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145. Hambleton Nightmare

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Life isn’t all glamorous Belgian cafés, bars and breweries here at Threehundredbeers, you know. We’re not above a trip to a good old JD Wetherspoon pub from time to time, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

The Crosse Keys in the City of London’s Gracechurch Street, better known for its banking and insurance companies, is a blooming good Wetherspoon’s, in fairness. A bit of an old favourite of mine, this is a huge and rather grand drinking barn in the banking hall of the former Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank building. It’s all marble panelling and pillars, ornate clocks, and a ceiling so high you’d need a telescope to see it.

And beer, of course. Plenty of beer. I haven’t counted the handpumps but there are basically loads, dispensing a multitude of cask-based liquids, generally in very fine condition indeed. Today that includes Nick Stafford’s Hambleton Nightmare.

Hambleton Nightmare at The Crosse Keys, London

Hambleton Nightmare is listed in the Porters and Stouts section of The Book, and I’d say it looks more the former, pouring a very appealing dark ruby colour with a minimal tan head. I wonder if up in its native North Yorkshire this one would typically be sparkled, but that apparently isn’t how we do things down south.

Nightmare is relatively light bodied and easy drinking for such a dark beer, so again I’m leaning towards this being a Porter. It’s pretty uncompromising in terms of flavour, though. This is a hugely tangy, fruity beer, perhaps reminiscent of those malty Scottish ales, albeit with a great deal more hop bitterness.

There’s a big, rich bonfire toffee darkness too, which reminds me of the previous beer covered here, the Gouden Carolus Classic, though again the extra hops make it quite a different beer.

This was a great, thoroughly drinkable pint. All credit to ‘Spoon’s, it’s in great nick here, and at an eminently reasonable £3.25 you’re unlikely to find a better deal in the City. Good stuff.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Hambleton Ales, Melmerby, North Yorkshire
Style: Porters and Stouts
Strength: 5.0% ABV
Found at: The Crosse Keys, Gracechurch Street, London EC3V
Serving: Cask, pint

144. Anker Gouden Carolus Classic

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As this particular Brussels adventure draws to a close, what better way to bookend the trip than with a return visit to Poechenellekelder, back where we started with De Dolle Arabier a couple of days ago.

It’ll be a good opportunity to fortify ourself for the trek home with one last croque monsieur, and to pick off a final beer from the list, Anker Gouden Carolus Classic.

Anker Gouden Carolus Classic at Poechenellekelder, Brussels

Brouwerij Het Anker are based in Mechelen, Belgium and the Classic is one of several beers in their Gouden Carolus range, named after the golden coins of Belgian-born Roman emperor Charles V.

It’s certainly a change from the usual Belgian blonde beers. Dark and sinister with a small tan froth, it’s more reminiscent of a porter. It smells that way too, with smoky tobacco aromas alongside generous helpings of dates and other rich dried fruits.

The counter at Poechenellekelder, Brussels

Gouden Carolus Classic is remarkably easy drinking, and certainly doesn’t taste its full 8.5% strength. Instead it’s smooth and creamy with a tiny bit of sweetness that’s almost reminiscent of a milk stout. That smokiness is evident in the flavour, as are lashings of singed bonfire toffee and liquorice notes.

I like this one. It’s the perfect beer to soothe your system after a hard couple of days of Belgian research, but it would also go very well with rich stews or game.

And with that, we bid farewell to Poechenellekelder and to Brussels for the time being. I don’t think there’s any doubt that we shall return.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Brouwerij Het Anker, Mechelen, Belgium
Style: Old Ales, Barley Wines and Vintage Ales
Strength: 8.5% ABV
Found at: Poechenellekelder, Rue du Chêne, Brussels, Belgium
Serving: 330ml bottle

143. Cantillon Rosé de Gambrinus

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It’s day three in Brussels, and you certainly didn’t think I would come all this way without a return visit to Cantillon. I toured Cantillon last year, and very much enjoyed the Kriek, a sour, cherry-infused version of their world famous Geuze.

There sadly wasn’t time to repeat the tour this time, so you’ll have to make do with my words and pictures from last year, a morning when I practically had this venerable beery mecca to myself.

In a pleasing turn of events, there are still three Cantillon beers to be covered, and the thirsty beer pilgrim can sample this one, the Rosé de Gambrinus in the tasting rooms for a couple of euros. Let’s order a glass, steer clear of the deathtrap furnace in the middle of the room, and pull up a barrel.

Cantillon Rosé de Gambrinus at Brasserie Cantillon, Brussels

The Rosé de Gambrinus is a very similar style of beer to the Kriek. Like that one, this is a Geuze, a bottle fermented blend of barrel-aged sour Lambic beers—a style in which Cantillon lead the world—infused with fruit, in this case raspberries.

And oh my, it’s good. It’s a shame the glass used here isn’t big enough to get your face right in there and fully enjoy the aroma, because it is fantastic. Face-puckering sourness laden with gorgeous raspberry fruit and the smell of generations of the same family perfecting their signature brewing style and technique.

To taste, it’s just a lovely beer. The sourness is pretty full on, but unlike the Kriek, which is made with sour cherries, the sweetness of the raspberries hits a perfect balance, without ever straying into Robinson’s cordial territory. Indeed the finish is long, tart and moreishly dry.

Initially light, zesty and refreshing, you imagine you could drink this all day, and yet it’s so complex that you’d still be discovering new depths to it at bedtime. Given that it’s not quite 11am yet and there is other business to attend to before we run for the Eurostar, we had probably better not try anyway.

We will, however, take advantage of the unnecessarily reasonable prices at the brewery shop—£6 for a 75cl bottle of Vigneronne would tempt you to leave London for good—and load up the rucksack with some treats to take home.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Brasserie Cantillon Brouwerij, Rue Gheude, Brussels, Belgium
Style: Lambic and Gueuze
Strength: 5.0% ABV
Found at: Cantillon Brewery, Brussels
Serving: Glass, poured from a 750ml bottle

142. Maredsous Bruin

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Since we’re at Café Bebo already, it seems like it would be rude not to see whether there’s anything else on the menu that may be of interest to us.

There is, of course, and it’s a strong, dark Abbey Beer brewed under the supervision of the Benedictine monks of the Abbaye de Maredsous, deep within the Walloon region, some distance south of Brussels.

Maredsous Bruin at Café Bebo, Brussel

We enjoyed the even stronger Maredsous Tripel at Lowlander back in London, but there’s something nice about finding a beer in its home country.

This is quite a different beer. The deep ruby brown colour is a giveaway, of course, as is a huge peppery aroma full of caramel and sinister dark fruits.

It’s lovely stuff too: rich, warming and packed with fruity date and raisin notes. The caramel is there in the flavour, but the beer isn’t oversweet. Instead there’s a satisfying, roasty coffee-like bitterness in the finish.

Maredsous Bruin is broadly similar to a Trappist Dubbel, such as the La Trappe Dubbel, though it’s darker, fuller bodied and a little stronger. Indeed, the respectable 8% ABV strength isn’t hidden, but really doesn’t need to be. This was always going to be a beer to take your time over and savour slowly. It would make a great winter or after-dinner beer, though sat in a Brussels café on a spring afternoon was just fine too.

Café Bebo, Brussels

I think that’s all of the beers we need from Café Bebo, but that won’t stop me dropping by any time I’m in Brussels. I’m rather fond of the place, and it’s been pleasing to finally work it into the blog.

A special word of thanks must go to The Beer Boutique, a cracking beer shop in Putney, London. My minimal tasting notes from the afternoon at Café Bebo reflect the fact that 24 hours researching beer in Brussels will take its toll on a chap. The Beer Boutique kindly got this one in stock at short notice, allowing me to cobble together something resembling a blog post. My thanks to them for that.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Abbaye de Maredsous, Denée, Belgium
Strength: 8.0% ABV
Found at: Café Bebo, Place Rouppe, Brussels, Belgium
Serving: 330ml bottle

141. Silly Double Enghien Blonde

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Allow me to take you to one of my favourite little Brussels cafés, this time one just slightly off the well-trodden tourist trail.

I have a bit of a soft spot for Café Bebo on Place Rouppe, about halfway between central Brussels and the Eurostar terminus at Brussels Midi, since this was the first place in Belgium that I ever had a beer. It was a Saison Dupont in February last year, and very welcome it was too as I started to get my bearings in an unfamiliar city, and began to realise just how out of my depth I was language-wise.

Bebo is essentially just a street corner café in the continental style, and tends to be frequented more by Bruxellois regulars than by gawping sightseers like myself. That it has a well-chosen, if compact, beer list and does the cheesiest croque monsieur I’ve ever tackled does not hurt at all.

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There’s nothing particularly silly about Silly Double Enghien Blonde. Silly is a tiny village about 40 kilometres to the south east of Brussels, and is home to Brasserie de Silly, a small family-run brewery tracing its history back to 1850. One doesn’t tend to stumble upon their products too often and Café Bebo remains the only bar in which I’ve ever seen this one.

Double Enghien Blonde is a pretty typical 7.5% blonde beer in a broadly similar style to the De Dolle Arabier. It’s served here with the correctly-branded tulip glass, much as one comes to expect in this city.

Café Bebo, Place Rouppe, Brussels

There’s a big fat yeasty aroma, again not challenging expectations. That seems to be the theme with this one. If you’ve ever had a Belgian blonde beer such as the easily-obtainable Leffe, you know what it tastes like, though Double Enghien is of significantly higher quality.

My tasting notes from the day run to a few words: “standard Belgian blonde” and “a bit sweet”. Maybe I was tired, but back in London and sipping the bottle I brought home with me, I struggle to find a great deal more to say about it. I do detect some nice citrus notes though, in particular lemon zest, and chewy sultana fruit.

Either way, it’s nice enough, and was thoroughly welcome after a hard day trying to decipher the bewildering Brussels tram system, and several times almost learning the hard way that the green man at the pedestrian crossings in this city does not mean what you think it means.

Do be careful when crossing roads in Brussels.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Brasserie de Silly, Silly, Belgium
Style: Golden Ales
Strength: 7.5% ABV
Found at: Café Bebo, Place Rouppe, Brussels, Belgium
Serving: 330ml bottle

140. Saison de Pipaix

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It’s my second day in Brussels, and for some reason I’m behind schedule already. That the previous night’s visit to Poechenellekelder led to Moeder Lambic Fontainas and finally a nightcap and Kip Kap at A La Mort Subite may be a factor.

I’d hoped to make it to Delirium Café early. It’s a Brussels institution which boasts a beer menu the size of a telephone directory, and which claims to stock around 3,000 beers. The plan had been to arrive at opening time and ruthlessly tick off a half dozen or so of the required beers before the inevitable crowds of tourists arrive.

Delirium Café, Brussels

Instead, Threehundredbeers shambled its way down the stairs to Delirium’s cellar at around lunchtime, more in need of coffee and food than beer. Still, duty calls. As does an absolutely lovely glass of something I’ve never seen in the UK named Saison de Pipaix.

Saison de Pipaix at Delirium Café, Brussels

Saison is that uniquely Belgian style of beer that was brewed on farms at some point in the past to keep the workers hydrated, or at least to stop them complaining.

We previously met the archetype of the style, Saison Dupont. That’s a true classic beer, so this one—from a tiny steam-powered brewery—has a lot to live up to. Let’s take a seat at the bar and jab our fat fingers clumsily at the menu, rather than make a plonker of ourselves by trying to pronounce the name.

It’s a lively little so-and-so, this one. Highly carbonated due to natural fermentation in the bottle, the beer frothed all over the place on opening. The very experienced barman had anticipated this, and had a second bottle to hand. Of course, that one practically exploded too.

A couple of apologies and some expert beer husbandry later, Threehundredbeers was presented with a large tumbler of the stuff—nearly two bottles for the price of one—plus a small glass of the yeasty sediment for tasting. For the equivalent of about £2. Happy days.

And what beautiful stuff it is too. Saison de Pipaix is quite different to the Dupont: a great deal fuller-bodied and bursting with malty sweetness. Oddly enough I’m reminded of Young’s Special London Ale, an old favourite.

There are peppery hops and some interesting aniseed notes, and on sipping the little glass of yeasty gloop, there’s the tiniest hint of Brett-like sourness, which seems appropriate for a farmhouse-style beer. Flavour-wise, there’s a lot going on, which makes sense when you learn that Saison de Pipaix is brewed with the addition of countless things like anise, pepper and lichens.

Either way, this was a thoroughly restorative beverage, and very much hit the spot. A lovely beer in a fascinating bar. I’d have liked to stay a little longer, but was eager to make it to Brasserie de la Senne’s tap room, a tram ride away, before closing time. Still, it seems likely that this won’t be our last visit to Delirium Café.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: La Brasserie à Vapeur, Pipaix, Belgium
Style: Saison
Strength: 6.0% ABV
Found at: Delirium Café, Impasse de la Fidelité, Brussels, Belgium
Serving: 330ml bottle

139. De Dolle Arabier

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In the previous post, I hinted that a trip back to Poechenellekelder in Brussels might be on the cards, and so it happened that a very pleasant Sunday afternoon saw Threehundredbeers lumber off the Eurostar, blinking in the sunshine, and make straight for Rue du Chêne.

You may remember Poechenellekelder from such poorly-photographed beers as Pauwel Kwak and Bush Ambrée. It’s a unique place lined floor-to-ceiling with intriguing and occasionally macabre artefacts including puppets, musical instruments and various brewery-related memorobilia.

The café is a classic slice of Brussels and a cornerstone of the city’s beer tourist trail. And Threehundredbeers has a little unfinished business to which to attend regarding Poechenellekelder’s extensive beer menu.

De Dolle Arabier at Poechenellekelder

Founded sometime around 1980, De Dolle Brouwers (“The Mad Brewers”) are a relatively young brewery by Belgian standards, but their Arabier has become a bit of a modern classic. It’s classified as a Golden Ale in The Book, but it’s very much in the Belgian style, and nothing like some of the rather drab British entries.

You can tell it’s Belgian with one sniff, as that classic yeast is front and centre and, relatively unusually for a Belgian beer, there are big peppery hop aromas too.

Those hops contribute a huge, pleasing bitterness, lifting the beer clear of standard Belgian blonde territory. In fact the hop bitterness combined with the hefty 8% ABV payload means this one is perhaps more reminiscent of a Tripel than a Golden Ale, and that’s no bad thing.

There are mouthwatering grapefruit notes, and just the slightest sour hint suggesting a yeast such as Brettanomyces might be involved to a minor extent too, although it’s subtle enough that my inexperienced tastebuds couldn’t swear by it.

Either way, this is a hugely satisfying beer, complex and rich, although all of that combined meant that a second might have been a little overwhelming, at least in terms of flavour.

Instead, fed, relaxed, and pleased to be back in one of my favourite bars and favourite cities, I abandoned blogging duties for the evening and commandeered a gigantic 12% ABV Malheur 12°. But just the one: we’ve an early start and a busy day planned for tomorrow.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: De Dolle Brouwers, Esen, Belgium
Style: Golden Ales
Strength: 8.0% ABV
Found at: Poechenellekelder, Rue du Chêne, Brussels, Belgium
Serving: 330 ml bottle

137. Daleside Morocco Ale

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It’s a bank holiday here in the UK, which means a rare scheduled day off work for Threehundredbeers. It’s on occasions such as this that thoughts inevitably turn to beer, in particular the growing queue of bottles in the spare room.

This was a present from The Official Threehundredbeers Sister, who you may remember from such day trips as Burton-on-Trent. For a non-beer drinker, she’s remarkably good at finding these things, and it helps that she’s strategically located near to Beer Central, a great little beer shop on the new Moor Market in Sheffield.

Daleside Morocco Ale hails from Harrogate in Yorkshire and it’s a beer that I’ve never seen down here in London, so I was very pleased to get my hands on it.

Daleside Morocco Ale

It’s described as a “strong dark spiced and mysterious ale brewed to the secret ancient recipe held at Levens Hall for over 300 years”. It is apparently ideal as a dinner beer, but that won’t stop Threehundredbeers cracking it open in the middle of the afternoon.

Daleside Morocco Ale pours a very deep dark ruby red colour and there’s a nice layer of tan foam sat on the top. There’s a rich malty aroma packed with dates, raisins and fruitcake notes.

The beer has a big, malty and slightly sticky body full of rich bonfire toffee and black treacle flavours. I can imagine this one being particularly well suited to the winter months, but the fact that the sun is actually out doesn’t hurt at all.

It’s claimed that the recipe dates from the time of Elizabeth I, and while my tastebuds aren’t sufficiently well-tuned to detect exactly which spices or other ingredients are in there, ginger and nutmeg spring to mind. The Book mentions that meat was once part of the recipe, in order to sustain the yeast while the beer was matured for 21 years.

The Morocco Ale is now meat-free, in case that puts you off, and aged for a great deal less time. Still, I like this one. The richness means I probably couldn’t manage more than one but I’m very pleased to have tried what is a unique and very interesting beer.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Daleside, Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England
Style: Beers made with Fruit, Spices, Herbs and Seeds
Strength: 5.5% ABV
Found at: Beer Central, The Moor Market, Sheffield, South Yorkshire
Serving: 500ml bottle

138. Caracole Troublette

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Here’s a beer that’s been sat around the house, and indeed somewhat neglected for a while since it arrived in a case from Beers of Europe a year or so ago.

Whilst I’m not typically a great fan of the Belgian-style Wheat Beers, I’ll keep an open mind. I have tried one Caracole beer, their Ambrée, at Poechenellekelder in Brussels, and it was very good indeed.

Let’s give this one a chance.

Caracole Troublette

There’s that slightly murky golden colour so typical of the style, though it’s a little less cloudy than some, despite a reasonably hard pour to make sure any yeast gets in there, which appears to be the done thing.

It smells distinctly Belgian: when it comes to beer, Belgium is all about the yeast, and as expected it’s prominent here.

To my surprise, I actually rather like this one. It’s light but not as watery as the Blanche de Namur. If anything, it’s a little more like a standard Belgian blonde than any wheat beer I can remember.

There’s an interesting citrus tang in there, and I wonder if Troublette contains a hint of orange peel, which is a common addition to this style of beer. There’s a subtle but pleasing peppery hop bitterness which is a rarity for a Belgian beer, but welcome all the same.

Served chilled, this would be a thoroughly refreshing summer beer. I can well imagine myself sipping one on the terrace outside Poechenellekelder while watching the tourists go by.

You know, that gives me an idea. Stay tuned…

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Brasserie Caracole, Falmignoul, Belgium
Style: Belgian-style Wheat Beers
Strength: 5.5% ABV
Found at: Beers of Europe
Serving: 330ml bottle

136. Beavertown Bloody ‘Ell

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The keen-eyed reader will be a little surprised to see this beer pop up, since it isn’t actually in The Book. In fact this is our first substitution for a discontinued beer.

This one replaces Nethergate Augustinian Ale. Now, Nethergate do still brew a beer by that name, but it isn’t the beer featured in The Book, a 5.2% bottled beer spiced with coriander, which was typically only available in the US.

That leaves us needing to fill a gap in the slightly catch-all Beers made with Fruit, Spices, Herbs and Seeds category. I think this will fit the bill nicely.

Beavertown Bloody 'Ell at Stormbird, Camberwell

Right off the bat, I’ll admit to being a huge fan of London’s Beavertown, so there was no hesitation in picking this one, especially when it appeared in the fridges at the ever-magnificent Stormbird. You may remember Stormbird from several previous posts.

Beavertown are one of the success stories of the flourishing modern London beer scene, and brew some terrifyingly good beers. Bloody ‘Ell is an occasional, special edition type beer brewed with the addition of a metric truckload of blood oranges.

A thumping great 7.2% American-style IPA, Bloody ‘Ell comes as fresh as can be in its tactile, garish little can, decorated with Beavertown’s distinctive signature Nick Dwyer artwork.

As a natural, dare I say “real” beer, Bloody ‘Ell is not artificially clarified, and so pours the now almost traditional “London Murky” golden colour so typical of IPAs from the new wave of London breweries. There’s a great big waft of citrus, as much from the giant American hops—Amarillo and Citra—as the blood orange.

The citrus obviously carries through to the flavour, though interestingly enough, I’m not convinced I would have identified the orange specifically without prompting.

That’s kind of a compliment: the huge juicy hops and the blood orange combine so effortlessly that nothing seems out of place, and the orange becomes more of a subtle addition rather than giving the impression you’re drinking a fruit beer.

Either way, it all works beautifully. Mouthwatering and hopelessly moreish, Bloody ‘Ell is an instant classic. It’s just a shame that the quantities produced are naturally constrained by a limited supply of the oranges themselves.

Good stuff. I’ll take two more cans home with me, thanks Stormbird.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Beavertown, Tottenham Hale, London N17
Style: Beers made with Fruit, Spices, Herbs and Seeds
Strength: 7.2% ABV
Found at: Stormbird, Camberwell Church Street, London SE5
Serving: 330ml can