Belgian Ales!!

[Franiblector]

I had some Chimay blue label last week....I believe this is their Grand Reserve? Whatever is was, it was 9% alcohol. After trying the red label stuff (with which I was underwhelmed), I was afraid the alcohol would really overpower it, but man was I wrong. This stuff is GREAT!! What a fine, fine beer.

Sam

i had the chimay cinq cents last weekend.
YUM!
i think i liked the blue label the best as well. try the white though, just to see.

i love abbey/trappist ales!

 

[kenmc]

To live in the Netherlands for a year did you have to go through a lot or are they pretty relax on their temp-living policies.

I lived there for 18 months, was working for Philips in Eindhoven, but was contracted out by my company here in Dublin. My girlf came with me also and worked there too. they're pretty relaxed, you've to register with the foreign police is about all, and then you can open a bank account etc etc.
Loved it, had a great time (esp cos my apartment, flights were paid for and was getting a daily allowance also! can't beat it really!)

Anyway, my fav beers whilst there were definitely Belgiansuvel, Delerium Tremens, La Chouffe, McChouffe, Barbar, Piraat, Chimay, La Trappe, Kasteel, Hoegaarden and many many others. There was basically a huge warehouse nearby which had hundreds of different beers for sale by the crate! loved going there of a saturday morning!

Oh yeah, the Dutchies put a slice of lemon in a glass of Hoegaarden which makes it even nicer!!!

 

[Dude]

The only trappist I've had is Chimay. Don't know the type, but it had sort of a mauve label on it. Very nice ale, but didn't blow me away. Not worth the money to buy on a reqular basis, IMO. Maybe my hopes were too high. Also the bottle was a little dusty in the store, so it might have been a little old.

Oh man...I got one of those bottles of Chimay (red label) at the Class Six yesterday, what a beer! I really though that was something different. I was really impressed because I had never had anything like it.
I'm wondering how old that stuff is, and how light struck it is, and if its an accurate taste. Is it supposed to taste like a hefe? I noticed a fairly prominent clovy, banana taste, which I TOTALLY wasn't expecting. It reminded me of pouring half of a hefe into a darker ale. That stuff sure wasn't like anything I've ever had before, that's for sure.

 

[Janx]

The banana/clove yeast character is prominent in a lot of Belgian abbey/Trappist yeast strains. It's definitely part of the profile of Chimay's dubbel. (Red)

 

[Dude]

Wittekerke! Tried a few at a sushi joint in Milwaukee--GREAT.
Very dry, mellow taste, not as "yeasty" as Hoegaarden, which is probably why I really enjoyed it. If I could find it here in Virginia it would be a favorite.
Wit lovers, I'd highly recommend it.

 

[Didier La Main]

I had always heard wonderful things about Belgian ale, and finally got to try my first one not long ago.

I was instantly hooked. I haven't gotten to try very many kinds yet, but that will change as soon as I can find some more. A very good friend, who loves wines, etc., has been raving about the Framboise Ale from... well, I forget the brand. This stuff was so complex, unique, distinctive,...

Any fans here who could point out their favorite picks?

I'm a belgian.
I love drinking beer.
Here are some of my favorites.
Duvel-> witch you know ofcoarse
Kriek lindemans-> the best cherry beer in belgium with a low alcohol percentage
Ciney-> a tripel beer- very strong and a high percentage
Leffe brown-> sweet dark beer
Tripel van west-vleteren-> small brewery- made by monks- heavy percentage
Bush-> probalby the beer with the highest percentage. I guess it's about 14% don't drink alot of these. (nothing to do with the amercian president)
i hope i gave you some suggestions.

 

[RogerN]

Hi Didier,
I have a vague recollection during an all day drinking session in Antwerp of a girl telling me that Kriek is a beer for women.
Is this a theory held by many Belgians?
I like the stuff and drink it at home but I'm not sure if I should drink it in public if you know what I mean.

Roger.

 

[Didier La Main]

Hi Didier,
I have a vague recollection during an all day drinking session in Antwerp of a girl telling me that Kriek is a beer for women.
Is this a theory held by many Belgians?
I like the stuff and drink it at home but I'm not sure if I should drink it in public if you know what I mean.

Roger.

That is true but only in the winterseazon.
Woman drink kriek the whole year. men drink it mostly in the summer--> it's a very refreshing beer if you know what i mean.
It is not gay to drink a kriek.
But in the summer it's better if a man drinks a heavy beer. like tripel or duvel. It's a little bit more male. Just don't drink these beers in the sun. cause then they go straight to your head and that is something you don't want. I know what i'm talking about.
I have a question too. Why the belgian beers? Is it true that everybody except belgians underestimate the strong beers?

Living by the source---> just ask

 

[RogerN]

I had a Brewferm Triple this afternoon sat outside in the sun.
Mad dogs and Englishmen eh

 

[RogerN]

Oh, and I wasn't suggesting that Kriek drinkers are gay. I wouldn't want to offend anyone

 

[Brewsmith]

Just tried Affligem Blond. Mighty tasty I must say. Nice and smooth with a little twang to it, and a big creamy head. As mentioned above about Belgian beers and hefeweizen flavor, I'd have to agree, at least based on this example. Similar flavors from I'm assuming the yeast. I give it a thumbs up, now just wish I had some more. It came in an assortment from around the world at costco. Only 1 12oz bottle. On the bright side there are about twenty more that I've never tried before!

 

[McCall St. Brewer]

I tried Duvel the other day. Didn't realize until I checked out that 1. It was over $8 and 2. It came in a 4-pack, so I was mildly irritated at first. When I got it home and tried it, though, all that went away. It was definitely worth it. Made me want to try some other Belgians soon.

 

[SwAMi75]

Anyone know what style LaChouffe is? I almost picked up a bottle the other day, but passed it up because I know nothing about it.

 

[El Pistolero]

Anyone know what style LaChouffe is?

LaChouffe is a Golden Ale, strong, spicy, lightly hoppy, with evoluting taste, bottle refermented, unfiltered, not pasteurized and without any additives. Sounds like a Belgian Specialty Ale?

 

[SwAMi75]

Sounds decent to me. Might have to pick some up.

 

[homebrewer_99]

I've had most of the beers mentioned ... as I lived in Germany for 9 years and have been to most of the countries in Europe.

According to my passport I've been to the Netherlands 6 times, but it's been more than twice that.

I don't care for the Krieks. They were a novelty the first couple of times.
I've had Chimay, red, blue and gold. All great.

I had a magnum of Leffe Blond Ale that I opened at my granddaughter wedding reception that went over like gangbusters. I'd like to try to brew one of them. Any recipes out there?

I do prefer Hoegarden (as I am hooked on wheat beers).

...and cilantro tastes like soap to me too.

 

[kenmc]

LaChouffe is delicious, one of my favs. They also do a McChouffe as well which has the little gnomes dressed up in tartan trousers, ala scotland. That's harder to find, even in Holland I didn't get much of it, but remember that it's damn good. Typically I discovered most of my new beers after several familiar ones dammit!

 

[SwAMi75]

LaChouffe is delicious, one of my favs. They also do a McChouffe as well which has the little gnomes dressed up in tartan trousers, ala scotland. That's harder to find, even in Holland I didn't get much of it, but remember that it's damn good. Typically I discovered most of my new beers after several familiar ones dammit!

Hmm, they had both the last time I was at the only good beer store here. I'll be picking up some, then. Thanks!

 

[Duvel]

Found a massive off-license (liquor store) that do every belgian beer I've ever heard of. It's a bit far away but that's ok. They even do magnum sized duvel and chimay!! Over-priced however at €22.. To buy that amount in just normal bottles would be €13. So that's what I did, bought 4 bottles, which was all my poor student wallet could afford :
1 Hoegaarden Verboden Vrucht (forbidden fruit)
1 Lucifer Golden ale
1 Duvel
and 1 Chimay brown trappist.


Unfortunately the were all carried lying on their sides in my bag so I couldn't drink any of them yesterday. Thought I could drink the hoegaarden as it's a long-neck and wouldn't be bottle conditioned like the other short/stocky bottles. But sure enough when I held it up to the light there was that lump of yeast stuck to the inside of the bottle-glass..

As a homebrewer, it kind of gives you a sense of kinship with the belgians, that even professionally they do it just like you

 

[Toilet Rocker]

McChouffe's artisan brown is quite a tasty brew. Surprising spice flavor for what I knew to be a brown. Seems like it could even be a dessert beer. Went great with the Rangers' comeback last night! If only they weren't 8$ for 750mL, I'd have had enough for the shootout.

 

[Beermaker]

My 2 favorite things about Belgian beer..............Hang overs and gas!

 

[DeRoux's Broux]

My 2 favorite things about Belgian beer..............Hang overs and gas!

i always knew you where twisted!

 

[Steve973]

My top Belgians, right now, are (in no particular order):

St Bernardus 12
Unibroue Terrible
Rochefort 10
Duvel
Ommegang Hennepin

The most recent one out of those that I've had is the Terrible. I can't believe just how good that one is! What a great surprise!

Steve

 

[Toilet Rocker]

Not to resurrect the dead, but this seemed like the best spot to post this cool site. I especially like the sounds link.

http://belgianstyle.com/mmguide/

 

[DeRoux's Broux]

cool gaelone!

any had the delirium nocturnum. bought one today to try.....i need a good buzz :~)

 

[Baron von BeeGee]

I bought an Ommegang Three Philosophers this week which is said to be a straightforward Belgian they brew then blend with Lindeman's Kriek. It's like a 750ml so I'll have to set aside some quality time for it!

 

[DeRoux's Broux]

I bought an Ommegang Three Philosophers this week which is said to be a straightforward Belgian they brew then blend with Lindeman's Kriek. It's like a 750ml so I'll have to set aside some quality time for it!

i need to do the same with mine. i had a few Hacker-Pschorr Munich Elerhell's,, one Aventinus, and now a Red Bird Ale....so no big belgians tonight!

 

[dammann459]

I am still learning the complexities, but just for taste I have found Piraat, Gulden Draak, and Maredsous (triple) are excellent choices. Of course, I haven't found one that I didn't like yet. Everytime I go to the local import shop I have intentions of expanding my horizons but I always wind up in front of the Belgian cooler...If it ain't broke you know.

Try the Petrus Tripel too.

 

[Jens-Kristian]

I've tried a good handful of Belgian ales. Delirium Nocturnum and Delirium Tremens were both very good beers.

If I am to point to one that simply wipes the others off the board though, it has to be "Tripel Karmeliet" which is . . just wonderful. Fruity, spicey, slightly sweet but not in an unpleasant way. It's about 8% and treacherous as all h. . . You just don't realise the percentage until you've had a few because its taste betrays nothing!