Belgian Beer
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I disagree, to an extent. Belgian beer is generally different to British beer, the Trappiste / barley wine similarity notwithstanding. So we can appreciate Belgian beer for what it is without forgetting how good our own product is.cafcfan said:Trappist beer is very nice but, as has been said, you really can't drink too many of them.
The thing is they are also very, very similar to a lot of UK breweries specialist "Barley Wine", which is also top-fermented.
Frankly, a good one of these is just as good as the Trappist product from Belgium.
Our praise - and I'm including myself here - of Belgium beer is rather typical of UK consumers for pretty much all products. Somehow we seem to be drawn to the exotic foreignness of other countries' produce and our own stuff gets overlooked and marginalised. For Trappist beer, read Brazilian footballers, German cars, Italian clothes, French cheese, etc, etc.
Similarly with French cheese, they do some great ones, but that doesn't stop a good Stilton (e.g. Colston Basset (spelling?)) or Cheddar being amazing and certainly one of the best cheeses in the world.0 -
After that session I'm amazed you made it back to the right country, let alone the right house.harveys gardener said:Boon marriage pafait geuze (sour) is nectar made in heaven. Try drinking beers from midday until after midnight, brews that range from 6% to 12%. Just back from Leuven.
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Sounds interesting. Might have to try that! :-)Eddie Firmani said:They then added a shot of grenadine to it - totally transformed it. Really smooth - a lovely drink.
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much more interesting thread than moaning about the new owners or elevating SCP to the sainthood !0
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Belgian beer is indeed lovely, Rochefort 10 is heaven, but not exactly something you have a session of!
For an evening in the pub, you cant beat a nice selection of ales, especially with the incredible growth in new breweries in this country. My only criticism is that sometimes a pub can stock 5 ales, from, 5 different breweries, but all can be samey, and fall in the same 4.2% golden ale niche, so there's no obvious progression up the ladder of strength and darkness you get from a traditional tied regional pub
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As a real ale bore, I have always disdained fizzy beers; aren't all draught Belgian brews carbonated, or served under pressure? That said, the recommendations on this thread are very enticing. My only experience of Belgian beers are bottled Leffe and Chimay. Is De Hems, the long-established bar in Macclesfield Street, just off Shaftesbury Avenue, still open - and is it any good?0
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What winds me up most as a bitter drinker is the number of places, often restaurants, that offer half a dozen beers, and every single one of them an over-priced, fizzy, branded lager. Is it really so hard to stock one half decent beer in bottles? (Boddingtons/John smiths do not count!)killerandflash said:Belgian beer is indeed lovely, Rochefort 10 is heaven, but not exactly something you have a session of!
For an evening in the pub, you cant beat a nice selection of ales, especially with the incredible growth in new breweries in this country. My only criticism is that sometimes a pub can stock 5 ales, from, 5 different breweries, but all can be samey, and fall in the same 4.2% golden ale niche, so there's no obvious progression up the ladder of strength and darkness you get from a traditional tied regional pub2 -
De Hems still well worth a visit Viewfinder. Also, give Sleemans 'Honey Brown' a try in the 'Maple Leaf' bar in Covent Garden, eh!Viewfinder said:As a real ale bore, I have always disdained fizzy beers; aren't all draught Belgian brews carbonated, or served under pressure? That said, the recommendations on this thread are very enticing. My only experience of Belgian beers are bottled Leffe and Chimay. Is De Hems, the long-established bar in Macclesfield Street, just off Shaftesbury Avenue, still open - and is it any good?
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Missed this the other day, we stock up to 10 Belgium beers in the pub, The Old Loyal Britons, 62 Thames Street, Greenwich SE10 9BX all priced at £3.500
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Sounds good. I'll pop in again next time I'm in Greenwich. Nice atmosphere in your place.Strasburger said:Missed this the other day, we stock up to 10 Belgium beers in the pub, The Old Loyal Britons, 62 Thames Street, Greenwich SE10 9BX all priced at £3.50
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Got the glass and holder sat on my bookshelf as a reminder of Bruges. Could go one now, top drop.eaststandmike said:You have to try a Kwak just for the glass and holder
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Would you please remind me of your opening times? Cheers.Strasburger said:Missed this the other day, we stock up to 10 Belgium beers in the pub, The Old Loyal Britons, 62 Thames Street, Greenwich SE10 9BX all priced at £3.50
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Went to the Orval Abbey the past weekend - always thought Orval only did one beer - but they actually do three - the normal one at 6.2, then there is the viel (the same beer but older than 1 year, which comes out at 7.2 somehow), but there is also an Orval Vert which is only consumed within the Abbey or the abbey run bar/resto directly outside the Abbey on draught which is 4.6 per cent. TBH, didnt particularly like it.
Also went to La Chouffe, which is a strange place - think Hobbit village.0 -
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Like La Chouffe, quite common in France.The_President said:Went to the Orval Abbey the past weekend - always thought Orval only did one beer - but they actually do three - the normal one at 6.2, then there is the viel (the same beer but older than 1 year, which comes out at 7.2 somehow), but there is also an Orval Vert which is only consumed within the Abbey or the abbey run bar/resto directly outside the Abbey on draught which is 4.6 per cent. TBH, didnt particularly like it.
Also went to La Chouffe, which is a strange place - think Hobbit village.1 -
Friends gave me that as a set for christmas....glass and 3 bottles.eaststandmike said:You have to try a Kwak just for the glass and holder
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Shame it's in Norwich, I'm unlikely to be passing by.bazjonster said:http://www.thebelgianmonk.com
Well worth a visit; if you're passing!!
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There is/was a decent Belgian beer place in Ramsgate by the harbour. Had my favourite Belgian beer there for the 1st time, Chimay Blue. Lovely.0
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I tried Leffe Blond last night, as we are going to Bruges in a couple of weeks time and are just bamboozled by the number of beers they have available there. I really didn't like the Leffe. It had an awful copper taste to it which was really unpleasant. Even my wife only took a few sips. I was expecting everywhere to sell Stella, but looking at the restaurant and bar menus online, that certainly isn't the case. So, I'm not sure on what I will be drinking. It will be fun trying some of them out but expensive if we don't like them after a few sips.0
