Belgian Beers

[Frank7580]

I know that we have some beer connoisseurs here so who is a fan of the Belgian malted beverages.

I am growing in my appreciation of Belgian brews. I've always enjoyed a cloudy, "citrusy", tart witbier. I then moved on to sampling saisons and dubbels. I've tried a triple only a few times and can't claim that I've enjoyed these too much.

I've tried some of the greats like Chimay and Westvleteren but have found more consistency with the American counterparts. Specifically, I enjoy nearly everything I've tried from Brewery Ommegang in NY.

So, who enjoys a beer with real FLAVOR. What are your favorites when it comes to Belgian beers?

[galopede]

Well, certainly not "Wife Beater" as Stella Artois is known in Britain! The beer of choice of the chav and the yob!

The well know ones like Duvel etc are always reliable and on a trip to Brussels a year or two ago I discovered many I'd not heard of. I've forgotten how long I was there now - lost count of the days!

I do remember one called Mort Subite - Sudden death. Aptly named.

Gareth

[Brownie981]

Every once in a while I have a hankering for a Lambic beer. I only drink them in the hot summer months though not quite big enough for the cold winter months. Plus the Fruit version is one of the only beer's my gf will drink and enjoy with me.

[stubblebgone]

I love Duvel, but have to remind myself not to slow down 8.5% is a bit stronger than my usual.

Leffe (Brune or Blonde) always goes down well.

Flew to Brussels a few years back business, free access to the bar on the way back was fun, fruit beers will be avoided from now on though.


Vin.

[scoopster]

Ah Belgians, it's like saying "Jazz" -there is a lot of different kinds of Jazz out there. Here are some of my favorites - I have probably omitted a few. Like everything shaving-related in these forums - YMMV:

I agree on the Brewery Oomegang - they make some mighty fine Belgian-style beers at VERY reasonable prices. I love their "Double" and "Three Philosophers".

Another "local" brewery of Belgian styles that I like is Allagash (from Maine). Their Double, and Triple are great. They also have some special reserves that are seasonal and worth checking out. I didn't care for their Quadruple.

Around the holidays I love the following Christmas offerings. Most of these are pretty heavy-duty, high-alcohol offerings:
Corsendonk Christmas
Affligem Noel
Deliirum Tremens Noel
Scaldis Noel (hard to find and pricy but exceptionally good)

"Regular Belgians" That are generally easy to find and all good are:
Anything from Chimay
Leffe - high alcohol but a good warmer summer session beer

Some special Belgians that I like:
Piraat - Very high alcohol, complex Tiple IPA. Still gettign to know this one
Anything from LaChoufe (spelling?) (famous for little gnomes on the label - I call it Gnomebeer)

OK, I gotta run, I'll maybe repost some more later but that should keep you going for a few weeks. Happy hunting!

[scoopster]

OK this one was bugging me so I had to go to beeradvocate.com to look it up. It was my best discovery this year. It's a heavy belgian brown that is only brewed by this brewery once a year (to celebrare a Kaiser's birthday). It was so exceptional I bought two extra bottles to cellar for a few years:

Gouden Carolus Carolus D'Or - Cuvée Van De Keizer

[Stauff]

Ahhh, please allow me....

In my hometown Antwerp, the classic beer is Koninck, great soury amber beer. Palm is great too (amber, rounder taste).
Trappist ales: Westmalle (the dubbel from the tap is fantastic), Chimay, Orval (favorite, most bitter beer on the planet - incredible with old cheese), Rochefort, Westvleteren, Achel: can't go wrong here. I too prefer the dubbels over the Trippels (although that Rochefort 12°... )
In Wallonia there are many small local breweries that make awesome beers, like La Chouffe or Moinette. Too many to name really.
I'm also a big fan of the Lambics (Geuze or Kriek) from the Brussels Region. My favorite are those brewed by Boon (please, NO mort subite or other sweet junk).

As a general tip, I'd steer clear from the mass-produced lagers like Stella, Jupiler or Maes. These aren't better than other 'standard' beers made elsewhere (unless we're talking about Heineken and Amstel ). If you have to drink one, I'd say Cristal (brewed by Alken) or maybe Primus (They have a decent witbier as well).

So, Gezondheid! (Cheers!)

[jimmy_g32]

I don't think anybody could argue with stauff on this. Generally, bottled dubels and trippels probably do have more variation than US lagers - but then they also taste of something, so...

I know that the odds of getting any of these (belgian/dutch beers) from a tap is small - I find success only in London - they really are worth the wait. What has been said about Orval and cheese...

[Frank7580]

You guys have named so many that I was never before aware of! However, I'm not sure how available some of these are in central NC ...

We DO have a few Total Wine stores that arrived over the past few years and have an enormous selection.

[scoopster]

Ahhh, please allow me....

In my hometown Antwerp, the classic beer is Koninck, great soury amber beer. Palm is great too (amber, rounder taste).
Trappist ales: Westmalle (the dubbel from the tap is fantastic), Chimay, Orval (favorite, most bitter beer on the planet - incredible with old cheese), Rochefort, Westvleteren, Achel: can't go wrong here. I too prefer the dubbels over the Trippels (although that Rochefort 12°... )
In Wallonia there are many small local breweries that make awesome beers, like La Chouffe or Moinette. Too many to name really.
I'm also a big fan of the Lambics (Geuze or Kriek) from the Brussels Region. My favorite are those brewed by Boon (please, NO mort subite or other sweet junk).

As a general tip, I'd steer clear from the mass-produced lagers like Stella, Jupiler or Maes. These aren't better than other 'standard' beers made elsewhere (unless we're talking about Heineken and Amstel ). If you have to drink one, I'd say Cristal (brewed by Alken) or maybe Primus (They have a decent witbier as well).

So, Gezondheid! (Cheers!)

I always like getting recommendations from the people from with "boots on the ground"

I can get some of the De Koninck, Boon and Rochefort beers in my area. They are on my list!

I have always loved La Chouffe's brown. I recently tried their IPA Triple. It has generous additions of American hops, very unique - but don't let that hold you back from trying it

Thanks for the tips from an expert.

[rikrdo]

Good Lord....
are any of these easily obtainable in the
good 'ol US of A ?
==========================
I see
Chimay and Duval and
maybe a cuppa others.
But....puh-leeeeeze.
Stop teasing me.

[scoopster]

Good Lord....
are any of these easily obtainable in the
good 'ol US of A ?
==========================
I see
Chimay and Duval and
maybe a cuppa others.
But....puh-leeeeeze.
Stop teasing me.

Everytihng I listed in my post and some of Stauff's most excellent suggestions, I can get in the Boston area at some of the better package stores.

If you have no luck looking for this kind of thing in your area, There is an organization called Global Beer that ships Belgian beers to the States.

That's if you live in the right state. They don't ship to Massachusetts due to our liquor laws.

[Lynchmeister]

I'm surprised it took me this long to find this beer thread! With that being said, I'm not too familiar with Belgian beers. Locally (small Wisconsin college town) I can find a few lambic beers, but they are very expensive. I could get a 6-pack of a decent microbrew for what it would cost to buy one bottle of this stuff. Not to mention the fact that a)it was brewed here, or b)it probably doesn't travel well and has been sitting on this shelf for who knows how long without refridgeration. Scary when you're staring down an $8 bottle of beer.

I've had Stella Artois, but I agree with many here that it's in a different class. While in Canada I was fortunate enough to try Leffe and Hoegaarden off the tap. Both of which were excellent. Hoegaarden on a hot day is tough to beat.

If I drive anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour, I can find Duval, Kriek, and quite possibly a few others. I will definately do this when the resources are available to do so.

Question aimed at Frederik, but anyone else with ideas please chime in:

For Belgian beers (Duval and Kriek specifically come to mind), how important is the glass that you drink it from? Similar to wine, with beer, the proper drinking vessel is important. I know I wouldn't drink a Weissbier from a pint glass for example.

[Stauff]

I'd say the more complex the beer, the more important the shape of the glass. I could drink Stella out of a lemonade glass or a paper cup so to speak, but a good trappist really needs a round and deeper glass. It's a bit like whiskey: the complex aroma's come to life in the larger bowl-like glass. Brand-specific glasses are not necessary IMO though, it's just about the type of glass.

[ouch]

Any Westvleteren fans?

[DustBow]

Any Westvleteren fans?

Of course!

There is a Canadian brewery called Unibroue which brews several beers in the Belgian style. Here

They are relatively easy to find & affordable for Belgian styles and I've liked the ones I've tried.
They are pretty easy to spot by the artwork on their labels.

Getting thirsty.....TGIF

[Lynchmeister]

I'd say the more complex the beer, the more important the shape of the glass. I could drink Stella out of a lemonade glass or a paper cup so to speak, but a good trappist really needs a round and deeper glass. It's a bit like whiskey: the complex aroma's come to life in the larger bowl-like glass. Brand-specific glasses are not necessary IMO though, it's just about the type of glass.

Thanks for the insight!

[TromboneGuy]

While in Canada I was fortunate enough to try Leffe and Hoegaarden off the tap. Both of which were excellent. Hoegaarden on a hot day is tough to beat.

+1 on the Hoegaarden. I'm in Oklahoma (argh, stupid 3.2% beer laws) and we finally convinced a bar here to put Hoegaarden on tap. It's probably in my Top 3 favorites, slightly behind Franziskaner's dunkelweisse.

[Lynchmeister]

+1 on the Hoegaarden. I'm in Oklahoma (argh, stupid 3.2% beer laws) and we finally convinced a bar here to put Hoegaarden on tap. It's probably in my Top 3 favorites, slightly behind Franziskaner's dunkelweisse.

Ok, this guy's got taste!

[bbqncigars]

About the only 'belgian style' beer I'll buy these days is the Celis Grand Cru. A wonderfully refreshing summertime tipple. Some caution is required with this, due to its sneaky tendencies and 8% ABV.


Wayne