Help my trip to Belgium

[HumboldtBrewer]

So I am currently visiting my family in Switzerland and finishing my hiking part of my 1 1/2 month journey through Europe. I also just proposed to my now fiancé here in the Swiss Alps, but we are now thirsty for some real beer and heading to Belgium for one week to drink and celebrate our engagement.

I think we will base ourselves out of the city of Bruges, in the province of West Flanders. I hear there are some great breweries just in that city alone, and about a hours drive to the Abbey of Sint Sixtus of Westvleteren, which should be self explanatory of why it's #1 on our "To Do" list.This will be our first trip to Belgium and beer is our main goal, but we are also into hiking and exercise based adventures (gotta work off those heavy beers).

As far as styles of beers go, I'm an open book, I like most Belgian styles, but if there are beers here that are rare or unable for purchase in the USA, please let me know (i.e. Westvleteren 12). I would like to fly some of the rare stuff home to put in my cellar and space is limited in my luggage, so take that into consideration.

So let's hear your breweries of choice and beers that are a must try, and thank you in advance for making our trip to "Beer Heaven" that much better.




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[JohnSand]

I'm not a collector, I didn't seek out rare beer, but I was in Belgium in September. We visited Brussels and Bruges, had a great time, drank some wonderful beer. There is a bar in Brussels, the Delirium Cafe, that stocks about 3,000 beers (literally). It's worth a visit.

 

[homoeccentricus]

You can't visit the Westvleteren abbey or buy beer there unless you have ordered way in advance. You can go to cafe De Vrede there, where you can pick up a couple of sixpacks of whatever is available. But there might as well be nothing.

I'd recommend you go there on Saturday in the afternoon (only time this is open), and combine that with a visit to Struise Brouwers, in Oostvleteren, just a couple of km from the abbey.

There is also a Struise beershop in Bruges, where you can taste their beers as well.

You could also go to Dolle Brouwers in Esen, West-Flanders and taste their beers. Not sure whether they currently have any barrel-aged in stock though.

Beer pubs in Bruges: I like http://www.ratebeer.com/p/cafe-rose-red-beergarden-brugge/17000/

Mind you: Saturday November 1 is a national holiday. All regular shops are closed. Not sure which breweries are open...

 

[HumboldtBrewer]

Well it seems hard to find a place in Bruges, so let's open up the discussion to all of Belgium. We have a rental car so we dont mind driving. Any towns or cities that anyone recommends basing out of would be great. Trying to avoid Brussels though, just too busy for us, we may spend a half day or so there just to look.


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[homoeccentricus]

Try Ghent. More central than Bruges and closer to the geuze/lambiek region, if you're into that. One of the nicest cities in Belgium, and they have one of the best Belgian beer shops in the universe!

 

[feinbera]

Congratulations! Sounds like you found a good one.

SWMBO and I are just starting to think about a beercation to Belgium this spring, so, I'll just quietly sit here and harvest everybody's good ideas...

 

[turkeygecko]

I have absolutely no input for you, but just wanted to let you know how jealous I am, and that I hope you have an awesome trip! That's an amazing excursion.

 

[homoeccentricus]

If you are into sour beers and in Belgium this weekend you HAVE to go to http://www.ratebeer.com/p/In-de-Verzekering-tegen-de-Grote-Dorst/9178/. It's number 6 on ratebeer! Exceptionally open this weekend on Sat and Sun from 10AM-4PM

If you are not a sour beer lover, WHAT THE HECK are you doing in my beloved country?

In all cases, it's an amazing anthropological experience :cross:

 

[HumboldtBrewer]

Thanks everyone, especially homoeccentricus, looks like we found a great little place in Ghent and my itinerary is building. So far on the list I have:

- Sint Sixtus Abbey - Westvleteren
- De Struise Brouwers - Woesten
- The Dolle Brouwers - Diksmuide
- St. Bernardus - Watou
- Brouwerij van Eecke - Watou
- De Halve Maan - Bruges
- Fort Lapin - Bruges

This is just from research tonight and this should take care of most of the Flanders area of Belgium, now to start looking at the Gueze/Lambic regions. Also the place we are renting in Ghent comes with two bikes, so now I need to figure out how to make a brew tour in the countryside via bikes...should be an interesting bike ride towards the end.

Keep em coming guys, and if any on my list are just "meh" let me know so I can sub it with something more worthwhile.

Cheers


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[bd2xu]

If you can make it to Brussels, it is fantastic, one of my very favorite European cities. If you get there make sure to go to Cantillon brewery they make killer lambics and are right in the city. Also, a must visit right near the center of the city (called grand place) is delirium café. Owned by delirium tremens brewery, they are in the Guinness book of world records for having 2000 beers on their menu. I sat there for a couple hours and had a few pints, just flipping through the menu.

I went to one Trappist brewery while I was there, Orval. It is my favorite beer and I couldn't miss that one. It was an amazing place. The concept of quiet contemplation and reverence along with beer cannot be found anywhere else in the world!



Primary: Maibock, Helles (first partigyle batch)
Secondary: Mojave Red, Irish Stout
On tap: Orange Belgian IPA, Turbo IIPA
Bottled: Dwarven Gold Ale, La Fin Du Mond clone, Hefeweizen

 

[homoeccentricus]

Struise is closed tomorrow so next possibility is Saturday in a week. Cantillon is a must and from there you can go to the famous pub Moeder Lambic.

 

[homoeccentricus]

I don't think you can visit any of the trappist breweries. In Orval you can visit the church in ruins, and drink the beer that the monks themselves drink, in a nearby pub. In Ghent go to the beershop Hopduvel. There are many good pubs in Antwerp.

 

[HumboldtBrewer]

A little update on my trip so far:

We are currently staying in Gent for the week but are moving and sight seeing different areas every day. The beer cafes in this country are endless, and you can find a good beer almost everywhere.

Our first night we went to Gents only brewery, "Gruut", they don't use any hops and instead substitute with varying herbs and spices. It was pretty good but not really my style, as some of the spices give a cloying and astringent bitterness.

Next day we explored the beautiful city of Gent during the day. We went to the Castle o the Counts, a castle built in 1290 or so, full of old armor an medieval weapons and torture devices. Went to a nice restaurant called Chez Leontine, which is right next to the Bierhuis, which has 300 or so beers on hand, and as we ate we were able to get beers delivered to us from next door as I feasted on my pig cheek stew and drank a Delirium Tremens that was on tap.

Next day we drive to Westvleteren to have lunch at the abbey cafe and enjoyed a nice pâté sandwich which is made there by the monks (the pâté) and drank my first ever Westy 12. Very good. Also scored some beers and glasses in the gift shop, and I'm not sure how I'm gonna fly it all home. Then we went to the town of Ypres and took a tour of some World War 1 trenches, graveyards, craters, and the crypt in a church where Adolf Hitler was taken care of when he was injured as a soldier, while Winston Churchill fought 4 kilometers away in the British trenches, very ironic.

So far Belgium is pretty darn cool.




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[JohnSand]

You are a nice looking couple. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Spartan1979]

Sounds like a great trip!

I always bring my glassware home in my carry on. We just wrap the beers we bring home in our clothing and it has all survived, but also aren't bringing cases home.

 

[homoeccentricus]

If you have time tomorrow, and you like sours, go to https://www.facebook.com/grote.dorst?fref=photo - #4 worldwide on ratebeer. From 10 or so to 1:30 PM.

 

[Black_Sails]

So I know the storied background of Westy.....but to enjoy a Pannepot Grande Reserve at the De Struise brewery would probably be my pinnacle.

I was recently working in the Louisville/Cincinatti area and grab as much of this as I could. Was lucky enough to stumble across a tap takeover by De Struise as well.....

Now I am back in the high desert of Idaho with no Black Damnation on hand....

 

[bd2xu]

Belgium is awesome. Beer and comfort food. They are really into fries, mussels, carpaccio, tartare, chocolate... And the "low end" beer at every bar is a Stella or Leffe.

Brussels is great if you can make it.



Primary: Maibock, Helles (first partigyle batch), Oatmeal Brown Ale
Secondary:
On tap: Orange Belgian IPA, Turbo IIPA, Mojave Red, Black Magic Stout
Bottled: Dwarven Gold Ale, La Fin Du Mond clone, Hefeweizen