Plenty of things can go wrong in places where beer is served. I have listed a number of them, and have larded the text with personal examples. But I am sure that plenty of readers have experienced some of them as well during their going-out. This list could serve as a list of guiding principles for current and future pub and restaurant owners on how to improve their trade.
There are many misunderstandings about the use of a coolship, both in the past and the present. Hence this article.
In the distant past, every brewery had a coolship. After all, this was the only known way to cool the boiling wort to an acceptable temperature before taking further brewing steps.
Lush pan fried salmon steaks in a creamy homemade fresh sorrel, mustard and white wine sauce… This sorrel recipe is an old family classic, we make this salmon recipe since 3 generations!
Table Beer is a long-time favourite of mine. The reason is easy. When I was little I drank table beer at home and this roused my interest in beer at an early age. But, as with all beer styles, also this particular beer style (or maybe it is better to talk about term/noun) has had different faces through the ages. This article aims to give my (abbreviated) historical overview of “table beer”, mainly focused on Belgium.
The name waterzooi comes from the Flemish verb ‘zooien’ which means cooking or boiling, but then ‘zootje’ also means a mess. And water, well that is because the dish looks kind of watery and runny.
So this dish literally means watery cooked mess – but a delicious one in this case.
Personally, I have a very long relationship with Rodenbach. Hence, when it was announced in June 2021 that a book was launched for the 200 years existence of that iconic brewery, I considered this a great moment to revisit the brewery, … for the umpteenth time. Note the brewery is owned since 2016 by the Swinkels Family Brewers from the Netherlands (owners of Palm, Bavaria, La Trappe, De Molen, ‘t Uiltje, etc.) who bought it from Palm.
Belgian Tripels – what makes them so special and so drinkable – a story and overview
A lot is said about the origins of both the beer and the name. Indeed, quite a few theories are ventured. Under all, the beer and the name indicate strength, either by reference to a series of marks such as crosses on a cask (X for the weakest strength, XX for medium strength, and XXX for the strongest beer, like shown in the Hägar the Horrible comics), to three time the grains in the mash, to triple yeast strains, etc. or by reference to the original gravity of a beer. None of that holds the truth though.
When beer people worldwide hear the term ‘double’, an awful lot of them associate it with the ‘Belgian Dubbel’- style, as described by BJCP (Belgian Dubbel, category 18.B) and for competitions such as the European Beer Star (Belgian-Style Dubbel) and World Beer Cup, organized by the American Brewers Association (Belgian-Style Abbey Ale - Dubbel).
The diversity of the Belgian beer world is a huge attraction for beer fans, but certain origins are still shrouded in mystery. In this article I will give a number of personal insights, based on some important Belgian beer styles.
As I am currently looking for activities to do while Sheltered In Place in San Francisco, I recently got a text from Phil Emmerson, Head of Brewing at Almanac Brewing. He had just done an Imperial Stout with a variety of spices(which gave the beer an Umburana aroma)as well as cocoa nibs. Did I want the spent nibs?
Just ask the trout. He will know the answer. After all, he is totally Orval. There are many ways in which this Trappist beer could be labelled ‘unique’. And there are just as many ways to enjoy it. So raise a glass to Murphy’s Law, just one contributor to the strange but true story of Orval.