Author: Chuck Cook

  • Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen to open large new “Experience Center” with tasting rooms and barrel facility

    Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen to open large new “Experience Center” with tasting rooms and barrel facility

    For the lovers of lambic, the spontaneously fermented beer produced mainly in the regions of the Payottenland and Zenne Valley, in and around the Belgian capital of Brussels, there is great news. The much-beloved lambic brewery, 3 Fonteinen (“Three Fountains”) recently purchased a warehouse in the city of Lot, which is already being transformed into…

  • A fabulous meal at ‘t Molenhof, Oostvleteren

    A fabulous meal at ‘t Molenhof, Oostvleteren

    There are some hidden gems in Belgium these days, ones that beer lovers-and those who enjoy great food-should know about. The ‘t Molenhof restaurant is one such place, and it’s located within walking distance of the De Struise Brouwers brewery and taproom in Oostvleteren, West Flanders, Belgium. While the ‘t Oude Postje (Old Post Office)…

  • De Struise Brouwers now selling growlers at the Old Schoolhouse brewery

    De Struise Brouwers now selling growlers at the Old Schoolhouse brewery

    De Struise Brouwers, the West Flanders brewers with great beers and a world-wide cult following, have started filling growers to go at their brewery/taproom in Oostvleteren. “The idea is to offer special beers only, ones that either we do not bottle, or which you’d have difficulty finding in bottles,” Urbain Cotteau, one of the several…

  • Het Nest opens new brewery in Turnhout

    Het Nest opens new brewery in Turnhout

    Anyone who has tasted the Het Nest beers, such as the excellent, brett-infused De SchuppenAas (Ace of Spades) should know how superb these beers can be. Brouwerij Het Nest now has their own brewery on the outskirts of Turnhout, Antwerp Province. Expect big things in the future, such a tasting room with six to ten…

  • Millennium Geuze: the masters reunite, 17 years later

    Millennium Geuze: the masters reunite, 17 years later

    Millennium Geuze is widely considered one of the best Oude Geuze blends in the last twenty years or so. Millennium Geuze was a collaboration between Armand Debelder of 3 Fonteinen and Willem van Herreweghen, founder of Geuzestekerij De Cam. 75 cl bottles sold for only 300 Belgian francs when it was released in 1998. 8,000…

  • Spencer Trappist ale in corked 75 cl bottles

    Spencer Trappist ale in corked 75 cl bottles

    The Spencer Trappist brewery in Spencer, Massachusetts, launched their Spencer Trappist Ale in 75 cl bottles back in April. We at DrinkBelgianBeer.com finally got our hands on a bottle recently to taste. The larger bottle format can often lead to a more developed, mature beer over time, especially if a beer is bottle-conditioned with living…

  • Saison Dupont Cuvée Dry Hopping 2015

    Saison Dupont Cuvée Dry Hopping 2015

    Olivier Dedeycker, Director and brewmaster of Brasserie Dupont, first brewed a dry-hopped version of Saison Dupont in 2010. The beer was a success, and a new version has been produced every year since. The hop used in the dry-hopping process for 2015 is Minstrel, a variety created in England by blending Cascade and Sovereign hops.…

  • Belgian Beer Me’s “Wild and Spontaneous Beer Tour of Belgium” 2015

    Belgian Beer Me’s “Wild and Spontaneous Beer Tour of Belgium” 2015

    When Stu Stuart of Belgian Beer Me! Beer Tours of Belgium (BBM!) asked me to be a guest host on one of his “Wild & Spontaneous Beer Tour of Belgium,” I gladly accepted. I normally plan my own tours to Belgium and can safely say that organizing them is a very intricate, time consuming process.…

  • Toer de Geuze article in Celebrator Beer News

    Toer de Geuze article in Celebrator Beer News

    I have a 1,200+ word article in the June/July issue of Celebrator Beer News on the 2015 edition of Belgium’s Toer de Geuze. In fact, you might as well call it “Toer de Geuze Weekend” from now one, as there are so many events taking place at the lambic breweries in the days leading up…

  • BrouwPlus Craft Brewery Fair in Antwerp, October 17-19

    BrouwPlus Craft Brewery Fair in Antwerp, October 17-19

    There will be a craft brewing and brewery expo in Antwerp on October 17-19, in an exhibition hall/conference center in a former warehouse on the banks of the river Schelde. The “Waagnatie” is a place where ships used to load and unload their cargo in the past, and it has been remodeled into a large…