Belgian Beer

Today in Belgium there are 125 breweries which are now producing around 500 different types of Belgian Beer. The actual making of beer in this European country dates back to the Middle Ages when it was first being produced in monasteries and today remains the country with the most varieties of beer that one can drink.

The alcohol content of these beers is much higher than many other varieties from around Europe and some have a content as high as between 6 and 8 per cent. The reason for this being that a law was brought into force which prohibited the sales of spirits in public houses. At the time beer was classified as being a spirit and to get round this law breweries increased the alcohol content in them. However, this law was then lifted in 1983.

As mentioned there are around 500 different types of Belgian beer one can drink today and they fall into a number of different categories, below we take a look at what these are.

Trappist Beer - This is a beer which is brewed in one of 6 monasteries in Belgium and in order to qualify as being such a beer the complete brewing process is either carried out or overseen by Trappist monks at their monastery. On each bottle of beer appears the authentic Trappist Product Logo and this clearly indicates to the drinker that the monastery producing the beer has complied with various rules that have been laid down by the International Trappist Association.

Lambic Beer - This beer is unique to Belgium and produced through the spontaneous fermentation of wild yeasts and which grows in abundance near the country's capital Brussels. The actual fermentation process of this particular form of Belgian beer can take a considerable period of time. Some beers their fermentation period is 3 to 6 months, and for others the period is between 2 and 3 years.

Because of the fermentation process used which is quite unusual the flavor of the beer is very distinctive. It is dry, cider and vinous and will have an aftertaste that some people dislike because it is sour.

Fruit Beers - These beers are a variation of the Lambic beers and are made through adding either fresh fruit or fruit concentrate to the Lambic. The most commonly produced one is known as Kriek which is made using cherries but there are plenty of others made using fruits such as peaches, blackcurrants or raspberries. The fruit when added to the Lambic beer causes a second fermentation process to take place in the beer.

White Beer - This is the final Belgian beer we are going to be looking at and is made with wheat hops and also contains spices. Most of these beers are generally made using orange peel and coriander in them but dependent upon the brewing method used and what ingredients are included within the process the various different types of white beer have their own distinctive flavors.