Belgian Beer - History & Background

There are 125 breweries in Belgium where 500 different types of Belgian Beer are brewed each year. The art of brewing beer has been carried out in this European country since the Middle Ages and initially it was only carried out by monks in monasteries. Now Belgium is a country where the most varied number of beers are brewed each year.

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.

It is this fermentation process which provides this particular variety of beer with its very distinctive flavor, which some people may dislike. It is very dry, vinous and cidery which results in it having a somewhat sour aftertaste.

Fruit Beers - These are made using Lambic beer and will contain either a fruit concentrate or fresh fruit in them. The most commonly produced and drunk of the fruit beers is Kriek which contains cherries, but there are many other varieties including those made using blackcurrants, raspberries and peaches. Once the fruit has been added to the Lambic beer a second fermentation process takes place.

White Beers - These Belgian beers are very popular in Belgium and the main ingredients used in them are wheat hops and spices along with orange peel and coriander. But there are many different varieties of this beer, each with their own distinctive flavor which comes from the various different brewing methods and ingredients used by the breweries in its manufacture.