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Scout out the Perfect Beer in Belgium
Published by Angela Jill, Writer
Country: Belgium 
The Experience
When traveling in Belgium, you can't just ask for "a beer", doing so will only produce a lager of some sort that can be found practically anywhere in the world. Belgium is home to many unique beers including abbey beer, lambic beer, and trappist beer, who derive their distinct taste from ancient brewing traditions. It is said that you can taste a Belgian beer everyday for a year, and still leave some brews untouched. With such deep history and selection, the best way to learn about Belgian beer is the equivalent of a pub crawl through Brussels, Bruges and Antwerp.
To taste a new and exciting beer in Belgium you can go pretty much anywhere. Even convenience stores have hundreds of different kinds. A great place to start, however, is by doing a brewery tour. This gives visitors a window into the creation of beer, and a brief introduction to the various types that can be produced. De Halve Maan brewery, the last active brewery in Bruges is an excellent place to go for a little beer education. The comic, polyglot tour guides show you the current and original ways of making Belgian beer. It really is amazing how the process has changed over the past 500 years, which is approximately how long parts of this brewery has been active. On the Halve Maan brewery tour, you will discover that the depth of flavour depends on the roasting of the malts; the longer the roast, the darker the beer will be. Spice blends are also used in the production of beers, which, in part, accounts for the various flavours you can taste in the different varieties. This brewery also showcases the fact that in Belgium they take their beer very seriously. Therefore, just like in wine, all Belgian beers need to be served in specific glasses to compliment their flavour.
The Bruges brewery tour concludes with a tasting of one of the two beers that the brewery still produces, Brugse Zot, which turned out to be one of my favourite beers in Belgium. A blond beer with 6% alcohol, it is a great beverage for a sunny afternoon on a patio. The restaurant and patio area of Halve Maan brewery also has a full food menu. To continue the celebration of Belgian beer, why not try the beer soup on offer? It makes a great lunch as it is a hearty soup made with beer, cheese, and ham.
After seeing Bruges, Brussels is a great next stop in the search for a great Belgian brew. With many famous Belgian beer bars, you are sure to find something new and wonderful. There are a few beers that are very typical to Belgium. Lambic beers can only be produced in Belgium because they are fermented with a wild yeast that only exists in Belgium. Lambic beer is a little different in flavour and more sour than other beers. Trappist beers are another famous Belgian variety, and can only be designated as such if they are under control of at least one Trappist Monk. Because of this, there are only 7 such breweries in the world, one in the Netherlands and the other 6 in Belgium. To try these or any other beer you could ever imagine, go to Delirium Cafe, where they have one of the largest beer menus in the world – 2004 beers. With chocolate beer and grapefruit beer, you can be confident that you'll be able to try something new and exciting. The staff at this Delirium Cafe are very cool and will advise you on a beer selection if they have time and if you ask.
What search for great Belgian beer would be complete without a stop at Duvel brewery, just outside of Antwerp. A tour through this famous Antwerp brewery introduces you to the production process of this well-hopped golden ale. One of the most famous Belgian beers, Duvel packs a punch at 8.5% alcohol, so be prepared. If Duvel doesn't tempt your palette other favourites to try are La Rulles Estivale and La Rulles Triple Blonde. Whether you prefer something light and sweet, or spicy and hopped up, a Belgien Beer tour through Bruges, Antwerp and Brussels is sure to delight the sense.
To taste a new and exciting beer in Belgium you can go pretty much anywhere. Even convenience stores have hundreds of different kinds. A great place to start, however, is by doing a brewery tour. This gives visitors a window into the creation of beer, and a brief introduction to the various types that can be produced. De Halve Maan brewery, the last active brewery in Bruges is an excellent place to go for a little beer education. The comic, polyglot tour guides show you the current and original ways of making Belgian beer. It really is amazing how the process has changed over the past 500 years, which is approximately how long parts of this brewery has been active. On the Halve Maan brewery tour, you will discover that the depth of flavour depends on the roasting of the malts; the longer the roast, the darker the beer will be. Spice blends are also used in the production of beers, which, in part, accounts for the various flavours you can taste in the different varieties. This brewery also showcases the fact that in Belgium they take their beer very seriously. Therefore, just like in wine, all Belgian beers need to be served in specific glasses to compliment their flavour.
The Bruges brewery tour concludes with a tasting of one of the two beers that the brewery still produces, Brugse Zot, which turned out to be one of my favourite beers in Belgium. A blond beer with 6% alcohol, it is a great beverage for a sunny afternoon on a patio. The restaurant and patio area of Halve Maan brewery also has a full food menu. To continue the celebration of Belgian beer, why not try the beer soup on offer? It makes a great lunch as it is a hearty soup made with beer, cheese, and ham.
After seeing Bruges, Brussels is a great next stop in the search for a great Belgian brew. With many famous Belgian beer bars, you are sure to find something new and wonderful. There are a few beers that are very typical to Belgium. Lambic beers can only be produced in Belgium because they are fermented with a wild yeast that only exists in Belgium. Lambic beer is a little different in flavour and more sour than other beers. Trappist beers are another famous Belgian variety, and can only be designated as such if they are under control of at least one Trappist Monk. Because of this, there are only 7 such breweries in the world, one in the Netherlands and the other 6 in Belgium. To try these or any other beer you could ever imagine, go to Delirium Cafe, where they have one of the largest beer menus in the world – 2004 beers. With chocolate beer and grapefruit beer, you can be confident that you'll be able to try something new and exciting. The staff at this Delirium Cafe are very cool and will advise you on a beer selection if they have time and if you ask.
What search for great Belgian beer would be complete without a stop at Duvel brewery, just outside of Antwerp. A tour through this famous Antwerp brewery introduces you to the production process of this well-hopped golden ale. One of the most famous Belgian beers, Duvel packs a punch at 8.5% alcohol, so be prepared. If Duvel doesn't tempt your palette other favourites to try are La Rulles Estivale and La Rulles Triple Blonde. Whether you prefer something light and sweet, or spicy and hopped up, a Belgien Beer tour through Bruges, Antwerp and Brussels is sure to delight the sense.
When to Go to Belgian Beer
Odds n' Ends
The De Halve Maan brewery tour costs EU 5.50, while Duvel brewery tour costs EU 6.00, each last about two hours and include a tasting. Expect to pay about EU 3.00 per beer at restaurants and cafes.
Places to Eat
- De Halve Maan
- The last active brewery in Bruges has great food on offer to accompany the beer!
Recommended Places to Stay
- Hello Hostel
- Not a bad hostel. Not too far from centre. Good staff.
Additional Places to Stay Nearby
Search over 900,000 global hotel deals from over 30 merchants. Book via Expedia, Travelocity, Hotels.com, Booking.com, Priceline and the websites of popular hotel chains.
Located in the heart of Brussels, the Metropole Hotel Brussels places guests within walking distance of Grand Place, the Royal Theatre de la Monnaie, Bourse, ... 0 miles away
$89 EUR+
The Abberdeen Hotel is located in Brussels making it one of the best hotels to stay at while in town. All hotel's guestrooms have all ... 0 miles away
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More Experiences Nearby
- Come to the Carnaval, Binge at Binche!
- When you visit Belgium, make sure to do it on a Tuesday—but don’t just pick any Tuesday. Be sure to choose the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. Why? Because on this day, a quiet Belgian town hosts Belgian’s best festival: The Carnaval de Binche. The Carnaval de Binche (Carnival of Binche) is an annual event that takes place in a dreamy Belgian town called Binche, located south of Brussels. The industrialized town is invaded by tourists from everywhere to participate in the festival that involves a lot of street dancing, musical acts, parades and costumed-men throwing oranges at the crowd. The ...32 miles away.
While You're There - Tours and Trips Nearby
Spend an afternoon in Antwerp, Belgium's second largest city on Europe's largest harbor. You'll discover the city of Peter Paul Rubens and see how diamonds ...1.19 miles away via Brussels.
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Carpe Diem! Book to do this experience now!
Afterwards, join a walking tour and discover Our Lady's Church, with the Madonna statue by Michelangelo, the Market Square with the Belfry and the Town ...
Starting from $42.96 per person.
Starting from $42.96 per person.
Books and DVDs
Elsewhere on the Web
Media References
- Quaffing the Heady Brews of Belgium - NYTimes.com (newspaper)
- Brussels - NYTimes.com (newspaper)
- Belgium's Medieval Treasure - NYTimes.com (newspaper)
- Affordable Europe: Brussels - NYTimes.com (newspaper)
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Language Guides
French 
,
Italian
,
Portugese
,
Spanish
,
Turkish
are some of the languages spoken in Belgium. If you know of a freely available phrase book or podcast for one of the missing languages, let us know!
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