What has Belgium ever done for you?

In my never ending onslaught in the search for perfect SEO you could be forgiven for thinking that the title of this post is baiting the likes of the tory unconsciousness and the fool lawmakers in a vain attempt to  criticise the EU.

It is more likely a clarion call or a symptom of my potential approaching curmudgeon-ness that I feel it is important to fly the tricolour of yellow, black and red and remind any naysayers that the produce of Belgium - a country roughly the size of beloved Yorkshire - is worthy of your full appreciation.

Belgian beers have had a surprisingly rough ride in terms of some beer geek opinion in the last few years and quite often in the trade, possibly because the bigger breweries have been enjoying significant commercial success. More likely because the revolution in craft brewing has come from some very bold revivalism and experimentation overseas involving some groundbreaking hop variants.

Many classic and many new generation Belgian beers are just as immediate as the beers hogging the bylines at present, and it's just one of the best ways in to beer appreciation that I know of. The other week I held a Trappist beer dinner with the help of Mr Ben Hodgkinson at the Cross Keys, it was really good fun and I was struck once again by the real big,  booming flavours of the Trappist oeuvre.

The last two weeks have been North's Lowlands festival and once again I've been rediscovering classics and discovering brilliant new beers. Yes the inclusion of some Dutch beers does point towards a lessening of the Belgian influence in the bar but what we stock regularly and during the festival is unrivalled in quality and complexity. Great Belgian bottled beer still holds pride of place in the first fridge and is the biggest selling bottled beer range we have. The likes of Struise, De La Senne, De Dolle, De Ranke, the Trappists,  produce beers brimming over with brilliant complexity.

There are poor beers of course but there are more classics and Great Beers than you can shake a stick at, they are held in such mighty reverence across the pond too

Of course all of this without even mentioning any lambics whatsoever.

I suppose the point I'm trying to make is that something does not become shit just because something different, flashy and new comes along. The very test of a thing is that is can withstand such avant guard onslaughts and come out smiling and twirling its moustache.

The Mad Brewers

Ahhh... De Dolle.

Wet and strong!

Anyone who combines the condition of insanity and the craft of brewing has my vote.

I'm an Englishman and as such, eccentricity is one of my favourite traits. The Belgians do it with aplomb. It's most likely something to do with the fact that their beers are so strong, they start drinking at around 10am and their first drink is likely something akin to a Duvel. The Belgian canon of ales is of course notably powerful, in favour and of course in alcoholic content. Whilst this clearly seems to disturb some people it's one of the things that makes Belgium so great at beer.

De Dolle don't fuck around in this department.

I remember clearly the last time I drank Stille Nacht I was in North bar with two friends, we had several of these 12% seasonal ales, we were somewhat 'euphoric'. I can remember deconstructing the flavours of the beer, I can remember that I was startled by a particular nuance of the beer. Something completely unexpected and utterly wonderful. I'm quite sure I evangelised for some time. So incredibly insightful I was to detect this!

I haven't a fucking clue what exactly that was. Which troubles me somewhat as I prepare to taste Stille Nacht once again.

It's like a liquid form of the marzipan that comes off a Christmas cake. Then it's like tropical fruit, then it's hoppiness and sherry alcohol combined. Sweetly intoxicating, incredible character, length and depth. I often describe beers so certain beers as 'Willy Wonka' beers. I always feel a little daft when saying it but I can't think of a better way to describe this kind of thing, such complex flavours that unfurl like the Wonka chocolate factory chewing gum.

Anyway, length, depth, strength, smooth body... That's the fucker... What I was thinking, about this time last year, was that every sip is different in this beer it just keeps going and gong. Now we have apricot, raspberry even and oloroso - its a real joy it really is.

De Dolle FTW £best number one brewery for me in Belgium.

Ha, so this hasv taken ages to write as my missus fell asleep after drinking a few sips of hers so I've had iy away and drunk it. And I'm just finished watching the Incrdibles which was quite fun.

Bedytime...

(spooling mistooks correct at time of going to press)

Get your stoats!!

Ahhh stout... it's probably my best friend, when all else fails a good stout works all year round. The optional additions to stout also rarely fail;

damson, oyster, port,

oats, lactose, coffee.

.

Yes... Full stop. As far as I'm concerned (at this very moment... unless proven otherwise) there is nothing else you worth adding to stout. Chocolate is the obvious one I suppose, but really, those utterly wonderful chocolate flavours in most cases are best obtained from the malt.

Every stout I've had with melty brown stuff added has been... Well... "shit". That's one of the things about beer, you can do a hell of a lot with the basic ingredients. Think about it for a minute, wine is made from grape juice, flavours may be added via barreling and blending different types of grape juice. The complexity and prestige of wine is well documented. Now look at beer you've usually got grain, water, yeast and hops... I'd say grain and hops in all their incarnations each have just as much complexity as grape juice... SO YOU"VE ALREADY GOT TWICE THE BLEEDING COMPLEXITY... There's no need to start filling it with fucking dairy milk...

Anyhow... Some additions work, not many but some, I've had some wonderful examples recently, Crown's collaboration with Zak Avery was one of the highlights of last year. A 'Double Damson' beer, the wonderfully named Django Reinhart (incidentally a name I chose for my last cat) was heady, deep and fruity with an inspired kick from Belgian yeast.

Other winners were Flying Dog's Gonzo Porter, Marble's Irish and Chocolate Stouts, Brooklyn Chocolate 08/09, De Dolle Stout plus HP's from Riverhead, Brown Cow and Elland AND a memorable espresso moment from Saints and Sinners - the delectable Insomniac!

So anyway that was supposed to be a review coz I got my laptop charger back so I'm... well... back. It got out of hand I admit.

Here's some drinking and writing.