Beer & Breweries Guides
24 guides
Antwerp and Bruges both put a working brewery within walking distance of the centre, which is why they suit a short break: De Koninck on Mechelsesteenweg runs an interactive tour, tasting and bar, while Bruges splits between Bourgogne des Flandres and the De Halve Maan classic and XL tours. Ghent keeps things compact too, with one city brewery, small-group tours and a beer boat along the canals.
Leuven works differently. Its tour-able brewery sits at Park Abbey, with craft brewers a bike ride into the suburbs, so tastings need a little planning. Elsewhere the beer leaves the city: Blanche de Namur is brewed at Brasserie du Bocq in Purnode, not in Namur, and Ypres only regained a municipal brewery when Kazematten reopened after a 35-year gap. Trappist names such as Chimay, Westvleteren and St Bernardus sit in monasteries and villages, so treat them as half-day detours rather than stop-ins.
Style vocabulary trips people up more than travel does. Knowing how dubbel, tripel, lambic, gueuze and Flemish red differ, and why each beer gets its own branded glass, turns a long menu into a short order.
Belgium
- Belgian Beer: Styles, Trappist Breweries and How to Drink It
- Brewery Tours in Belgium: Bruges, Leuven, Mechelen and Beyond
- Trappist Beer: What the Label Means and What to Order
- Antwerp Breweries: De Koninck Tours and the City's Beer Bars
- Belgian Beer Glasses: Chalices, Tulips and Flutes Explained
- Belgian Beer Styles Explained: Dubbel, Tripel, Witbier, Lambic and More
- Best Belgian Beers: A Style-by-Style Guide
- Brasserie Dupont, Tourpes: The Saison Brewery Explained
- Chimay Brewery: Scourmont Abbey and the Trappist Beers
- De Koninck Brewery, Antwerp: Tours, Tastings and the Bolleke
- Duvel: The Beer, the Brewery and Breendonk
- Het Anker Brewery, Mechelen: Gouden Carolus, Tours and the Brasserie
- Kwak Beer: The Coachman's Glass, Strength and How to Serve It
- Lambic Beer: How It's Made and Where to Taste It in Belgium
- Rodenbach Brewery: Flemish Red Ale, Oak Foeders and the Roeselare Visit
- St Bernardus Brewery in Watou: Tours, Beers and How to Visit
- Trappist Breweries in Belgium: Which Abbeys Welcome Visitors
- Westmalle Abbey and Beer: What Visitors Can See and Do
- Westvleteren: Buying the Beer and Visiting the Abbey
- Bruges Breweries: Brewery Visits and Beer Tasting in the City
- Ghent Breweries: Brewery Visits, Beer Tours and Tastings
- Leuven Breweries: Abbey Beer, Brewery Visits and Where to Taste Them
- Namur Beer: Blanche de Namur, Brasserie du Bocq and What to Drink
- Ypres Beer: Kazematten and Where to Drink Local Beers