The city of Antwerp will be the site of a major beer festival on the weekend of December 2-3. The first edition of Billie’s Craft Beer Fest will feature over 50 great breweries from around the globe, including ten of Belgium’s premier breweries: Brouwerij Alvinne, Brasserie de la Senne, De Struise Brouwers, Brouwers Verzet, Brouwerij De Dochter van de Korenaar, Brussels Beer Project, Brouwerij Rodenbach, Brasserie du Brabant, Microbrouwerij de Keukenbrouwers, and more.

There will be breweries from 11 different countries represented at the fest, including Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, The United Kingdom, and the USA.

There will be two different time slots per day the Saturday and Sunday, and each brewery will pour 2-3 different beers per time slot. That means there will be around 400 different beers poured throughout the weekend, but not at the same time. Yes, you would have to attend both days of Billie’s Craft Beer Fest to even attempt be able to taste all the brews, which would be a very ambitious task in and of itself. As to which beers will be poured and when, well…that news is going to come from Billie in the coming days.

The breweries in attendance will be: ALL IN BREWING (Sweden); Beavertown Brewery (United Kingdom); Bieren Cabardouche; Brasserie de la Senne (Belgium); Brasserie Du Brabant (Belgium) Brewski Browar (Sweden); Artezan (Poland); Brouwerij Alvinne (Belgium); De Dochter van de Korenaar (Belgium); Brouwerij de Moersleutel (Belgium); Brouwerij Rodenbach (Belgium); Brouwerij ‘t Verzet (Belgium); BRUS (Denmark); Brussels Beer Project (Belgium); Buxton Brewery Company (United Kingdom); Cascade Brewing (USA); Cerveses La Pirata (Spain); De Struise Brouwers (Belgium); Founders Brewing Co. (USA); Fourpure Brewing Co. (United Kingdom) FUERST WIACEK (Germany); Haandbryggeriet (Norway); Hedonis Ambachtsbier (Belgium); Inglorious Brew Stars (Belgium); Kinn Bryggeri (Norway); Laugar Brewery (Spain); LERVIG (Norway); Magic Rock Brewing (United Kingdom); Mahr’s Bräu (Germany); Mantra Artisan Ales (USA); De Keukenbrouwers (Belgium); Naparbier (Spain); Nøgne Ø Det Kompromissløse Bryggeri (Norway); A/S Oedipus Brewing (The Netherlands); Only Child Brewing Company (USA); Perennial Artisan Ales (USA); Põhjala Brewery (Estonia); Siren Craft Brew (United Kingdom): Sori Brewing (Estonia); Stone Brewing Berlin (Germany); Superstition Meadery (USA) Tempel Brygghus (Sweden); Tiny Rebel Brewing Co. (United Kingdom); To Øl (Denmark); Totem (Belgium); Verdant Brewing Co (United Kingdom); Vleesmeester Brewery (Belgium); Voodoo Brewery (USA): WarPigs Brewpub (Denmark); Yeastie Boys (New Zealand.) There are also two surprise breweries that will also be announced sometime soon.

The brewers will be present as well, so this should be an extremely impressive event.

That’s quite an impressive list! Many are among the most highly-regarded breweries in beerdom. The festival is organized by a number of passionate beer lovers. This is from their website: “Billie’s Bier Kafétaria opened its doors three and a half years ago and has quickly grown into a must-visit for craft beer lovers from all over the globe, but most and foremost, it’s where Billie met the guys from HopisHop. Their shared passion for craft beer resulted in a long-lasting friendship and eventually in the organisation of Billie’s Craft Beer Fest!”

The site of the festival is Waagnatie Expo & Events, a large event and concert center located next to the river Schelde, west of the center of the city. The festival runs from 3 pm to 10 pm on Saturday December 2, and from 2 pm to 9 pm on Sunday December 3. Ticket information is available here

Ticket price includes festival entry, a special BCBF tasting glass, unlimited beer tasting. and a bottle of water. Food, other beverages & tattoos are not included. There will be a number of food vendors on site, with fare such as American street food, pasta, vegetarian cuisine such as falafels, and more.

Also on offer will be festival shirts, a shop with special beers from breweries attending the festival, and more.

As far as entertainment, there will be live music, games, and big screens TV’s. Plenty to see and do!

“There will also be a special surprise for every visitor when they leave,” one of the fest organizers told me recently. We shall have to wait to see what that is….

As if the festival wasn’t enough of a reason to visit Antwerp, the city is home to a number of great beer bars, including the aforementioned Billie’s Bier Kafétaria, Beerlovers Bar, Gollem, Bier Central, Kulminator, Pater’s Vaetje, and many more places.

For information on how to get to the festival see here or below:

The Vélo-station closest to Waagnatie is located in the Amsterdamstraat.

More info: www.velo-antwerpen.be

By tram

Take tram 7 (goes from Mortsel, via Nationale Bank, to Sint-Pietersvliet), get off at Sint-Pietersvliet (Terminus). From there on it’s about a 1km walk.

More info: www.delijn.be

By bus

Take bus 17 (goes from Wilrijk, via Antwerp Central Station, to Rijnkaai); get off at bus stop Rijnkaai (terminus). From there on it’s a 400m walk.

More info: www.delijn.be

By train

The easiest way to get to Waagnatie from Antwerp Central Station is by taking the bus. Leave the station at the side of the ‘Pelikaanstraat’. Take bus 17 (direction ‘Rijnkaai’), get off at the terminus ‘Rijnkaai’ (see ‘By bus’).

More info: www.nmbs.be

By hop-on hop-off bus

This bus leaves at ‘Astridplein’ (next to Antwerp Central Station) and drives up to the entrance of the Red Star Line Museum.

More info: www.antwerp-citytourbus.be

By car

Navigation: If you’re using a navigational system, only use the street name ‘Rijnkaai’.

Waagnatie is located in the LEZ (Low Emission Zone), which is applicable from February onwards.
Make sure your car is allowed inside the LEZ-perimeter here.
More info: www.slimnaarantwerpen.be/nl/lez

For more information about the traffic situation in Antwerp, visit www.slimnaarantwerpen.be

Waagnatie is fully accessible for people with reduced mobility.