Drinking in Boston: Bring on the Belgians

You can’t beat a nice strong Belgian beer on a cold winter night. Then again, you can’t beat it on a hot sweaty summer day, either. Some would have it that you can’t beat a Belgian beer period. But what exactly are they referring to when they say “Belgian?”

Terms like Trappist ale and abbey beer are tossed about as popular synonyms for “Belgian.” While the terms are related to Belgian beer in some way, they are not the only kind of Belgians out there, and they may not be what you think.

Trappist ale, as many know, is brewed by monks…or at least kind of. The term Trappist also does not refer to a single style of beer, either; it is merely a legal term. The beer must, in fact, be approved by the Vatican as a “legitimate abbey product,” to be called Trappist. To achieve this designation the beer must strictly enforce three rules: it must be made under the supervision of the monastery’s community; it must be made within the walls of a Trappist abbey (which seems obvious but is somewhat contested); and a majority of the profit must go to social works. Chimay and Orval are probably the best known Trappists here, but Westvleteren and Rochefort are said to be the most authentic.

The term “Trappist” was restricted by Belgian law in 1962 due to rampant misuse of the brewing traditions for commercial profit. This is where the term “abbey beer” comes in. Abbeys are from companies that craft their beers after the traditional Trappist styles, companies that are contracted by an abbey, or both. A well-known abbey-brewery team would be Maredsous.

For more on Belgian beer, check out Good Beer Guide to Belgium by Tim Webb. And just start sampling.

Photo courtesy [cipher] on Flickr using Creative Commons License.