Pruim

pFriem’s Pruim is a fruit-forward Lambic-inspired ale with a modern plummy twist. You’ll think it’s grapefruit but really, you’re cascading through juicy, sweet Brooks plums from our friends at Sherwood Orchards. Rounded out by rosy hits of lavender and white spring flowers, its unique berry-like tartness is the perfect plum pairing for a night of doing anything. Or nothing. You choose.

ABV 6.3%

IBU 6

FLAVOR PROFILE

Candied Plums, Lemonade, Berries, Fresh Flowers

AVAILABILITY

Limited

INGREDIENTS

MALT

Gambrinus Canadian Pilsner, Weyermann Wheat, Rahr Raw White Wheat

HOPS

Aged Whole Leaf Noble Hops

YEAST

Brettanomyces, Lactic Bacterial Culture

Barrels

French Oak Barrels

FRUIT

Brooks and Italian Plums from Sherwood, OR

History

In order to understand the history of Kriek, Peche, Frambozen or any fruited Lambic, one must first understand the long, rich history of Lambic itself. What we know as Lambic likely evolved slowly from other spontaneously fermented beverages dating back to the ancient inhabitants of the Fertile Crescent. The Romans introduced the use of wooden casks around A.D. 21. Hops were widely accepted as the preferred spice in the 10th century. A beer that we would likely recognize as Lambic was being lovingly produced in Belgium as early as the 12th century. In order create the beer, the brewer, who was often also a farmer, built a mash consisting of 60% malted barley and 40% wheat. A minimum volume of aged hops was added to the boil solely for their preservative properties. Next, the wort was transferred to a coolship: a long, wide and shallow vessel, designed, as the name implies, to cool the wort. Brewers would often start early in the morning in order to have all of the wort in the coolship by nightfall, and therefore take advantage of the cooler evening temperatures. In through the open windows, along with the chilly Belgian breeze, came magic. Soon, the wort began to bubble and foam, the result (we now know) of the beginnings of a mixed culture fermentation. Finally, the slowly fermenting elixir was moved to oak barrels for maturation. Famed Dutch Renaissance Painter Pieter Bruegel faithfully portrayed rural Belgian life, complete with the Earthenware mugs of Lambic still popular today.

Adding fruit to traditionally produced Lambic is a significantly more recent development in brewing history, and likely began as a cottage industry. In fact, the first explicit mention we find of a cherry addition lies in the 1878 manuscript of tenant farmer Josse De Pauw from Schepdaal, Belgium. He writes: “Take good clear lambic, two years old, at least good tasting, twenty kilograms of good ripe cherries per one hundred litres of lambic. Press the cherries and add the stones (pits). Leave to rest, draw off until December and leave to rest for twenty to thirty days, then bottle, stopper, and lay down.” The fact that this tradition blossomed around the village of Schaarbeek outside of Brussels is no accident as the cherries of the same name were once abundant in the area. And while cherries were likely the first fruit to be combined with Lambic, they were certainly not the last. The resultant beers have traditionally been named simply for the fruit included. Therefore a cherry Lambic is known as Kriek, a raspberry Lambic is known as Frambozen, and a peach Lambic is called Peche. For traditional Kriek, the whole cherry fruit is used, fresh after the harvest, when summer temperatures are still high. Traditional Peche begins slightly later in the season, again with whole fruit, however, the stones are not included. Fresh raspberries are added ripe.

pFriem Pruim began, well over a year ago, as fruited Lambics have for centuries. The malt bill consisted of 60% malted barley and 40% wheat. Aged hops were added to the boil.  Rather than sending the wort to a coolship we used a modern heat exchanger to chill before deliberately inoculating with the same magical mixed culture that’s wafted through Belgian windows for centuries. Next the beer matured in French oak barrels for 9 months. Finally, our good friends at Sherwood Orchards in Sherwood, OR harvested over 1500lbs. of beautiful, sweet, and juicy Brooks Plums. We then added them to our established Lambic-inspired beer at a whopping 3.2lbs. per gallon. The fruit and the beer were then left alone to mingle for two more months before bottling. They are now one.

Tasting Notes

Appearance of luminous grapefruit nectar, rosy hints of lavender, lively and coral colored foam. Bright aromas of candied plums, white pedaled flowers, Spring, with a touch of grass. Tart flavors of lemonade, plum jam, berries, with hints of spice, nutty bread, and gummy candies. Finishes with lingering flavors of fresh plums, beautifully integrated, and ethereal.

Food Pairings

Duck, goose, and venison. Pan fried chicken wing/breast in a Pruim cream sauce. Mexican Mole sauce-based foods. Milk chocolate, dark chocolate, chocolate-based desserts, cheesecake, and panna cotta. Wide range of cheeses-mascarpone, teleme, stracchino, and sharp fresh goat cheese.

Awards

2019 - Gold - Brussels Beer Challenge

2017 - 77 Points - The Beer Connoisseur