Hoegaarden - Definitely the best beer in the world!!

jellybean520

Like the slogan?!......take that Carlsberg, no 'probably' about this one!!

Anyway, I think this came up on the boards a long time ago but I would be very keen to see where the latest deals are to be had for buying either cans or bottles of Hoegaarden either online or in offies.

Also, is there a directory of pubs that serve it, so I can choose accordingly when going out?

BeerNut

I was about to ask how many InBev shares you own, forgetting that it's one of the few privately-owned soulless transnational corporations.

There's a good article on the history of Hoegaarden here.

Cheapest place to buy it, I find, is Dunnes.

jellybean520

Thanks BeerNut. I was introduced to this fine white beer back in 1994 while on holidays in Belgium and I've been in love with it since. Needless to say it was dirt cheap to buy it there and it still is very cheap in most "advanced/progressive" European countries, including Switzerland renowned for being really expensive.....it's one third the price there as it is in Ireland in any of the supermarkets in Zurich. We are being shafted royally here (no news there). Yet we are still "apparently" an excessively boozey nation compared with our neighbours. Clearly inflated prices is not the cure.....good old rip-off republic will get you every time.

Anyway, enough on the pricing rant.

I must check out your link and also try to get my mits on some form of pub directory listing all those who sell the stuff.

Tallyho.

jellybean520

.....an overnighter on the ferry to France with a nice big van is probably the only solution as it's about one third the price there also. Wine being my other vice so it would definitely be a worthwhile trip.

And a big "UP YOURS" to customs and excise!

JæKæ

Nice beer alright, although too sweet to drink any more than 4 at a time. I prefer leffe, not quite as sweet, but similar Belgian blonde beer

jellybean520

Yes Leffe is also nice. Ever tried the triple Leffe? About 14% :eek: Two bottles and one knows all about it

_blank_

I don't like the blonde beers.

oblivious

jellybean520 wrote: »

Yes Leffe is also nice. Ever tried the triple Leffe? About 14% :eek: Two bottles and one knows all about it

it think its more around 8.4%

jellybean520

Is there a bit of an anomaly with the description "blonde" beer, because for a lot of beers on the continent, this effectively describes standard "clear" lager like Carsberg, Amstel etc?

Hoegaarden on the other hand is "white" or "blanche"....as opposed to "blonde".

Gordon

Tastes too much like banana to me, even with a slice of lemon.

jellybean520

Depends on brand really. I had a couple of bottles of a Triple Leffe in a bar in Antwerp and the % was around that of a strong wine 13 or 14%. Amazingly it didn't taste over-strong but after 2 500ml bottles you knew all about it. I'm sure such brands / % levels are banned from entering Ireland - :mad:

With so many micro breweries in Belgium, there are plenty who squeeze out some serious alcohol concentraitons.

oblivious wrote: »

it think its more around 8.4%

jellybean520

Hmmm....banana

I find it tastes more lemony even without the lemon or lime. I guess tastes will always differ. I could drink this 24 x 7. Just as well it's expensive and not as freely available as I'd like!

Gordon wrote: »

Tastes too much like banana to me, even with a slice of lemon.

oblivious

jellybean520 wrote: »

Is there a bit of an anomaly with the description "blonde" beer, because for a lot of beers on the continent, this effectively describes standard "clear" lager like Carsberg, Amstel etc?

Hoegaarden on the other hand is "white" or "blanche"....as opposed to "blonde".

Blond beers are generally ale's and in some case produced to compete directly with lagers, this is the case with English blond/golden. summer lighting and are good example of this style

Belgians on the other hand can range for a session beers to the strong golden ales such as duvel, which is the originator of the strong style

oblivious

jellybean520 wrote: »

Hmmm....banana

I find it tastes more lemony even without the lemon or lime. I guess tastes will always differ. I could drink this 24 x 7. Just as well it's expensive and not as freely available as I'd like!

that will be the Corriander seeds, they have a really nice citrus/ orange aroma, crush some and see

Blackhorse Slim

I love Hoegaarden, but I find it difficult to drink a lot of it. Perfect for having a few beers watching a match or film, but when I'm going to be drinking all night I prefer something like Paulaner.

BeerNut

jellybean520 wrote: »

Depends on brand really.

What? Leffe is a brand, owned by InBev. Their tripel, according to their web site, is 8.5% ABV

jellybean520 wrote: »

after 2 500ml bottles you knew all about it

Never seen any tripel in 500ml bottles: only 330, 750 or bigger.

jellybean520 wrote: »

I'm sure such brands / % levels are banned from entering Ireland - :mad:

You can buy a 25% ABV beer in Ireland, were you so inclined.

milli

Gordon wrote: »

Tastes too much like banana to me, even with a slice of lemon.

I used to work in an Irish pub in Germany - they had a drink (name of which escapes me) where you mixed banana puree with weissbier. Made my stomach turn just serving it to people..

Love Hoegaarden myself, plus hangovers aren't near as bad after drinking it.

oblivious

milli wrote: »

I used to work in an Irish pub in Germany - they had a drink (name of which escapes me) where you mixed banana puree with weissbier. Made my stomach turn just serving it to people..

I have had that interesting, but one is enough

jellybean520

Hey BeerNut, you are most probably right.

After all, it is 14 years since I was in that bar in Antwerp, so forgive me for being sketchy on the details. This coupled with the fact that during that week I was drinking single, double and triple Leffe at various stages, basically trying most of Belgium's delights. I also tried specifically banana flavoured beer (and various other fruits) which I didn't like.

The key points that stand out in my memory were the alcohol content being circa 14% and the bottles were quite large, maybe 500ml or perhaps 750ml....so I just made an assumption it was a triple leffe.

By "brand", of course I meant "variant".

Anyway, Hoegaarden is all I want to talk about! Hmmmmmm.

super_furry

I actually prefer Kronenberg Blanc to Hoegaarden right now. Shame it's impossible to find. Leffe is nice too but a bit heavier stronger than both of them.

jellybean520

Absolutely, for me that's a very close alternative to Hoegaarden. I only discovered that one becasue of being in a pub were they didn't serve H but offered me that. I was pleasantly surprised that there was another option. In fact I'm glad you brought up that point - Outside of these 2 white beers, are there any other ones that may be more widely available / cheaper? I'd certainly give them a shot.

super_furry wrote: »

I actually prefer Kronenberg Blanc to Hoegaarden right now. Shame it's impossible to find. Leffe is nice too but a bit heavier stronger than both of them.

BeerNut

super_furry wrote: »

I actually prefer Kronenberg Blanc to Hoegaarden right now. Shame it's impossible to find.

Really? I see it around quite a lot. Too lemony for my liking.

BeerNut

jellybean520 wrote: »

Outside of these 2 white beers, are there any other ones that may be more widely available / cheaper? I'd certainly give them a shot.

Tesco do an own-brand French wheat beer in the same sort of style, though I found it too dry. And it's only about a euro cheaper than Hoegaarden for a 75cl bottle.

romarr

really enjoy the Hoegaarden too ... and the buckets they serve it in are fantastic !

last sat found myself on an impromptu pub crawl, criteria was Hoegaarden only ... we got to about 5 pubs, who all obliged

one discovery was that much like pints o' plain, it really depends where you drink it, in some bars its perfect in others, well ... price varies considerably too

rekon anseo is prob the best,

jellybean520

Yup, I've had bad pints of H also where they taste bitter and acidic. Naturally I would move on in this instance. Problem here is, in many joints there is not enough of a draw on the stuff and you're tasting the caustic soda used for cleaning the pipes......:eek:

Thankfully, there is consistency in bottles but u can't beat a good draught pint.

Blisterman

The tesco stuff is surprisngly tasty, for Tesco beer.
Actually. They do some good champagne too. Who would have thought it?

aidan24326

I'm surprised so many like Hoegaarden. Can't stand the stuff myself. Seems to be one of those things you either love or hate though.

jrar

I like the taste of Hoegaarden tto, but for some reason I nearly always seem to get a gut reaction to it .....which I find strange because I love Leffe and could drink weissbiers all day/night ! Just seems to be the Hoegaarden that gives me a reaction

Mr Magnolia

I've only tasted the regular Hoegaarden. I must say I didn't like it at all. As far as wheat beers go I'd prefer leffe by a distance. The Erdinger Weibbier is also a nicer drink imo.

I would always recommend the Chimay beers, they are my all time favourites.

jellybean520

Thankfully me bag has no adverse reactions to it.

But I agree it must be an acquired taste. I have tried unsuccessfully on many occasions to get a few of my mates into it and they turn their noses up at it....hardened heineken drinkers.....and I hate heineken. Of all the mainstream lagers that would be last on my list, well second last, Fosters comes last!

BeerNut

Mr Magnolia wrote: »

As far as wheat beers go I'd prefer leffe by a distance.

There are no Leffe wheat beers.

Mr Magnolia wrote: »

The Erdinger Weibbier is also a nicer drink imo.

Weissbier. ß isn't a b: from the Things-I-Learned-From-Beer file

Mr Magnolia wrote: »

I would always recommend the Chimay beers, they are my all time favourites.

I'd put the Westmalle range just above them, but yeah, the blue is particularly good and raisiny.