ok so it's already mid-day where I am in Stockholm. I just left Brussels this morning, and there is decent internet on this train, so let me tell you about yesterday.
I was skeptical of Delirium Bar in Brussels since my only frame of reference is the Delirium Tremens stuff that comes in the weird concrete looking bottles. That stuff? I don't like that stuff. However, I was assured that it's a worthwhile experience, but one that requires - like many good experiences - some effort. Not for the passive beer drinker.
First off, there are 3 or 4 levels, and at least as many sub-bars within Delirium, and the beer list is the size of a thick magazine. Maybe more like a thin book. Whatever - they sell the menu itself for €5 so you can take it home. We chose the downstairs bar which was jam packed with sweaty tourists. There are two experiences here - the "get to know the bartender" experience, and the "sit at a table in the back and ignore people" one. We chose the former, and it paid off.
I thumbed through the book for a minute, and asked for a St. Lamvinus. Tom the bartender returned, apologizing profusely because they were sold out - this is what he brought as a consolation prize:
Uhhhhh -- 2007 3F Schaarbeekse Kriek? For €13.50? Done deal, thanks Tom! Such earthy musk, and still a ton of tart cherry flavor. It hadn't faded at all, at least in comparison to newer bottles of this I've had. With that gone, I just said bring me something else, and Tom returned with this:
2006 Kriek Boon? For €10?! Ok. I'll take it. Not quite as good as the 3F before it, but still fantastic. More tartness, and less of that musky funk that vintage 3F does so well. Ok, what's next, Tom:
2004 Boon Gueuze Mariage Parfait. I think this one was something like €11. VERY funky and earthy, but also that gumline attacking tartness you'd expect from a 10 y/o gueuze. Hashtag worth it. Next? I just told Tom to bring something old. He delivered this:
2009 Horal's Oude Gueuze Mega Blend. Like any good gueuze, this is remarkably complex. I'm sure lots of you know about this - it's some sort of collective that contributes lambic of various ages to the overall blend. It is FAR greater than the sum of its parts, and not something I ever really come across in the US. For €18 - the same price as the current vintage in the local beer shops - it was a really fun thing to get.
By this point, we were pretty well on our way, especially after my sister dropped the plastic bag with the Quetsche Tilquin in it, which broke on impact. I snipped the corner of the bag off and poured it into a glass and drank a bunch before realizing it probably had some glass in it. Whatever.
Tom asked what we might want next, and I just said "anything older from Cantillon or 3F." He nodded and returned with this:
For what it's worth, I think it's really funny that the thing I wanted in the first place is what he came out with - but from 2008. I think this one was €14. Older St. Lam has been a crapshoot for me in the past. Something about the grape flavor turning weird and ending up tasting like bad wine is what I remember, but this was nothing like that. It was a real
treat, with subtle flavor from the Merlot grapes, and a tartness that wouldn't quit. I was pretty fried at this point, and my sister was hammered and not really drinking more, so I basically chugged her glass.
Well then this funny thing happened where Tom's friends came in to drink, and one of them used to work there. He was making fun of Tom a bit for not being super familiar with the cellar, so he himself went back there to grab stuff and came out with these Hanssen's 375mL bottles - one Oudbeitje and one experimental raspberry. They were both decent, but nothing to write a million words about. Still a nice treat, especially considering the price - FR€€!!
We thanked Tom and his friends, stumbled up the stairs, and immediately picked up a trailer - some guy from Senegal (he said...) who was still drinking from his Westmalle glass while he followed us up the street. I was pretty much in a brownout, so I don't really know what his angle was, but he took us on a wild goose chase back to our hotel, which was only about a 5 minute walk, but seemed to take forever. Like I said though, I was browned out so time was not something with which I was keenly familiar.
TL;DR -- DO make friends with the bartenders downstairs at Delirium. DO NOT make friends with itinerant Senegalese "guides".
Great success.
I was skeptical of Delirium Bar in Brussels since my only frame of reference is the Delirium Tremens stuff that comes in the weird concrete looking bottles. That stuff? I don't like that stuff. However, I was assured that it's a worthwhile experience, but one that requires - like many good experiences - some effort. Not for the passive beer drinker.
First off, there are 3 or 4 levels, and at least as many sub-bars within Delirium, and the beer list is the size of a thick magazine. Maybe more like a thin book. Whatever - they sell the menu itself for €5 so you can take it home. We chose the downstairs bar which was jam packed with sweaty tourists. There are two experiences here - the "get to know the bartender" experience, and the "sit at a table in the back and ignore people" one. We chose the former, and it paid off.
I thumbed through the book for a minute, and asked for a St. Lamvinus. Tom the bartender returned, apologizing profusely because they were sold out - this is what he brought as a consolation prize:
Uhhhhh -- 2007 3F Schaarbeekse Kriek? For €13.50? Done deal, thanks Tom! Such earthy musk, and still a ton of tart cherry flavor. It hadn't faded at all, at least in comparison to newer bottles of this I've had. With that gone, I just said bring me something else, and Tom returned with this:
2006 Kriek Boon? For €10?! Ok. I'll take it. Not quite as good as the 3F before it, but still fantastic. More tartness, and less of that musky funk that vintage 3F does so well. Ok, what's next, Tom:
2004 Boon Gueuze Mariage Parfait. I think this one was something like €11. VERY funky and earthy, but also that gumline attacking tartness you'd expect from a 10 y/o gueuze. Hashtag worth it. Next? I just told Tom to bring something old. He delivered this:
2009 Horal's Oude Gueuze Mega Blend. Like any good gueuze, this is remarkably complex. I'm sure lots of you know about this - it's some sort of collective that contributes lambic of various ages to the overall blend. It is FAR greater than the sum of its parts, and not something I ever really come across in the US. For €18 - the same price as the current vintage in the local beer shops - it was a really fun thing to get.
By this point, we were pretty well on our way, especially after my sister dropped the plastic bag with the Quetsche Tilquin in it, which broke on impact. I snipped the corner of the bag off and poured it into a glass and drank a bunch before realizing it probably had some glass in it. Whatever.
Tom asked what we might want next, and I just said "anything older from Cantillon or 3F." He nodded and returned with this:
For what it's worth, I think it's really funny that the thing I wanted in the first place is what he came out with - but from 2008. I think this one was €14. Older St. Lam has been a crapshoot for me in the past. Something about the grape flavor turning weird and ending up tasting like bad wine is what I remember, but this was nothing like that. It was a real
treat, with subtle flavor from the Merlot grapes, and a tartness that wouldn't quit. I was pretty fried at this point, and my sister was hammered and not really drinking more, so I basically chugged her glass.
Well then this funny thing happened where Tom's friends came in to drink, and one of them used to work there. He was making fun of Tom a bit for not being super familiar with the cellar, so he himself went back there to grab stuff and came out with these Hanssen's 375mL bottles - one Oudbeitje and one experimental raspberry. They were both decent, but nothing to write a million words about. Still a nice treat, especially considering the price - FR€€!!
We thanked Tom and his friends, stumbled up the stairs, and immediately picked up a trailer - some guy from Senegal (he said...) who was still drinking from his Westmalle glass while he followed us up the street. I was pretty much in a brownout, so I don't really know what his angle was, but he took us on a wild goose chase back to our hotel, which was only about a 5 minute walk, but seemed to take forever. Like I said though, I was browned out so time was not something with which I was keenly familiar.
TL;DR -- DO make friends with the bartenders downstairs at Delirium. DO NOT make friends with itinerant Senegalese "guides".
Great success.
