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Get smarter about Belgian beer with the Belgian Smaak newsletter

Receive stories, podcasts, and resources about Belgian beer and culture straight to your inbox for free so you can level up your beer knowledge and enjoy better beer experiences.

Join thousands of subscribers, today.

THE LATEST

Our recent stories.

West Is Best — How Westvleteren 12 Accidentally Became “The Best Beer In The World”

A Story of Beer, Buzz, and Belief

28/11/2024 25 min read

Westvleteren 12: How did a strong dark ale from a tiny monastery brewery in North West Belgium become the world’s most sought-after beer?

10,000 Human Decisions — On Mariage Parfait Oude Geuze, Frank Boon, and Belgian Lambic Culture

How One Blend—And One Man—Helped Define Modern Lambic

29/05/2024 40 min read

Mariage Parfait Oude Geuze from Belgian brewery Brouwerij Boon is a beer that speaks to the legacy—and evolution—of Belgium’s Lambic culture.

This Is Senne’s Valley — On Gueuze Blendery Het Boerenerf of Huizingen, Belgium

Senne Eylenbosch’s Obsession With "Deserving His Own Plums" in the World of Lambic

16/02/2024 25 min read

Through blendery Het Boerenerf, Senne Eylenbosch saved his farm, discovered his identity, and continued his family’s storied Lambic heritage.

Jungle Cruise — How Brasserie La Jungle Lost Themselves, and Found Something New

Brewing English Bitters, Fruit Sauvage, and Table Beers in Brussels

08/11/2023 25 min read

When you travel the Belgian coast by tram—the world’s longest single tram line—what sort of food and drink culture will you experience?

Flavour Track — A Culinary Crawl On Belgium’s Coastal Tram

Exploring Food and Drink Culture Along the World’s Longest Single Tram Line

13/09/2023 60 min read

When you travel the Belgian coast by tram—the world’s longest single tram line—what sort of food and drink culture will you experience?

Border Hopping at Baarle’s Brouwerij De Dochter van de Korenaar

How Brewer Ronald Mengerink Pushes the Boundaries of Belgian Beer

15/12/2022 29 min read

How did Ronald Mengerink push the boundaries of beer with De Dochter van de Korenaar in the cartographically strange village of Baarle?

West Is Best — How Westvleteren 12 Accidentally Became “The Best Beer In The World”

A Story of Beer, Buzz, and Belief

28/11/2024 25 min read

Westvleteren 12: How did a strong dark ale from a tiny monastery brewery in North West Belgium become the world’s most sought-after beer?

10,000 Human Decisions — On Mariage Parfait Oude Geuze, Frank Boon, and Belgian Lambic Culture

How One Blend—And One Man—Helped Define Modern Lambic

29/05/2024 40 min read

Mariage Parfait Oude Geuze from Belgian brewery Brouwerij Boon is a beer that speaks to the legacy—and evolution—of Belgium’s Lambic culture.

This Is Senne’s Valley — On Gueuze Blendery Het Boerenerf of Huizingen, Belgium

Senne Eylenbosch’s Obsession With "Deserving His Own Plums" in the World of Lambic

16/02/2024 25 min read

Through blendery Het Boerenerf, Senne Eylenbosch saved his farm, discovered his identity, and continued his family’s storied Lambic heritage.

Jungle Cruise — How Brasserie La Jungle Lost Themselves, and Found Something New

Brewing English Bitters, Fruit Sauvage, and Table Beers in Brussels

08/11/2023 25 min read

When you travel the Belgian coast by tram—the world’s longest single tram line—what sort of food and drink culture will you experience?

"A passport to the great beer of Belgium..."

"Who better to take you through Belgian beer and culture? This is a passport to the great beer of Belgium."

Dave Myers, Celebrity Chef & Presenter of BBC's The Hairy Bikers

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THE PODCAST

The show that uncorks Belgian beer culture

EP051 | Belgian Beer World

The Belgian Smaak Podcast

21/08/2024 1 min read

No other country has a national beer experience like Belgian Beer World costing €100 million and housed in one of its most iconic buildings.

EP050 | Mariage Parfait and the Evolution of Lambic

The Belgian Smaak Podcast

05/06/2024 1 min read

Claire Bullen meets to the Boons — Frank, Karel, and Jos — to find out how their Mariage Parfait Oude Geuze speaks to the legacy of Lambic.

EP049 | Blending Lambic at the Sollenberg Crossroads

The Belgian Smaak Podcast

02/05/2024 2 min read

Senne Eylenbosch of Het Boerenerf on saving his father’s farm, discovering his identity, and taking on his family’s storied Lambic heritage.

MORE PODCASTS

"An essential primary source..."

"Belgian Smaak picks up where Michael Jackson and others left off, and offers deep dives into the current and historical importance of Belgian drinking culture."

Dan Pixley, Primary author of the Milk The Funk Wiki

CAFÉ SOCIETY

Celebrating the spaces at the heart of Belgian beer

Trappistenhuis Den Herberg

Café Society

02/10/2024 2 min read

Trappistenhuis Den Herberg in Waasmunster is a volkscafé offering Trappist beers, Geuze, and sourdough bread made with Chimay yeast.

Hof den Tuitelaar

Café Society

14/08/2024 2 min read

Hof den Tuitelaar is part of Belgium's café society with spacious outdoor seating and a generously decorated interior of vintage memorabilia.

À La Becasse

Café Society

09/05/2024 2 min read

À La Becasse is a rustic brown bar in Brussels known for serving sweetened lambic from a jug. It's part of Belgium's Café Society.

MORE CAFÉS

"My place to go for one-of-a-kind beer stories."

"Rich, touching, engaging, multilayered, paying attention to the detail, just as a glass of a great beer. Whole worlds packed in carefully selected words."

Lana Svitankova, Beer writer, translator, and judge.

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HUMANS OF BELGIAN BEER

Photographic portraits which celebrate a people and their culture.

The Tour Guide

Humans of Belgian Beer

13/12/2023 3 min read

The Heir

Humans of Belgian Beer

26/09/2023 3 min read

The Writer

Humans of Belgian Beer

14/06/2023 4 min read

MORE HUMANS

ABOUT US

Belgian Smaak started life in February 2014 as a simple web log about Belgian beer and food.

It was then, and remains today, our way of better understanding the place where we live: through people, food, culture, and beer.

The team at Belgian Smaak creates award-winning stories, podcasts, and resources which help make your experiences with Belgian beer richer and more fulfilling.