Recommend me a Belgian Beer

beertons

Heading to Antwerp with herself on Thursday for a few days. We are both clueless as to what beers to have. We don't want to have a huge list of beers to try, maybe one or two every day.

Can I ask everyone to recommend me one beer, the first one they always order when they go over. She's partial to the one that you throw a lime in, I'm more of a spirits man, but will pretty much drink anything, bar stout.

Thanks in advance

Beertons!

BeerNut

The first one I always order is the one I haven't seen before. Shame you won't drink stout because one of my regular favourites in Belgium is Guinness Special Export.

Anyway, Westmalle Dubbel is rock-solid tasty and widely available.

The best pub in Antwerp for random selection (the best way to drink Belgian beer IMO) is Kulminator at Vleminckveld 32-34.

g5fd6ow0hseima

Is Hoegaarden big over there or is it more of an export beer?

BeerNut

Huge. It's one of A-B InBev's global brands, along with Leffe, Stella Artois and Beck's.

oblivious

Saint-Feuillien is a good solid range of beer and Floris fruit beers maybe for herself?

the beer revolu

I love the local brew in Antwerp - De Koninick
Ask for a Bolleke it's the glass it's served in and is how it's always ordered.
Any pub in antwerp should have it on draught but I love Den Engel in the corner of the square by the cathedral is my favourite spot for a bolleke

Quint

Have a Triple Karmeliet. Very nice beer.

beertons

That's great guys, thanks a mill. 2 more to go and the list is complete.

Haven't got the stomach for guinness I'm afraid. I was addicted to Kilkenny for a while though, till I put on 2 stone. Oh man.

grenache

La Chouffre, a beautiful blonde beer, sort of a pale ale style. Comes in a nice big bottle too.

BeerNut

grenache wrote: »

Comes in a nice big bottle too.

Draught too.

enda1

To cap the list then, rochefort 12.

Lets see if he can walk back to the hotel after this!

beertons

enda1 wrote: »

To cap the list then, rochefort 12.

Lets see if he can walk back to the hotel after this!

Em, thanks. I'll split one with herself. Hope it's tasty now and not smelling of thinners!

enda1

beertons wrote: »

Em, thanks. I'll split one with herself. Hope it's tasty now and not smelling of thinners!

No really its fantastic. One of my real favourites and I live over in Belgium! Can't remember the % but I think its about 13% so careful!

oblivious

enda1 wrote: »

To cap the list then, rochefort 12.

Lets see if he can walk back to the hotel after this!

Its Rochefort 10 11.3% ABV, it appear there was a hoax going around of a 12. But the is a Westvleteren 12 which is fanstastic but very rarer

beertons

Ok, that complete's the list. I hope to write down what I think of them, hopefully during the drink. I'll post up the responses here when I get back.

enda1

oblivious wrote: »

Its Rochefort 10 11.3% ABV, it appear there was a hoax going around of a 12. But the is a Westvleteren 12 which is fanstastic but very rarer

Weird the way the rumour is almost exactly what I said??

Anyway all I can speak from is experiance, so it must be hte Rochefort 10 I speak of, its always the last one on the list of Rochefort trappists that I get so that must be it. Lovely stuff anyway.

Keep meaning to go to the Westvletern brewery but never get around to ordering it etc...

BeerNut

beertons wrote: »

Em, thanks. I'll split one with herself.

If you're capable of drinking a glass of wine without falling over, I think you should be OK with beer of a similar strength.

kenmc

beertons wrote:

We don't want to have a huge list of beers to try, maybe one or two every day.

Only one or 2 a day? hardly worth going if you're not going to make a decent effort

BeerNut wrote: »

The first one I always order is the one I haven't seen before.

Spot on, thats my modus operandi too.

To go on the list:
Duvel; Duvel Green; Delerium Tremens; Judas; Orval; Barbar; Kwak; Gulden Draak; Damnit the list is a long one....

oblivious

kenmc wrote: »

To go on the list:
Duvel; Delerium Tremens; Judas; Orval; Barbar; Kwak; Gukden Draak; Damnit the list is a long one....

And available in Redmonds of Ranelagh to:p

beertons

I realsied that I won't be great on describing the beers, I didn't know they could taste so differently. So here goes.

Leffe, Blonde, very nice, easy, sweet, wasn't able for 9.9%

Jupiler, muck, the missus picked it, tasteless, never again.

Duvel, good, tasty, easy tastes like more, couldn't believe it was 8.8%

Triple Karmelite, very sweet, should have paid more attention to the name, not for me.

Hoegaarden, very light, refreshing, one of my favourites.

De Koninick, bottle, dark, potent, strong, reminds me of smithwicks.

De Koninick, draught, tasted better than the bottled.

Vedett, easy, light, dry, not as sweet as all the others

St Feuilien, blonde, very nice, strong

Westmalle Dubbel, Almost like a summer wine, a taste of pears? something like a pear cider? Lovely though.

I have to say that the Kulminator is a lovely place, couldn't believe all the beers they had, and a different glass to go with them. Brilliant. And the nibblies to go with them were lovely. To cap off a lovely few days, I ordered a bottle of beer from the year I was born. So we ordered a bottle of Kempeneer. It smelled like a fine port and tasted like a fine wine. Tea coloured. A desired taste, not for me though. Ah well.

Thanks for the tips guys!

BeerNut

beertons wrote: »

Leffe, Blonde, very nice, easy, sweet, wasn't able for 9.9%

Leffe Blonde is only about 5.5%. The strongest in the range is Leffe 9, which is 9.0% and comes in a bottle with a blue foil top.

I don't get why a 9.9% ABV drink would cause a problem. Don't you drink wine at all?

beertons wrote: »

Westmalle Dubbel, Almost like a summer wine, a taste of pears? something like a pear cider? Lovely though.

A little heavier than a cider, but I see what you mean.

Glad you enjoyed it. And most of the bottled beers can be got here, if you need a rematch.

beertons

I didn't want any beer blowing the head off me man. I thought that was what the strength was, I wasn't langers, and had the pen and paper with me the whole time writing notes. Got a package with 3 of the beers in the airport on the way home, saving it for a nice day off to sample again. And no, I'm not a great fan of wine, vodka is more my thing.