This page and companion one b, and companion one c and companion one d cover White Beer Travels group Beer Hunts from 1993 onwards for Belgian Beer, in Belgium itself. Each individual Beer Hunt is listed with all group Beer Hunts organised by White Beer Travels, around the world, on the Past Beer Hunts page, which can be reached by clicking here.

The following are all the group Beer Hunts covering Belgium from 1993 onwards, 1993 being the first year that White Beer Travels ran an organised Beer Hunt outside the UK; click on the titles to get more details of them:

• 2007 Beer Hunt featuring the O.B.E.R. Christmas Beer Festival in Essen, Belgium;
• 2007 Beer Hunt featuring the Bruxellensis Beer Festival, in Brussels, Belgium;
• 2007 Ghent-based Beer Hunt, featuring the Zythos Beer Festival & Three Breweries;
• 2006 Beer Hunt, featuring the O.B.E.R. Christmas Beer Festival, in Essen, Antwerp Province;
• 2006 Beer Hunt, featuring the Bruxellensis Beer Festival, in Brussels;
• 2006 Bruges- and Aalst-based Beer Hunt, featuring the Third Zythos Beer Festival;
• 2005 Beer Hunt featuring the O.B.E.R. Christmas Beer Festival, in Essen, Antwerp Province;
• 2005 Antwerp-based Beer Hunt, featuring the Second Zythos Beer Festival;
• 2004 Beer Hunt featuring the O.B.E.R. Christmas Beer Festival, in Essen, Antwerp Province
• 2004 Antwerp-based Beer Hunt, featuring the First Zythos Beer Festival;
• 2003 Ostend-based with Coach Trips to Breweries and Bars (inc. the world-class Kroegske, in Emelgem);
• 2002 Brussels, Antwerp, Cantillon Anderlecht, Hanssens Dworp, 3 (Drie) Fonteinen Beersel, Streekproductencentrum Halle, Antwerp 24-Hour Beer Festival;
• 2001 Ghent, Namur, Louvain-la-Neuve, Dinant, KaHo, Caracole, Du Bocq, Beer Museums, De Heeren van Liederkercke;
• 2000 Bruges, Rotterdam, Poperinge, Westvleteren, PINT Beer Festival, De Ryck, Van Honsebrouck;
• 1999 Liège, Paris, France, Aachen, Germany, European Beer Museum, Henry, Val-Dieu, Achel;
• 1998 Antwerp, Lille, in France, Middelburg, in The Netherlands, Halve Maan, Scheldebrouwerij, Thiriez, De Mug, Het Blauwershof;
• 1997 Tournai, La Roche-en-Ardenne, Orval, Achouffe, Au Baron (France), Abbaye des Rocs, Vapeur;
• 1995 Ghent, Antwerp, Cantillon, Boon, 3 Fonteinen, In de Rare Vos, 't Brouwershuys, De Koninck, Liefmans;
• 1993 Bruges - Rodenbach, De Dolle Brouwers, De Gouden Boom & Van Eecke Breweries - In de Vrede (St.-Sixtus Trappist Brewery tap, Westvleteren).

2003: Beer Hunt based in Ostend

Ostend is on the Belgian coast. The date for this Beer Hunt tied in with a beer festival in Ostend, run by the Zythos (www.zythos.be and White Beer Travels Web page) organisation, De Oostendse Bierjutters (DOB, The Ostend Beercombers, www.deoostendsebierjutters.org).

Ostend is a much smarter place than it is given credit for, with some attractive buildings, such as St  Peter& St Paul's Church, the Casino and even the Railway Station. There are some excellent museums, including the James Ensor House, and the Fine Arts Museum. The sea front at Ostend is very pleasant, and is enhanced by numerous stalls offering ready-to-eat seafood.

The above photo was taken by John White, in December, 2001.

Ostend also has some excellent Speciality Beer bars, its shining star being the Café Botteltje (www.hotelmarion.be). Some of the Café Botteltje's many beers can be seen behind the bar in the picture to the left. Note the massive beer list hanging on the bar. This gives details of the extremely well-chosen Specialty Beers on offer- over 300 of them! Those of you who have not visited the Hotel Marion's Café Botteltje recently, should pay it a return visit, since, following refurbishment, it truly now is a world-class Speciality Beer bar, with ambience to match. The Marion was the trip hotel, so one did not have to venture far for an incredible choice of Specialty Beers.

Other Speciality Beer bars close to Ostend are readily reached using the marvellous coastal tram service, de Kusttram (www.dekusttram.be). These include the great De Torre (www.detorre.be) in De Haan and the Taverne-Restaurant Schildia (www.schildia.be), in the elegant resort of Knokke-Heist. From Ostend, it is possible to visit places such as Bruges, which is only fourteen minutes away by train, or two hours by canal boat. To help with such a visit, the fifty-six page White Beer Travels guide to Bruges was issued to all participants. This is available from the Downloads page of the site. Bruges is home to 't Brugs Beertje (www.brugsbeertje.be), a world-class Specialty Beer bar. Click here for more information on this bar.

Ostend's and the Belgian coast's Speciality Beer scene is fully described in a seventy page White Beer Travels guide, also obtainable from the Downloads page. This, of course, features Specialty Beer outlets, but is augmented by information on tourist attractions and special restaurants. This guide was part of a 130 page plus package of handouts.

From Ostend, there were two coach trips. One featured the Heuvelland (Hill Land) (www.heuvelland.be), a marvellous part of the country. A visit was made to Het Labyrint, in Kemmel (www.hetlabyrint.be). This bar/games pub/restaurant/archaeology museum/place with a maze (labyrinth)/art gallery/marvellous facilities for children, is world class. The picture to the left, which was taken by Kris Soenen, in July, 2003, shows the White Beer Travels Beer Hunters outside this special place. It was taken with Sylvia Clow's camera, Sylvia my "Second Petal", being in the photo. Kris runs Het Labyrinth with her husband, Stef Dehollander.

Another world class bar on the agenda was Kroegske (www.kroegske.be), in Emelgem, which has one of the world's very finest beer lists and great food. Kroegske is covered in a White Beer Travels Web page, which can be reached by clicking here.

We also visited De Bie Brewery (www.brijdebie.be) and its adjoining tap, the marvellous D'Hellekapelle, in Loker (Dikkebusstraat 171, tel 0475 23 47 95 (brewery) and 057 44 85 44 (bar)). The new owners of the brewery, which was relocated from Watou, in March, 2002, have chosen an outstanding venue for the café/restaurant and the brewery at the back, and the off sales counter is a joy. D'Hellekapelle is not open on Monday to Thursday. On Fridays, it opens from 6pm to Midnight, and on Sundays, from Noon until Midnight.

Just across the French border from the Heuevelland, is Ferme-Brasserie Beck (Eeckelstraete, tel 03 28 49 03 90, www.fermebeck.com), which was visited. This "Farm-Brewery" is a life-enhancing place that is surrounded by its own hop fields. For more details of this White Beer Travels "Pub" of the Month, click here. The second trip featured breweries such as Bavik-De Brabandere (www.bavik.be), in Bavikhove, De Dolle Brouwers (www.dedollebrouwers.be), in Esen, and the Brouwerij t'Gaverhopke, a Microbrewery with adjoining bar, in Stasegem (Steenbrugstraat 187, tel 056 25 86 70).

De Dolle Brouwers has been visited by White Beer Travels Beer Hunters, in 1993, click here for details, but it is a place that warrants visit after visit. Noted on a previous visit in 2001, were Saint Julien (Bordeaux) wine casks which contained a proportion of the year 2000 Stille Nacht batch maturing in them. The beer was bottled in 2002. It was called "Stille Nacht 2000 Reserva". It was the star of the Antwerp 24-Hour Beer Festival. It was truly outstanding. In this December, 2001 photo, by John White, on the left, note the upturned Stille Nacht bottles being used to bung the wine casks! This photo appears on page 62 of the 2005 edition of Tim Webb's don't-enter-Belgium-without Good Beer Guide Belgium (www.booksaboutbeer.com, White Beer Travels Web page).

Bavik brew the respected Petrus range of Speciality Beers, including Petrus Oud Bruin (Old Brown). Petrus is Peter in English, the beers being named after St Peter, the first Pope, and not after one of the world's most expensive wines, Château Pétrus, from the Pomerol area of Bordeaux, in France.

The above photos were taken in July, 2003. The one on the left was taken by John White. It shows Yves Benoit, who is responsible for quality in the Bavik Brewery, drawing off a sample of one of the three blend components of the Brewery's Petrus Oud Bruin. On the visit, this was tasted straight from the huge oak vessels, which once held Calvados, a Distilled Cider, produced in Calvados, in Normandy, in France. The middle photo, which was taken by White Beer Travels Beer Hunt regular, Sylvia Clow, shows John duly sampling it, with Yves looking on. The beer was superb and surprisingly lively for a long-matured beer. Interestingly, the blend component is not sold on its own in Belgium, but is made available in the USA, where it is sold as Petrus Aged Pale, this name being coined by the world-renowned beer writer, Michael Jackson (1942-) (www.beerhunter.com), the beer originally being available exclusively for members of his "Rare Beer Club", rarebeerclub.beveragebistro.com. In the photo on the right, which was taken by Joyce White, John is sampling this real rarity, in the brewery's hospitality bar. All the group, on the visit, were very grateful to Yves for giving them the opportunity to taste such a wonderful and rare beer, direct from the cask and from bottle, and for conducting a most informative tour round this excellent brewery, the biggest in the Province of West Flanders. Another photo of Yves is to be found on the Contacts page of the site.

2002: Belgian Beer Hunt based in Brussels & Antwerp

Lambic Luminaries on the March, 2002 recce trip for this Beer Hunt
Armand & Guido Debelder Drie (3) Fonteinen. Behind the bar, near the three handpumps (fountains!), in the photo on the right, is Gaston Debelder (1917-2005), Armand and Guido's father.		Jean-Pierre Van Roy, husband of Claude Cantillon.	John Matthys, husband of Sidy Hanssens.
The above photos were all taken by Joyce White.

and on the Beer Hunt itself, in October, 2002

Armand Debelder showing White Beer Travels Beer Hunters how his world-class 3 Fonteinen Oude Geuze should be poured	Jean Van Roy, Jean-Pierre's son , who became Cantillon's brewer, in the 2001-2002 brewing season, pouring Rosé de Gambrinus for the White Beer Travels Beer Hunters	John Matthys explaining how Hanssens produce their world-class products to a group of White Beer Travels Beer Hunters. Partially hidden is John White's daughter, Julia Skinner
The above photos were all taken by Joyce White

Brussels has the major tourist attractions that would be expected of the capital of Belgium, including world class museums, etc. These are matched by some of the most spectacular bars in the country, in which a large range of beers can be sampled, including the local speciality: the spontaneously fermented Lambic, and its derivatives such as Gueuze. These bars include: Le Bier Circus; and marvellous beer cuisine places such as In't Spinnekopke; architecturally impressive places, such as the Brasserie Belga Queen (which, like its namesake in Ghent and the Grand Café Horta (www.grandcafehorta.be) in Antwerp, has very good food, including beer cuisine, and twenty or so beers, including unfiltered Palm on handpump); and gems such as the bar of a puppet theatre Toone, in the famous Îlot Sacré (Sacred Island) area of the city, which is jammed with excellent, amazing value shell fish restaurants. On this trip, a historic pub (visited by Charles Quint), that subsequently closed in 2005, was visited: Au Vieux Spijtigen Duivel, 621, Chaussée d'Alsemberg (Alsembergsesteenweg). On this visit, Westmalle Tripel, which is normally only available in bottle, was on draught/tap, and excellent it was too. This was one of only a handful of places to take part in this trial, which unfortunately did not result in permanent availability of this famous Trappist Beer in this form.

These places are all fully described in the sixty-eight page White Beer Travels Guide to Brussels that is available from the Downloads page of the site. This formed part of the 120-page plus set of handouts that all participants on the Beer Hunt received, which included a twenty-eight page note on a day trip into the Pajottenland, see above and below, that is also available on the Downloads page.

Antwerp, the second city of Belgium, has some particularly fine Specialty Beer bars, including the Oud Arsenaal and the Grand Café Horta (www.grandcafehorta.be) both of which are very close to the hotel used. As for Brussels, there is a White Beer Travels Guide to Antwerp available from the Downloads page of the site.

The stay in Antwerp coincided with the full 24 hours (two sessions of 12 hours) of the Antwerp 24-Hour Beer Festival. At what was for John the world's best beer festival, if it is beer quality that matters, one was more often than not served by the brewer (badged "Brouwer"). Many unusual brews were available, but all beers were the same price, which was much lower than in bars, no matter how rare the beer and/or its strength. Note that the Antwerp festival was organised by OBP, which was folded up in December, 2002. The equivalent festival, the Zythos Bier Festival, is organised by its successor, Zythos (www.zythos.be, www.zbf.be, White Beer Travels Web page).

The above photo appears on page 25 of the 2005 edition of Tim Webb's don't-enter-Belgium-without Good Beer Guide Belgium (www.booksaboutbeer.com, White Beer Travels Web page). It was taken by John White's son-in-law, Paul Skinner, on the 2nd of November, 2002. At the beer festival, Tim Webb signed copies of an edition of his don't-enter-Belgium-without Good Beer Guide to Belgium & Holland (www.booksaboutbeer.com, White Beer Travels Web page), on the day of its Belgian launch. However, Tim held a special signing for White Beer Travels Beer Hunters, the subject of this photo.

The venue for the photo above is the Oud Arsenaal, in Antwerp (Maria Pijpelincxstraat 4 (Vogeltjesmarkt), tel 03 232 97 54). From left to right are Ginge, Diane Hall (partly hidden), Geoff Cropper, Stuart Simpson, John White (with glass of the magnificent Gouden Carolus Christmas), Keith Leggate, Tim Webb (with guide in his hand), an unknown (not in party), David Spencer and Tom Rierson from the USA. With their back to the camera are Stuart Lowe and Steve Horswell, next to an unknown. Note that the next edition of Tim's Guide, which came out in May, 2005 only covers Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. But don't worry, Holland (The Netherlands) is superbly covered by Amsterdam resident, Ron Pattinson's on-line "Dutch Pub Guide", www.europeanbeerguide.net/hollpubs.htm. This is part of Ron's absolutely essential European Pub & Beer Guides website, www.europeanbeerguide.net.

Note that very close to the Oud Arsenaal, and in the same ownership, there is an excellent Beer Shop: Bierwinkel Den Dorstvlegel, Oude Vaartplaats 12, tel 03 232 97 54, www.dorstvlegel.be. On its website, as well as listing the beers available, and their prices (they can be purchased on-line), there is a detailed history of the Oud Arsenaal.

Antwerp is a major tourist venue in its own right, with some world-class museum and top-class restaurants. The city's official Tourist Information website is www.visitantwerp.be. Antwerp is the city of Rubens; numerous museums and churches in the city feature his works, including the Rubenshuis (Rubens House). Click here for the Web pages featuring it, which is one of a number of the city's museums reached from museum.antwerpen.be. The major tourist attractions of Antwerp are covered in the White Beer Travels Guide to Antwerp, mentioned above.

My favourite museum in Antwerp is the Plantin-Moretus Museum (http://museum.antwerpen.be/plantin_moretus/index_eng.html) the theme of which is printing. It is much more interesting than its theme of printing suggests and is of major interest historically. The Plantin in its name is the French-born Christophe Plantin (1520-89); Jan I Moretus (1543-1610) was his son-in-law. In 1578, in Antwerp, Plantin printed a second edition, using the original plates, of the world's first Atlas, the Theatrum orbis terrarum, this having been first printed in Antwerp, in 1570, using paper supplied by Plantin. It was the work of Abraham Ortelius (1527-98), who was born in Antwerp. The definitive book on this atlas is Imagined Corners  Exploring the World's First Atlas, by Paul Binding (published by Review in 2003, www.reviewbooks.co.uk/www.hodderheadline.com, ISBN 0-7472-3040-4, £25 (£17.50 in www.amazon.co.uk). It superbly covers the history of Antwerp at this time, as it struggles with Habsburg Spain. The Theatrum is dedicated to the Habsburg Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain, Philip II (1527-98), the son of Charles V (1500-1558), or, as he is more widely known in Belgium, Charles Quint. Ortelius was a contemporary and friend of Gerardus Mercator (1512-1594), who was born in Rupelmonde, which is near Sint-Niklaas, in East Flanders, where there is a Mercator Museum, on Zwijgershoek, an alley off Zamanstraat. Clearly, Mercator, the most famous cartographer in the world, should be close to the top of your famous Belgians list! Maps produced by Mercator are also on view in the Plantin-Moretus Museum. This world-class place is a true Mecca for those who love books and are interested in old maps. Of course, there are paintings by Rubens on its walls!

In the photo above, which was taken by John White, in November, 2002, Johnny Sterck, of the Streekproductencentrum, is describing its products to White Beer Travels Beer Hunters

Visits with tastings, included Hanssens (www.proximedia.com/web/hanssens.html) in Dworp, 3 Fonteinen (www.3fonteinen.be) in Beersel, and the Streekproductencentrum (Regional Products Centre) (www.streekproductencentrum.be), in Halle, on a day coach trip to the Pajottenland, near Brussels, and Cantillon (www.cantillon.be and White Beer Travels Web page) in the Brussels suburb of Anderlecht. Hanssens, 3 Fonteinen and Cantillon are very special establishments that produce Lambics and derivatives, theirs being as good a drink of any type in the world that one will come across. The place in Halle has a superb range of such beers and its own truly excellent fruit wines and Genevers, these being sampled on the visit. On the Pajottenland day trip, there was ample time for lunch in the 3 Fonteinen; their food is top class to match their beers. A visit with tastings was also made to the Fovel Distillery, in the Brussels suburb of Schaerbeek/Schaarbeck, and the nearby Schaerbeek Beer Museum (Musée Schaerbeekois de la Bière, Schaarbeeks Biermuseum) (users.skynet.be/museedelabiere).

The city of Ghent, in the Flemish half of Belgium, is jam-packed with world-class Speciality Beer bars and tourist attractions. Little wonder then that it was featured in a White Beer Travels Beer Hunt for a second time, in 2001, with essentially the same group of Beer Hunters as in 1995.

Namur, the capital of Wallonia, the French-speaking half of the country, is a marvellous place to visit, both as a general tourist and as a Beer Hunter.

For further details on this Beer Hunt, including the special places visited, please click on the heading a short distance above. Specialty Beer outlets in Ghent are covered in the fifty-one page White Beer Travels guide to the city, that can be obtained from the site's Downloads page.

2000: Beer Hunt based in Bruges, & Rotterdam, in The Netherlands

Bruges is justifiably far and away Belgium's No 1 tourist venue; it is visually stunning and has a mass of world-class attractions. These are matched by superb restaurants and some of the world's best Speciality Beer bars, including the magnificent 't Brugs Beertje (www.brugsbeertje.be, White Beer Travels Web page). White Beer Travels' first overseas Beer Hunt, in 1993, was based in Bruges, see below, but it warrants further visits. White Beer Travels' fifty-six page guide to Bruges, which covers the best of the city's restaurants and general tourist attractions, as well as Specialty Beer, is available from the Downloads page.

John White & Paul Barbier, Van Honsebrouck's Sales Manager, in the "Kasteel" discussing the brewery's outlets. A November, 2000 photo by White Beer Travels Beer Hunt and recce regular, Dr Eric Clow.	The first photo shows Westvleteren Trappist Monastery's beer availability sign. On this day, "only" the world-classic ABT (12o, 10.2%) is available by the crate. All of the beers are always on sale in the "In de Vrede" café, across the road from the Monastery. John's six pack purchased in the café is shown alongside an old bottling machine display, complete with no-longer-used corks. The old bottles have labels, but not today's. June, 2001 photos by John White.

Trips included: Van Honsebrouck Brewery (www.vanhonsebrouck.be), in Ingelmunster, along with its castle, where, of course, in its showcase bar, De Kelder ("The Cellar" or De Kasteelkelder, The Castle Cellar) (covered in the castle's website, www.kasteelingelmunster.be), there was a tasting of some Kasteelbieren (Castle Beers), this accompanying wholesome food with ample seconds; and De Ryck Brewery (www.brouwerijderyck.be), in Herzele, which subsequent to the visit, in March, 2005, opened an excellent Visitor Centre called "de paardestal" (The Stable). The return journey to Calais took in: Belgium's hop capital, Poperinge, for top-class Speciality Beer bars such as the Café de la Paix (www.cafedelapaix.be) and the Palace Hotel (from its website, hotelpalace.virtualave.net, one can book accommodation and get details of its annual beer festival), and the Nationaal Hopmuseum (in the English pages of the town's website, www.poperinge.be, follow the "Tourism" and the "National Hop Museum" links); In de Vrede, the Westvleteren Trappist Monastery's Café (www.indevrede.be and White Beer Travels Web page, www.sintsixtus.be (Monastery)); and a hypermarket in Dunkirk for French Specialty Beer and wine purchases, etc. Hypermarkets visited on White Beer Travels' Beer Hunts are civilised ones that are devoid of British Bootleggers seeking out undrinkable Eurofizz. A White Beer Travels Guide to the Van Honsebrouck Brewery is available from the Downloads page.

Information on the Dutch part of this Beer Hunt, can be seen by clicking here.

The French are renowned for the best in food and wine. Therefore, there is clearly much more to the French beer scene than fizzes such as Kronenbourg. Being such a big place, Paris has more Speciality Beer outlets than any other place in France. This, along with its general tourist attractions, makes it an irresistible target for the Beer Hunter.

Liège, in the French speaking half of Belgium, has two bars (Vaudrée and Vaudrée II) that had, until January, 2004, see above, the biggest selection of Specialty Beers in the world, along with gems, such as Aux Olivettes, John White's favourite Belgian bar, see the photo at the top of the Beer News page. Note that Vaudrée III, which opened in February, 2003, in the suburb of Juprelle, has around 350 bottled beers, and, like the first two Vaudrées, twenty-four on draught. Note that www.vaudree.be mainly covers Vaudrée II, but has outline information on the other two.

For further details of this Beer Hunt, click on the heading above. It included: a train trip to Aachen, in Germany; visits to two monastic breweries, in Belgium, Achel and Val-Dieu, the latter subsequently ceased being an operational monastery, although it is still a religious centre, and the brewery is still in operation; "Le Musée Européen de la Bière, et du Pays de Stenay" (The Museum of European Beer and the Stenay Area) (www.musee-de-la-biere.com), in Stenay, in Lorraine, in France; and the Henry Brewery, also in Lorraine, run by Englishman, Ben Henry.

Travelling by coach, this was a Beer Hunt with a two nights' stay in three different countries. Lille, France's Beer Capital, is a most attractive city, and claims to have the best art gallery in France outside of Paris. Antwerp in Belgium, is covered in the write-up, which can be seen by clicking here, for a White Beer Travels 2002 Beer Hunt there. Middelburg, capital of the Dutch Province of Zeeland, deserves to be much better known, from both a tourist and a beer point of view. In De Mug (www.demug.nl), Middelburg has one of the finest Speciality Beer bars in The Netherlands. Click here for the White Beer Travels Pub of the Month write-up on the place. Further details of the Lille and Middelburg parts of this Beer Hunt, can be obtained by clicking on the heading above.

1997: A Beer Hunt in Wallonia, the French-speaking, Southern half of Belgium, based in Tournai & La Roche-en-Ardenne; the featured breweries included the one in the Orval Trappist Monastery

This was a two-centre trip coach trip to Wallonia, the French-speaking Southern half of Belgium, based in Tournai and La Roche-en-Ardenne.

On a day trip from Tournai, the White Beer Travels Beer Hunters made the short journey to the Brasserie à Vapeur (Steam Brewery) (www.vapeur.com), in Pipaix, to follow the whole of the brewing process, in this, unique, Real Steam Brewery. In the evening, there was a pre-booked beer cuisine meal; even the bread was made from the spent grains of the morning's brew, and the end of meal strong drink had been distilled from one of the brewery's beers. An excellent lunch was also enjoyed at the brewery, with liberal amounts of its world-class beers. See the photo and more information on this great brewery at the top of the Links page.

En route to La Roche-en-Ardenne, the outstanding, marvellously situated second base, the group visited the Abbaye Des Rocs brewery (www.abbaye-des-rocs.com), and then there was a border hop into France for the idyllically placed Brasserie Bailleux (Au Baron), in Gussignies, near Bavay. Both of these breweries produce top-bracket beers.

There are not many better than: the first brewery's Abbaye Des Rocs (9%), a dark beer, or La Montagnarde (9%), a blonde beer, spiced with cumin; or Bailleux's magnificent, Cuvée Des Jonquilles (7%). The latter was sampled, accompanied by an excellent local speciality, Escavêche, which is a marinated Eel or Trout dish, based on a secret recipe. It is found in this part of France (the Avesnois) and the area around the Chimay Trappist Monastery, in Belgium, although it originates from Spain, the long time ruler of what are present day Belgium and The Netherlands. It is certainly worth trying at Au Baron, or at Chimay's inn, l'Auberge de Poteaupré (5, rue de Poteaupré, 6464 Bourlers, tel 060 21 14 33) - there are details of the inn, including the accommodation available, on Chimay's website, www.chimay.com, which also covers its famous beers. In addition to Escavêche (€5), the menu includes, of course, Chimay Trappist cheese (Assiette de Fromages de Chimay) at €3.80, and dishes cooked using Chimay beers, such as Lapin (Rabbit) à la Trappiste de Chimay, at €11.20. One can also sample a beer that is only available here and on the tables of the Monastery itself: La Chimay Dorée (Chimay Golden). This is €1.80 for a 33cl bottle in the restaurant and bar. Six packs of this 4.8% spiced beer, to take home, are €5.50. These prices are from May, 2003.

Between these two brewery trips, there was a group meal in Abbaye des Rocs's tap, the Taverne du Château (7, place Masson, tel 065 75 03 72), which is in the main square of the nearby village of Montignies sur Roc.

From La Roche-en-Ardenne, there was a day trip featuring a great brewery in the Ardennes, Achouffe (www.achouffe.be) and the world-famous brewery within the cloisters of the Orval Trappist Monastery (www.orval.be, White Beer Travels Web page). In Achouffe's restaurant, a really good pre-booked group meal was washed down with the brewery's superlative beers. More details on Achouffe, including a photo taken on this Beer Hunt, are to be found on the top of the website Build Info page. After lunch at Achouffe, we made the short journey to Orval, through marvellous countryside. Orval is covered in detail in a White Beer Travels Web page, that can be reached by clicking here.

From La Roche, there was an evening trip to Namur, for its Artisans Brasseurs Brew-Pub (which subsequently closed, in late 2002), and its Specialty Beer bars. On the return journey home, we visited the Duvel (Moortgat) brewery (www.duvel.be), in Breendonk-Puurs, and had a couple of hours in Ostend, home to a number of excellent Speciality Beer cafés and seafood restaurants, click here. for more details. White Beer Travels Guides to Ostend and Namur are available from the Downloads page of the site. Our base in La Roche was the superbly situated Hôtel-Restaurant Le Chalet, at 61, rue du Chalet, tel 084 41 24 13. www.lechaletlaroche.com.

1996: Beer Hunt to Bamberg, in Germany, with en route, overnight stays in Brussels, & Maastricht, in The Netherlands

The main focus of this coach-based Beer Hunt was the wonderful Baroque city of Bamberg, in Northern Bavaria, Germany, but en route there was a two night stay in Brussels and one night in Maastricht, in The Netherlands on the return journey. Information on the Dutch and German parts of this Beer Hunt, can be seen by clicking here.

Brussels has some of the most spectacular bars in Belgium, in which a large range of beers can be sampled, including the local speciality: the spontaneously fermented Lambic, and its derivatives, such as Gueuze and beers, which are produced by steping fruit in Lambic, such as Kriek. More information on Brussels, is available in the sixty-eight page White Beer Travels Speciality Beer guide to the city, which is available from the Downloads page of the site.

In Brussels, the Belle Vue Brewery was visited, before that load of bankers, InBev got their hands on it. At the time, in this brewery, largely sweet, commercial beers, which were not of interest to the discerning Beer Hunter were produced, but, they did have one or two reasonable beers, and its 10,000 barrels of maturing Lambic were well worth seeing, although the place subsequently ceased to be a production centre, before then being closed by that load of bankers, InBev, in 2006. Belle Vue beers are now produced in an InBev factory elsewhere; they are of no interest to the lover of Belgian Beer.

Beer orientated stops were made on all journeys to and from the overnight stay venues. The Belgian ones were: a Beer Warehouse, in Leuven; Specialty Beer bars, including the Domus Brew Pub (www.domusleuven.be), in Leuven; In de Vrede (www.indevrede.be and White Beer Travels Web page), in Westvleteren, which is across from the Westvleteren Trappist Monastery. Such is the popularity of this place with White Beer Travels Beer Hunters, that it is a regular stop on White Beer Travels Beer Hunts, being only fifty miles (eighty kilometres) from Calais, from where we return to England.

1995: Beer Hunt based in Ghent

For information on Ghent, click here, for details of the "2001 Beer Hunt based in Ghent & Namur".

This 1995 Beer Hunt was a coach trip. En route to Ghent, there was break in the journey, in Ypres (Ieper in Dutch), an historic town that has been superbly restored after total destruction in the First World War. Ypres has an outstanding Speciality Beer bar, in which an optional meal had been arranged: Ter Posterie (Rijselsestraat 57, tel 057 20 05 80, GPS: 50.848923^o N, 2.886867^o E). The journey on to Ghent included going through the Menin Gate, the impressive British war memorial, after listening to the world-renowned bugle call of the Last Post (www.lastpost.be) there.

Brewery visits included: the pride of Antwerp, De Koninck (www.dekoninck.be); Liefmans (www.liefmans.be) , in Oudenaarde, brewers of one of the world's finest brown ales; Cantillon (www.cantillon.be and White Beer Travels Web page), in the Brussels suburb of Anderlecht, a guardian of classic Lambic brewing techniques; and Boon, in Lembeek (www.boon.be), also renowned for its Lambics and derivatives. The group had a meal at Liefmans.

The photo on the left above was taken by Joyce White, in November, 1995 in the Pelgrim, (Boomgaardstraat 8), the former De Koninck (www.dekoninck.be) brewery tap, following the White Beer Travels brewery tour. From left to right are: Dominique Van den Bogaert, the brewery's Commercial Director; Barry Pepper, famous beer writer and then Chairman of the British Guild of Beer Writers (www.beerwriters.co.uk); and John White, peeking over the shoulder of the brewery's owner, Modeste Van den Bogaert, the father of Dominique. In 2005, the Pelgrim was closed, and in its place, on the same side of the street as the brewery, its replacement opened: Afspanning De Hand, Boomgaardstraat 1-5 (on the corner of Haringrodestraat), tel 03 239 03 22, www.dehand.be. A visit to De Hand, which was the brewery's original name, is well worth undertaking, as is one to another De Koninck outlet next door to the former Pelgrim, 't Stoopke, www.stoopke.be, which is a very nice, small traditional bar. These two places and many others in Antwerp are covered in the White Beer Travels guide to Antwerp, which is available from the Downloads page. De Hand is open every day except Sunday, from 11am to Midnight.

The photo on the right above shows the Pelgrom, a famous cellar bar, in the centre of Antwerp, which should not be confused with the former Pelgrim. The Pelgrom has a reasonable beer list. In the background, is the city's cathedral, a world-class tourist attraction, which happens to be the world's tallest brick building. This is a November, 2001 photo by John White.

Other highlights included Drie Fonteinen (Herman Teirlinckplein 3, tel 02 331 06 52, www.3fonteinen.be), in Beersel, and In De Rare Vos, in Schepdaal (Marktplein 22, tel 02 569 20 86, GPS: 50.835708 N, 4.192187 E). These were visited on a coach trip into the Pajottenland, an area adjoining Brussels, famous for producing unique, spontaneously fermented beers - Lambics and derivatives, such as Gueuzes and fruit beers. Both places offer superb examples. There was an optional meals prearranged in both these two places. Frank Boon (www.boon.be) joined the group for the one in the Drie Fonteinen, after the visit to his brewery earlier in the day. The visit and The Evening with Frank Boon provided a superb insight into the production of his great beers and their history. We even came up with a new theory as to the etymology of Lembeek, the name of the town in which his brewery is situated! Information on a visit in 2002 to Drie Fonteinen can be seen by clicking here. Visits to other famous bars/restaurants, included: the Café Trappisten (www.trappisten.be), opposite the gates of the Westmalle Trappist Monastery (www.trappistwestmalle.be); and 't Brouwershuys (www.brouwershuys.be, www.beterbier.be), in the Belgian enclave of Baarle- Hertog (Molenstraat 42), which is surrounded by The Netherlands. 't Brouwershuys is a "Proeflokaal and Winkel" ([Beer] Tasting Place and Shop). The shop at one time had 700+ beers, but the number is now down to less than 200; it is closed on Mondays. En route to it from Belgium, there is another beer shop/warehouse, De Biergrens (The Beer Frontier), at Molenstraat 26, which has the Dutch/Belgian Border going through the middle of it!

1993: Beer Hunt based in Bruges:
The First White Beer Travels Beer Hunt Outside England

Detailed information on Bruges, can be obtained by downloading the fifty-six page White Beer Travels Guide to the city, from the Downloads page. It covers its world-class tourist attractions and its best restaurants, as well as its breweries and numerous Specialty Beer bars. Further information on Bruges is given in the section covering a "2000 Trip based on Bruges and Rotterdam" above.

This was a coach trip. Visits were made to the Rodenbach Brewery in Roeselare (www.rodenbach.be), Van Eecke in Watou (www.brouwerijvaneecke.tk), De Dolle Brouwers in Esen (www.dedollebrouwers.be) and De Gouden Boom (www.degoudenboom.com) in Bruges itself. For more information on Rodenbach, and a splendid outlet for its beers in Roeselare, click here for the White Beer Travels Web page featuring Roeselare. An evening was spent getting training in The Beer Academy in 't Brugs Beertje (Kemelstraat 5, tel 050 33 96 16, www.brugsbeertje.be, White Beer Travels Web page), the city's great Speciality Beer bar. Daisy (see her photo at the top of the Downloads page) introduced the group to some superlative brews, such as the great Hanssens Kriek. What an eye-opener! Hanssens was visited on a 2002 White Beer Travels Beer Hunt, click here for more information.

The group started off the visit to Bruges with a drink and a meal in the Staminee de Garre (Garre 1, an alley off Breidelstraat), a wonderful introduction to the world of Belgian Specialty Beer. There was an optional group meal in the Michelin-starred De Snippe (Nieuwe Gentweg 53, tel 050 33 70 70, www.desnippe.be). A visit was also made to In de Vrede (www.indevrede.be and White Beer Travels Web page), the café across from the Westvleteren Trappist Monastery (www.sintsixtus.be). This café is a particularly popular "Please can we go again?" venue on a number of later White Beer Travels Beer Hunts. Bulk beer purchases were made at the Monastery itself. Note that the café has been greatly improved since this visit. There are exhibits and videos, etc featuring this difficult-to-visit brewery, see the photo above.