Belgians do it better. Festivals.

Having recently discovered the fascinating world of Lambic craft beer, it is with great eagerness that we flew to Brussels for a four days trip at the end of April 2016. Low-cost flights are easily found from Barcelona. And what a better timing than having the chance to celebrate two special beer festivals during our trip.

Moeder Lambic Fontainas

We started off with a little tour in the city centre. Then straight to our first beer stop: Moeder Lambic Fontainas. They offer a great selection of Lambics and other styles alike. So, just relax and let the experienced waiters make their recommendation. Glass in hand, sit back and enjoy your beer. They have about 40 beers on tap and more choices in bottle as well. Various glass size are available, so you can sample many different beers if you like.

Au Daringman

After wondering around, we stopped at Ellis Gourmet Burger for a fine dinner. Of course, accompanied with some Extra Belgian Beer, tasty! Next stop was Au Daringman, a cozy retro bar attracting an undoubtedly Flemish and boho clientele. Tucked in between two tables we had our first Geuze Boon at a very decent price – in comparison with the inflated price for Lambic craft beer outside Belgium.

Zythos craft beer festival

The next day we woke up early to catch our train to Leuven. Destination was ZYTHOS Beer Festival, the largest beer festival in Europe. Attracting more than 100 brewers in and around Belgium, with 500 different beers available for tasting and some 16,000 visitors, it is one of its own kind.

The festival is hosted in an impressively huge fair hall. The organization is excellent. From transportation, food, location and recreation, nothing is left at random.

The system is pretty straightforward: a 10cl glass and € 1 tokens each, with every beer costing only one token. We were in for a treat! We cannot recall here all the beers we tasted, but rest assured we covered all styles and colors imaginable.

Lambiekfestival

Our trip wouldn’t have been whole with not only one, but two beer festivals in the same week-end. Perfect for our Zythos hangover, Lambiekfestival has proven to be just what we needed to get up and drinking again. A very low-key and underground festival located in the visitor centre De Lambiek, in Beersel, we were able to discover, taste and learn all the secrets of Lambic craft beer, Geuze and Kriek from the Senne valley and the Pajottenland! All in all, with an unmistakable local feeling – we were the only foreigners attending that day – we enjoyed a sunny-ish day with regional music and food.

Brasserie Cantillon

Our last day was spent visiting Cantillon brewery located right in Brussels city, a must. A family tradition, the Cantillon family has been brewing Lambic craft beer since 1900. Since then, nothing has changed in this humble brewery: beers, tools, machines and manufacturing processes are kept original.

After a self-guided tour of the brewery, you can sit and enjoy Cantillon’s finest Lambic, Geuze and Kriek beers right from the source. To begin with, we tasted a raspberry Cantillon Kriek. We ended with a shared Lou Pepe Geuze bottle, a blend of three different 2-year-old lambics. The special Lou Pepe blend has much more of the taste of old lambic, which is drier, sourer and more complex than the younger lambics.

Before leaving, don’t forget to stop by the entrance counter. There, you will find an exclusive selection of Cantillon branded t-shirts, posters and other souvenirs.

We’ve enjoyed discovering Brussels and it’s unique beer tradition, so present in everyday culture. Whereas in Spain wine is the clear winner, beer in Belgium has a long and unique tradition, it has even been declared intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO.

BARS WITH LAMBIC CRAFT BEER IN BRUSSELS

Lastly, we hope you enjoyed and if you want to read more about Brussels craft beer scene check out this post. As usual, here is our list of bars and breweries to discover in the city: