Belgium Beer

Belgium is, almost certainly, the country with the greatest brewing tradition in the world. With more than 400 varieties of local beers, there are more than 1,000 national beer brands in this European country. Regarding the consumption of beer, the per capita figure is 100 litres per year; in Spain, consumption is 47 litres per inhabitant.

Trappist beers

The Trappists are the best-known Belgian beers around the world. They are of excellent quality, characterized by their high grade; They have between 7 and 11 degrees, depending on the brand. Also, unlike other types of beer, the Trappists are not served cold.

One of the main attractions of the Trappist beers is that they have been able to maintain the tradition for thousands of years. Even today, its production is still in the hands of the monks, who make them follow the recipe of the Middle Ages.

To be an authentic Trappist beer, you must have a series of requirements, which are the following:

The drink must have been brewed inside an abbey run by monks of the Cistercian Order of the Strict Observance.

The process of making this type of Belgian beer must always be supervised by the monks and must have been carried out according to its traditional recipe.

The profits of the beers are reinvested for the good of the community.

To date in the world, there are only 11 beers with this designation of origin, 6 of which are Belgian: Chimay, Orval, Westmalle, Rochefort, Achel, Westvleteren.

The latter, Westvleteren beer is extremely complicated to achieve. It is not for sale in any establishment or brewery, not even in Belgium. To be able to taste it, an appointment must be made with the abbey; Once there, you can only buy a single box per vehicle. Therefore, when one goes to Belgium it is practically obligatory to try a Trappist. In Brussels, and other cities of the country there are many breweries where it can be enjoyed.