Belgium Has Chocolate, Comic Strips, Lace and Beer - Oh Yes the Beer

I cannot presume to be a connoisseur. In fact, until I tasted my very first Belgian beer I was a devout disliker of beer. I first got the hint that I might like Belgian beer when my son had been given a kriek/cherry beer on one of our visits and had given me a glowing report on its merits.

Several years later, one of my friends in Antwerp offered a kreik beer to me. That's when I realized that there's beer and then there's other beer. This I could drink.

Belgium is home to some 115 breweries that produce about 500 beers. This doesn't include special one-of-a-kind beer styles, which would add another some 500 beers to the total.
http://www.belgian-beer.net/

There are several distinct Belgian beer types, which are:

Amber ales, Blonde, Brown Ale, Champagne beers, Dubbel, Flemish Red, Hop-accentuated beers, Lambic beers, Flemish sour brown ale, pale lager, Saison, Scotch ales, Stout, Table beer, Tripel, White or wheat beer, Winter or Christmas beers.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belgian_beer#Belgian_beer_types

The first Belgian beer I tasted was Vieux Bruxelles Kriek Lambic, a sweet cherry beer. There's also an unsweetened cherry beer, which is drier. In this article I'm listing what category of beer each listing is under, the breweries and the translations of their names and their contact numbers, the websites and the tours if they're listed.

This is the list of Belgian beers that I've tasted so far:

Vieux Bruxelles Kriek Lambic is a Lambic or Geuze fruit beer:

I found this to be a nice full fruity cherry flavor from beginning to end. It's smooth with an authentic fruit flavor. Van Honsebrouck is the brewery that brews this beer.

Van Honsebrouck is located on Oostrozebeekstraat, 43 in 8770 Ingelmunster, Belgium. Their phone number is +32(0)51/33.51.60. Their fax is +32(0)51/31.38.39 and their website is http://www.kasteelbier.be. This website isn't in English.
http://www.bierebel.com/brasserie.php?id=68

The next three beers, although they were originally established and owned by three separate business entities, were acquired by Interbrew which bought out Anheuser-Busch last year and became Anheuser-Busch InBev which is a publicly traded company, based in Leuven, Belgium.

Anheuser-Busch InBev is the largest global brewer with nearly 25% global market share and one of the world's top five consumer products companies by EBITA. Anheuser-Busch InBev has 14 brands that produce over 1 billion USD per year in revenue out of a list of nearly 300 brands. The company operates through six regional zones; North America, Latin America North, Latin America South, Western Europe, Central & Eastern Europe,
and Asia Pacific.
http://www.ab-inbev.com/

The three beers are:

Belle-Vue Extra Kriek is a Lambic or Geuze fruit beer;

I found the flavor to be a slightly different cherry flavor than the Kriek Lambic. Although the cherry is just as strong as the other, the beer has a lighter body than the Vieux Bruxelles.

The Belle-Vue Brewery is located on Bergensesteenweg, 144 in 1600 in Sint-Pieters-Leeuw, Belgium. Their phone number is +32(0)2/371.43.00. Their fax is +32(0)2/371.43.66 and their website is http://www.inbev.be which isn't in English. You can get some information from this website,
http://www.ab-inbev.com/go/brands/brand_portfolio/local_brands/belle_vue.cfm.
http://www.bierebel.com/brasserie.php?id=123

Hoegaarden Rosee is located in Hoegaarden. It's a Lambic with fruit, a white beer;

This beer is flavored with red raspberries-framboise. The flavor is a bit dryer and lighter than the Krieks.

Lambic is a Belgian-style wheat beer which means that it's spiced with coriander and orange peel. It's unfiltered, therefore it's pale and cloudy in appearance. Hoegaarden is known for its distinctively smooth, sweet and sour taste. It lacks the bitterness and aftertaste typical of many lager style beers.

Rosée was introduced in 2007. It's available regionally, in the Benelux countries, Belgium, Luxemburg and Netherlands. Its origins date back to 1445 and it's generally regarded as the original classic of its type.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoegaarden_Brewery

The De Kluis,The Cloister, brewery is open every day from 10:30 to 18:30 (6:30). It's located on Stoopkensstraat 24 in Hoegaarden, Belgium.

Information and bookings can be found at www.interbrew.com or at phone number 016/76.98.23. The tour costs 3.80€ (153 Belgian Francs) for adults and 2.50€ (101 Belgian Francs) for the under 25 age group.

An A B/trip ticket is available at all Belgian Railway Stations and the price includes train, bus and entrance fees.
http://www.hoegaarden.org.uk/brewery.asp

Interbrew through Stella Artois, took over the Hoegaarden brewery in 1987 to save them from going out of business after a fire nearly destroyed the brewery.
http://www.hoegaarden.org.uk/history.asp

Stella Artois, means Star and Artois is the name of the founder. It's a pale lager;

Everywhere I've been in Flanders, I've seen the Stella Artois signs outside pubs and restaurants, more so than any other beer.

The beer starts out as a mellow flavor, then is very bitter with a bitter aftertaste. About 5 minutes later there's a more pleasant mellow aftertaste.

With a brewing heritage dating back to 1366 in Leuven, Belgium, Stella Artois is a classic European Lager. Traditional malted barley and European hops give Stella Artois its particular quality and flavor.
http://www.thecheesecakefactory.com/menu/beers/

It began in the Belgian city of Leuven with a brewery called Den Horen, The Horn, and a brewing tradition dating back to 1366. In 1717, master brewer Sebastian Artois purchased the brewery. Over 600 years later Stella Artois is the number 1 Belgian beer in the world and sold in over 80 countries.
http://www.stellaartois.com/Info.aspx?infomode=history

Brugge is the location of the next beer on the list. Known as the Venice of the North, Brugge is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe.
http://www.brugge.be/internet/en/toerisme/index.htm

Brugge was a prominent seaport in the Middle Ages until its access was silted in and was no longer useful for shipping, which then moved to Antwerp. All of the later European development bypassed the city and it languished, forgotten until it was rediscovered by tourism. Because it was passed over by the industrial
revolution it's historical buildings were preserved intact since there was no money to renovate, modernize, update or to replace them. One of my distant ancestors, Emperor Charles V Count of Flanders came from Brugge and became one of the Holy Roman Emperors.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brugge

Brugse Zot means fool of Bruges. Its type isn't designated;

In 2005 De Halve Maan brewery, The Half Moon, after having been shut down, came back to life with the introduction of a brand new beer called Brugse Zot. Xavier Vanneste completely renovated the brewery and developed a unique new recipe for a beer which uses four different kinds of malt and two varieties of hop. I found the beer strong tasting with a lot of hops. It's dry and bitter.

Brugse Zot has the distinction of being the only beer brewed in the center of Brugge. It's from the one remaining brewery from among about twenty original brewries that were located in Brugge.
http://beer-brewing.suite101.com/article.cfm/beer_in_bruges#ixzz0TxdpRMKB
http://beer-brewing.suite101.com/article.cfm/beer_in_bruges

Brugse Zot is the product of the traditional brewery De Halve Maan, whose earliest date is 1546. It's a beer of high fermentation made of malt, hops and yeast.

The De Halve Maan brewery offers guided tours:

April-October : 10 a.m.-4 p.m. (to 5 p.m. on Saturdays).
October-March : Weekdays, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.. weekends to 4 p.m.
Group visits are by request.

The cost of the tours are 5,50 euro, one beer included, for adults and 2,75 euro for 6-12 years.

Brouwerij De Halve Maan is located on Walplein 26 in 8000 Brugge, Belgium. Their phone number is +32 50 33 26 97 and their website is www.halvemaan.be.
http://www.brugge.be/internet/en/toerisme/bezienswaardigheden/brouwerijen.htm

Rodenbach is the name of the founders. It is a foederbie beer, a Flemish Red Ale;

This beer has a strong, mellow flavor combination with a fruity citric taste. This is a very pleasant drinking beer. Rodenbach is blended from aged and young ale.

Rodenbach was a brewery and a brewing family from Roeselare, Belgium. The brewery is now owned by Palm Breweries.

In 1821, four Rodenbach brothers, Pedro, Alexander, Ferdinand and Constantijn invested in a small brewery in Roeselare, in the West Flanders province of Belgium.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodenbach

Brouwerij Rodenbach is a brewery representative of sour red-brown beers of mixed fermentation, that are characteristic for the south of Flanders. During the two-year rest in oak casks Rodenbach matures like wine. Some of the 300 oak casks in the brewery are 150 years old.

The Palm Breweries Roeselare site for Brouwerij Rodenbach is located on Spanjestraat 133-141, in
8800 Roeselare, Belgium. Their telephone is +32 (0)51 27 28 10. Their fax is +32 (0)51 22 92 48. They can also be contacted at info@rodenbach.be and http://www.rodenbach.be.
http://www.palmbreweries.com/en/index.php?n=11

Visitors will learn about the diversity of Belgian beers and discover the unique world of Rodenbach. The tours are set in the brewery site with a multimedia museum about this beer and the special Rodenbach family. The cathedral contains approximately 300 oak casks for Rodenbach to mature in 24 months.

They also have other contact numbers at phone number, 052.31.74.14 and fax 052.31.23.44. They also have a special email for requesting tour information at visit.rodenbach@palmbreweries.com.

The brewery is open Monday through Thursday.

Group bookings (minimum 15 people - minimum 20 people in the evening) and reservations must be made in advance using an on-line reply form. Tours are € 165.00 per group of 15 to 50 people.
http://www.palmbreweries.com/en/index.php?n=1052

Sources:

http://www.belgian-beer.net/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belgian_beer#Belgian_beer_types

http://www.bierebel.com/brasserie.php?id=68

http://www.kasteelbier.be.

http://www.inbev.be

http://www.ab-inbev.com/go/brands/brand_portfolio/local_brands/belle_vue.cfm

http://www.bierebel.com/brasserie.php?id=123

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoegaarden_Brewery

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoegaarden

http://www.interbrew.com

http://www.hoegaarden.org.uk/brewery.asp

http://www.hoegaarden.org.uk/history.asp

http://www.thecheesecakefactory.com/menu/beers/

http://www.stellaartois.com/Info.aspx?infomode=history

http://www.brugge.be/internet/en/toerisme/index.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brugge

http://beer-brewing.suite101.com/article.cfm/beer_in_bruges#ixzz0TxdpRMKB

http://beer-brewing.suite101.com/article.cfm/beer_in_bruges

http://www.halvemaan.be.

http://www.brugge.be/internet/en/toerisme/bezienswaardigheden/brouwerijen.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodenbach

http://www.rodenbach.be.

http://www.palmbreweries.com/en/index.php?n=11

http://www.palmbreweries.com/en/index.php?n=1052