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Inside Cantillon Beer Hawk's Patrick Gengler takes a pilgrimage to one of Belgium's most famous lambic breweries
Beer Hawk's Patrick Gengler takes a pilgrimage to one of Belgium's most famous lambic breweries
Belgium is a place of long, illustrious history, in both beer and war. The beer culture there, as I discussed in my article on innovation, is well established and the locals drink great beer on a daily basis, but Cantillon remains a secret to many. When you get off the train at the south Brussels station, there isn’t a whole lot around to suggest that one of the world’s most famous breweries is just around the corner. I learned that less than 10 per cent of the people who visit the brewery at Cantillon are Belgian. Even when a few blocks away from the relatively non-descript building (save for its famous logo hanging on the wall), you would be lucky to find a local who has ever heard of it, much less, one who could tell you where it is.
Once inside, the 'tap room' is dimly lit with the faint smell of sour beer wafting about. The tour was mostly self-guided, there are tours in French, Dutch, and English and they start about every 30 minutes or so. On the English tour, you are led into a room with mash-tuns from the 19th century, and there, the guide gives you a short history of the brewery and how the beer is made. Cantillon is another great story of a family owned and operated brewery that has been around for ages. They still use the brewing equipment purchased when the brewery first opened over 100 years ago which is mind-boggling in itself. They produce the geographically specific beer: lambic. Lambic is a spontaneously fermented ale that gets 'inoculated' by airborne yeast. Lambics were created in the Senne river valley, and it’s the only place on earth that this particular yeast lives. So to get a true lambic, you have to travel to the Brussels area to get one.
We like Cantillon for a few reasons. 1) They have been family owned and operated since they began more than a century ago. 2) They don’t produce a massive amount of beer; this makes it sought after. 3) They make some of the best representations of their styles we have ever tasted. Their standard kriek is the tastiest fruit beer I’ve had in a long time. Then they take it one step further with the Lou Pepe version and use a particular kind of cherry to accentuate the flavours of their lambic. Due to Cantillon’s limited availability, we only get our hands on a few cases once or twice a year. If you’d like to experience the delightful flavours of a properly brewed lambic based beer we have a few that will tease your taste buds until you can make the trip to Brussels. For kriek, we advise the Oude Beersel. For a traditional gueuze, we like the 3 Fontaine Oude Gueuze. For a stronger gueuze, we like Boon’s Marriage Parfait. Happy drinking, we hope to see you at the brewery someday!
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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