The Belgian Brewers Association has come up with a new campaign to raise awareness, within Belgium, about…Belgian beer. They have created a new flag, called the National Beer flag. It is the same as the Belgian flag, except that the top part of the yellow color in the middle of the flag is white, so…
There are some beers that are hard to find. Brouwerij Lindemans straight draft lambic is one of ‘em. A lot of people that haven’t tasted the non-sweetened beers from this brewery may not know how good they really are. Lindemans lambic is used by all of the lambic blenderies in Belgium in many of their…
I’m happy to say that I have seen issue #2 of Belgian Beer and Food magazine, and it’s a superb one. Publisher/Editor-in-Chief Paul Walsh, along with Contributing Editor Alan Hope and Copy Editor Joe Stange, have produced a beautiful, highly-informative, interesting issue, full of professional-quality images from the Belgian beer world. West Flanders is a…
There’s nothing like having a portable trailer purpose built for housing a lot of different beers on draft. Good beers. Great beers, in this case. Anyone that’s had the pleasure of seeing-and drinking from-the Brouwerij Alvinne-De Struise Brouwers “Tap Trailer” will know what I mean. (I just made that name up, but it kinda sounds…
Another great from Brussels’ own, the great Brasserie Cantillon. This one uses lambic aged for 2 years in Cognac barrels. It is a collaboration between Cantillon and Cognac maker Grosperrin. It’s a superb beer, with a noticeable but not overdone character added by the cognac, and 7% abv. I picked this bottle up at Cantillon…
I visited Brouwerij Mort Subite in Kobbegem in November, 2008. It’s full of huge wooden foeders, a classic copper brewhouse, and a fine staff, led by Bruno Reynders. However, at the moment, the products that I’d like to see the most stateside-namely, their Oude Gueuze and Oude Kriek, are not imported to the U.S. Yet,…
There are a lot of old cafes in Belgium’s Payottenland and Zenne Valley that should be better known. Many have closed their doors in recent years, as older owners retire, and their cafes are sold or continue to be used as residences. One of them that may also close for good at some point is…
One of the many favorites of the famed Brasserie Cantillon is Fou’ Fonne, which is a beer using French apricots steeped in 2 year old lambic. Foufonne is the nickname of a French apricot grower, François Daronnat, who sang the praises of his apricots during a visit by Jean Van Roy to the Rhône region…
I’m happy to report that my Belgian Babble column for the February/March issue of Ale Street News runs about 1,250 words this issue. I cover Brouwerij Van Campenhout, Brouwerij De Schuur, Brouwerij Hof Ten Dormaal, De Kleine Duivel, Max’s Taphouse, Brasserie Dupont, and Brasserie Dubuisson. You can see the article below. I hope you enjoy…
During my many visits to Belgium (27, so far!) I’ve had the pleasure of exploring many places that are far off the well-known beer tourist circuit. In so doing, I’ve had some of the most fun of my travels, and met some of the friendliest people involved in the Belgian beer world, and beyond. A…
