10 Brews That Belgium Is Famous For

10 Brews That Belgium Is Famous For

Belgium is well-known for its extensive range of beer styles. If you go to Belgium you need to taste at least one of their brews. Most of the brews in the city are made naturally. Some of the international brewery companies in Belgium include AB InBev. You can also find traditional breweries such as Trappist monasteries.

In this article, I have discussed 10 famous brews in Belgium such as pale ales, stouts, Flemish red ales, and strong ales among others. Read this article to the end and get to understand better about Belgium Brew. It is good to note Belgians drink 68 litres of beer each year.

1. Pale Ales

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Belgian pale ales are lighter in color, lower in alcohol, and more hoppy than many other Belgian beer styles. Popular brands are De Koninck and De Dolle Brouwers. They have a crisp, bitter taste from noble hops like Saaz. But Belgian pale ales still taste less hoppy than American IPAs. The hops create a floral, spicy flavor that balances the Belgian yeast taste.

Belgian pales ales often use pilsner malt to achieve a golden color and light body. Despite their name, Belgian pale ales carry deliciously complex malt and yeast flavors. Their hoppiness is restrained enough to let the malt and yeast shine. Belgian pale ales marry the drinkable bitterness of pale ales with distinctive Belgian flair.

2. Lambic Beers

Lambic beers are an old Belgian style made around Brussels. They are spontaneously fermented with wild yeasts in open vats. This process gives lambics a sour, funky flavor. Common lambic styles are gueuze, which blends young and old lambics, and kriek, made with cherries. Cantillon is one famous lambic brewery. Lambics are tart and dry from the wild fermentation.

Their sour taste is an acquired flavor that some people love. The brewing process for lambics is very unusual compared to other beers. Everything happens naturally with local airborne yeasts and no added brewer’s yeast. This gives lambics their unique sour Belgian flavor.

3. Flemish Red Ales

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Flemish red ales are aged, sour beers from the Flanders region of Belgium. Popular brands are Rodenbach and Duchesse de Bourgogne. These reddish-brown ales are fermented with yeast and bacteria that give them a sour taste. The beers are aged for over a year in oak barrels, which add wood flavors. The sourness comes from lactic acid produced by the bacteria.

 Red malt is used to give beer its color. Brewers blend young beer with barrel-aged beer to get the perfect flavor complexity. The sour taste gives Flemish reds a unique character, unlike other Belgian ales. Their sweet, sour, fruity, oaky flavors make Flemish reds a beloved Belgian specialty.

4. Strong Ales

Belgian strong ales have very high alcohol content. It is usually above standard measure of how alcohol is contained in a given volume of an alcoholic beverage which is 5% abv and mostly ranges between 7% to 11% abv. They often have floral, fruity flavors from the Belgian yeast used. The high alcohol gives a warming taste.

Belgian strong ales get their extra alcohol from added sugar during brewing. This makes them very strong, sometimes over 10 percent alcohol but still tasty. The combination of light color, lots of carbonation, and high alcohol makes Belgian strong ales unique. Drinking them is a flavorful experience.

5. Stouts

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Belgian stouts are a unique style of stout beer brewed in Belgium. They often have exotic spices and flavors added like milk stout, oatmeal stout, imperial stout, and dry stout. Belgian stouts are darker, richer, and sweeter than Irish stouts.

Spices, chocolate, coffee, or caramel are also sometimes added to create complex flavors. The smooth, creamy taste of Belgian stouts comes from their silky roasted malt character and full mouthfeel. Belgian brewers put their own spin on stouts to make them distinct from the traditional Irish dry stouts. Belgian stouts offer a pleasantly different stout experience.

6. Belgian Bubbels

Belgian Bubbels refer to a variety of Belgian beers that are known for their effervescence and bubbly texture. They are often bottle-conditioned, meaning the carbon dioxide that provides the bubbles is a natural byproduct of the fermentation process. The beers are then aged in the same bottles, allowing the yeast to continue working and carbonating the beer.

Their high carbonation and bright, fruity flavors have made them iconic examples of Belgian brewing tradition and they have contributed greatly to Belgium’s renowned reputation in the beer world.

7. Belgian Triples

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Belgian triple beers are a strong, pale ale style. A well-known example is Westmalle Tripel. Belgian triples have higher alcohol content, around 7 to 10 percent ABV. They are made with pale malt so have a light golden color.

The flavor is complex from spicy Belgian yeast. Though high in alcohol, the taste remains smooth and easy to drink. The term “triple” refers to their very high strength compared to dubbel or single Belgian beers. Belgian triples offer robust flavor in a strong but sip-able brew.

8. Trappist Beers

Trappist beers are one of the most famous types of beer brewed in Belgium. They are made by monks in Trappist monasteries. There are only 12 Trappist monasteries in the world that brew beer, and 6 of them are in Belgium. Some famous Trappist beer brands from Belgium are Chimay, Orval, Rochefort, and Westvleteren.

Trappist beers often have deep, complex flavors. The monks make them with great care and tradition. Trappist breweries keep making the beers the old way instead of modernizing. Trappist beers are considered extra special because of how and where they are made by the monk brewers in Belgium.

9. Saison

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Saison beers originated as a seasonal ale brewed for Belgian farmworkers to drink during summer. Saison Dupont is a famous example. Saisons are crisp, dry, and fruity from the Belgian yeast used. They have a soft malt flavor and light hop bitterness. Spices like black pepper are sometimes added which give a spicy or earthy taste.

The hint of funk from the yeast plus the dry, tart finish makes saisons refreshing. They are stronger in alcohol than typical beers but very drinkable. Originally made to be consumed fresh at harvest time, saisons had to survive hot weather before refrigeration. This history gives Belgian saisons unique flavors as a classically rustic ale.

10. Fruit Beers

Fruit beers are a Belgian specialty. Many breweries in Belgium make beers with real fruit flavor added. Popular fruits used are cherries, raspberries, strawberries, and plums. The Lindemans brewery is famous for its fruit lambics. They add whole fruit to spontaneously fermented lambic beer to make kriek (cherry), framboise (raspberry), and other fruity lambics.

Mort Subite is another brewery known for fruit beers like their Kriek Lambic which tastes like cherries. The fruit adds a nice sweetness and fruity aroma to balance the sourness in many Belgian beers. The fruit flavors give Belgian beers like these a delicious and unique taste compared to other styles. Fruit beers are a tasty Belgian tradition.