Apart from learning a dubious word for a rather rude word, allegedly Dutch in origin, much was learnt from a recent trip over to Brussels, especially about the glut of styles, flavours and histories of their excellent beers. The only real regret about the trip is that one’s liver, kidneys and belly can only take a certain amount of punishment before they decide that you’ve had enough and starting screaming at you… (well, your stomach tends to do it first!) so you can only try a finite amount of the drinks on offer in the various establishments around the city. After an initial snoop around some randomly chosen establishments and taking in some amber and blonde beers (including those which were brewed in-house at a more expensive gaff on grand place – still good, but overpriced) and then some bottled beers of varying styles at the Poechenellekelder [http://www.brusselspictures.com/2008/04/20/the-poechenellekelder/] (which happens to be right next to “Mannekin Pis”). We did return to this place on our final day, however if you visit be prepared to face a lot of creepy puppets adorning the walls and ceilings. There doesn’t seem to be a website for this bar, there are very mixed reviews floating around the internet; however and some are not very generous unfortunately. Our experience was very pleasant, although the server was a bit aloof and cold, his knowledge of the beers was spot on and the service was efficient. The beer menu was also very clear and categorised into amongst others Blond, Amber, Gueze/Lambics and Trappiste beers (as it was in many other places we visited it has to be said). I’d proffer that it is worth a visit to make your own mind up about the place, but in our trip the overall experience was a positive one. The most time spent in one bar was for the tourist trap that is the Delirium Café [http://www.deliriumcafe.be/]. The very long beer list which was standing at 2,004 different brands in January 2004 (as recorded in the The Guinness Book of Records – there’s a certificate on the wall down in the basement café) is rather remarkable. Over 60 countries are represented on the menu in there, including plenty of Belgian beers. The bar is in the small alley called Impasse de la Fidélité/Getrouwheidsgang just off Rue Des Bouchers. Délirium Café has been expanding internationally recently too, opening franchises in Rio De Janeiro (2010) and in Japan (2011). Even though the bar is incredibly busy later on in the evenings, especially at weekends, it is well worth a visit. The atmosphere was great and the different beers on offer provided a perfect foil for what was a slightly more lively venue compared to some of the other cafes and bars in Brussels. Upon receiving a text whilst meandering about some bars in the city on the Saturday afternoon, I was informed that I was needed across town in a bar called La Coq at 3pm. Finding it was a bit of an issue initially, but upon entering, our group were sat down and welcomed to our Beer Tour [http://www.localbrusselsbeertours.com/#features] by a gentleman by the name of Oscar. For the following 3 hours, we were taken to 3 different bars that we would have never ventured into had it not been part of our tour, but we were immensely glad that we did. Over the course of the afternoon, we tried no less than 8 beers (smaller measures, as I am sure you understand full bottles would have left us destroyed at 6% abv and counting up to 12%), including many I would have usually avoided based on their content and colour. Sticking to my own personal preferences for a beer wasn’t really an option, but I did however learn that ‘Tripel’ beers are usually of a lighter nature than ‘Doppel’ although with a higher alcohol content, some of the trappiste (beers brewed at Abbeys and sometimes tended by Monks or sponsored by them) beers with higher alcohol contents take on remarkable fruit characterists in their flavour. Halfway through the tour, some exceedingly pungent and ripe cheeses were wheeled out in front of us, tasty… but I couldn’t really abide the aroma of one or two of them. I can’t really recommend undertaking one of these tours enough, you’ll see a bit more of the city than you otherwise would and you’ll certainly get to know some new bars and new beers better than being left to your own devices. The tour guide (Oscar) even stayed behind when we offered to buy him a drink as we enjoyed our tour so much. At Є35-40 some people might think it a bit on the steep side, but for 3 hours of someone’s time who will definitely provide you with an education and some tasty drinks and cheese; it really is rather good! Ethiopian restaurant (Kokob) [http://www.kokob.be/] was a pitstop for a Sunday afternoon spot of lunch (or more accurately, brunch, due to our revelry the night before taking a relatively heavy toll). Have eaten this cuisine before, I was still pleasantly surprised at the quality on offer. The style of service is highly unusual, from a complimentary amuseé bouche of spiced lemon rice to the platter brought to us with the base Injera (Millet bread – similar if you can imagine a very large Staffordshire oatcake you get in British supermarkets?) onto which all the lentil, lamb, cheese and spinach dishes were placed. If you ever have the opportunity to try Ethiopian cuisine I would recommend it; it is a very sociable way to have your dinner! Make sure you follow up with a traditional coffee too, you might be bouncing around a little afterwards but it definitely was an added positive to a great experience.
In your face (as they say in Brussels apparently, I forget the Flemish phrases exactly – it’s a direct translation, trust me). Pedro. x
2 Comments
|
Archives
April 2022
Archives
April 2022
Click ^ the RSS Feed to follow me
Categories
All
|