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Which is the most innovative beer country? It's not Belgium according to Patrick Gengler who is writing a series about what drives innovation in beer
The Belgians may have stopped reading already since I said something 'bad' about their beer, but I didn’t mean it in a harsh way and I want to make it perfectly clear that I think they have some of the best beer out there. Here’s my beef with Belgian beer. EVERY BREWERY HAS THE SAME DAMN BEER. There are outliers of course (Duvel’s triple hop, Straffe Hendrick’s wild, Cantillion {pretty much everything}). Seriously though, you will find the same beers at most of the breweries there: A blonde beer, a dubbel, a tripel, a strong dark/quadrupily thingy and maybe a fruit lambic. I like all of those beers, I’m not trying to save face, I really do; but dammit man, brew some more styles of beer. I have every respect for the brewing history in Belgium. The history of Trappist breweries and how they came to Belgium is fascinating. But from my perspective, they aren’t doing much to stay up with the times.
The really entertaining thing about this refusal to remain relevant is that most of today’s most amazing brewers are using some fancy kit at a brewery called De Proef in Belgium. It’s like a safe haven for gypsy brewers from (more often than not) Scandinavian countries, and the rest of the world. I am not entirely sure why they use the kit at De Proef but my guess is that it’s much easier to distribute throughout Europe.
De Proef aside, the beer in Belgium is one iteration of the same style after the other and it can get a bit boring. Here’s the best bit though… they don’t have to brew all kinds of crazy stuff. That’s right, they have the world convinced (rightfully so) that they have the best beer culture in the world. They don’t need craft beer at all. My ranting and raving will fall on deaf ears because I think craft beer would fail in Belgium. It would fail in Belgium because there is so much national pride behind the traditional brewing culture.
Father’s Day, 19th June 2022, is the special date in the calendar when we celebrate and give a nod to the Dads in our lives. It’s an excuse to spoil them with a little something to say thank you for being awesome. If you’re looking for inspiration for a craft beer-loving Dad, then check out our top 7 Father’s Day beer gifts.
Every year, Beer Hawk releases a lineup of limited edition craft beer mixed cases for the holiday season. This year's lineup of festive Christmas beer gifts is guaranteed to put a smile on everyone’s face.
Remember the childhood excitement of opening a new door on your advent calendar every day in the run up to Christmas? It gave each day a little sparkle of festive magic, even though those tiny chocolates behind the doors were always a bit rubbish. How would you like to recapture that childhood magic, but with bottles of delicious beer instead of powdery chocolate? Sounds amazing, right? In that case, you need to get your hands on our Craft Beer Advent Calendar.
Pairing beer and food together isn’t all rules and science. That would make for a terribly boring dinner party! Instead, it’s the art of taking a good beer, some good food and partnering them together to make something even better. It’s the adventure of discovering what works, what doesn’t and what you like. It’s you taking a bite, taking a sip and then declaring your undying love for that imperial stout and chocolate cake.
Barrel-ageing beers is not a new thing, but it is getting more and more popular, and has probably never been as inventive. Adrian Tierney-Jones explores the new wave of ageing beer in wood
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