# Beer in Brussels **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** beer\ **Created:** [April 29, 2017, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beer-in-brussels/785515 "2017-04-29T18:42:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2017, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beer-in-brussels/785515/1 "2017-04-29T18:42:14Z")
In Brussels for the weekend (visiting family). Didn’t have much time to explore, but someone recommended I try Duvel, and wow was it good. Best Belgian beer I’ve ever had - perfect balance of malt with a tad bit of sweetness. I’ll be looking for it back home! ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2017, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beer-in-brussels/785515/2 "2017-04-29T19:03:25Z")
> **[Trappist beer](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trappist_beer)** > > Trappist beer is brewed by Trappist monks. Thirteen Trappist monasteries—six in Belgium, two in the Netherlands, and one each in Austria, Italy, England, France, and Spain—currently produce beer, but the Authentic Trappist Product label is assigned by the International Trappist Association (ITA) to just ten breweries which meet their strict criteria. As of 2021\[update\], Achel is no longer recognized as a Trappist brewery because it does not have any living monks. > The Catholic Trappist order orig... Westvleteren is the Trappist of a beer snob’s choice. Might be hard to find the 12 without travel? ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2017, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beer-in-brussels/785515/3 "2017-04-29T20:17:31Z")
Duvel shouldn’t be too hard to find. BevMo ought to have it, at least. I’m not sure how well it travels. Some beers lose quite a bit in the trip across the Atlantic, when compared to drinking them more or less straight from the source. Having never had Duvel in Belgium though, I can’t say how it compares… ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2017, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beer-in-brussels/785515/4 "2017-04-29T23:11:07Z")
BevMo is only in CA, WA, AZ, though they do ship. Btw, Chimay is the easiest Trappist to get in the US. It comes in red, blue, and white label varieties, IIRC the last was my favorite. Orval and Westmalle are pretty common in my experience, as is La Trappe (Netherlands though). Among non-Trappist, Stella Artois is very common and meh. Hoegaarden is pretty easy to find. ---
**Author:** ![neofishboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/neofishboy/32/444_2.png) [@neofishboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neofishboy)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2017, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beer-in-brussels/785515/5 "2017-04-30T00:18:05Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > [Trappist beer - Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trappist_beer) > > Westvleteren is the Trappist of a beer snob’s choice. Might be hard to find the 12 without travel? I went to a tasting a few years back hosted by a dude who, among other things, had scored a bottle of Westy 12. We did a Pepsi challenge with it against Rochefort 10 (widely distributed in the U.S) and there was no clear winner. That being said, if I were to find myself in Brussels you can be damn sure I’d take a trip to Saint Sixtus Abbey. Bear in mind that those are both Belgian Quads, which Duvel is very much not. ---
**Author:** ![witzel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/edb3f5/32.png) [@witzel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/witzel)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2017, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beer-in-brussels/785515/6 "2017-05-01T18:45:28Z")
Westvleteren isn’t distributed in the US, aside from a gift pack containing a couple bottles of the 12 plus a glass that the monks created in order to raise funds for needed repairs at the monastery. The monks release one type of beer any given day at the monastery. It’s not often going to be the 12. It’s typically the 6 or… I think 8, maybe it’s a 10. At any rate, you can’t guarantee the 12. If you like Belgian quadrupels, the St. Bernardus Abt 12, widely available stateside, is a very close approximation of the Westvleteren 12. It isn’t trying to copy that beer, it’s just very very similar profile. Duvel is very easy to find. Ignore the Green and make sure you get the original recipe. Duvel-Moortgat bought Ommegang a few years ago, and while it’s more common for the Ommegang brands to be brewed in the Belgian Duvel brewery, the reverse also happens when demand requires. TL;DR, Duvel in both the 33cl and 750ml formats is in any decent bottle shop. ---
**Author:** ![glas\_onion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9dc877/32.png) [@glas\_onion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glas_onion)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2017, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beer-in-brussels/785515/7 "2017-05-02T14:49:52Z")
A tour of [Cantillon](https://www.cantillon.be/?lang=en)Brewery is always good, you get to taste some pretty amazing Lambics and Geuezes at the end of it. Even if they aren’t brewing at the moment (they can only brew in low temperatures), the brewery is still open for self-guided tours. I particularly enjoy the sour side of Belgian brewing as opposed to the sweet, hugely malty offerings like Duvel. ---
**Author:** ![DrumBum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e79b87/32.png) [@DrumBum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrumBum)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2017, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beer-in-brussels/785515/8 "2017-05-02T15:29:56Z")
I used to rotate through Brussels. It is a nice little town to walk around in. Be sure to stop by the [Manneken Pis](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manneken_Pis) :eek: