their niche status, they're not the easiest of things to get hold of - but luckily for me, I live in York, and York is jam-packed with places that sell beery goodness.

The York Beer and Wine Shop, a stone's throw from the city walls, is one such place. It sells two beers from the Cantillon brewery - the Gueuze 100% lambic, and the Kriek 100% lambic. The latter contains cherry, yet somehow manages to be even more sour than the straight lambic. The York Beer and Wine Shop is a wonderful place to buy beer, and is the recipient of numerous awards. The owner is very knowledgeable. The first time I bought lambic there, he asked if I'd had it before - presumably if I'd said no, he'd have told me not to. If you need further warning, the bottle has a picture of a boy pissing on the front.

If you prefer to drink your lambic in a pub, the only place I've found selling it is Pivni, a small cafe/bar in the city centre. This is a nice place to drink beer. In addition to lambics, it has an extensive range of bottled beers, a full range of Thornbridge beers, several German wheat beers on tap, and numerous others. I forget which lambic they sell, though I believe it has 'old' in the title. Take care though, they also sell Mort Subite (subtle death) Gueuze, which is slightly sweet and generally pleasant to drink. Not my sort of beer at all.

The only other source of lambic in the York area, that I know of, is Beer-ritz, a mail order company based in Tockwith, a village within 10 miles of York. According to their website, they sell both Cantillon and Boon lambics, the latter being the brewer of the frankly sublime Mariage Parfait. I've no idea whether they sell directly to visitors, or whether you have to order online and salivate until the postman turns up.

If anyone has had other lambic sightings in York, please leave a comment. Nothing fruity mind!