Staring into the Barrel -- Our Final Days in Belgium

What do they call craft beer in Belgium? Beer.

So many beers. So many personalities. Each a mirror of their brewer.

First, Tilquin, a "blenderie." No production here. Just blending of some of the finest lambics Belgium has to offer.

The Bruery's First Day in Brussels

Our day began with the usual wi-fi check in at the nearby hotel, followed by a brisk walk through Bruges to the train station. All of us were equally excited at the idea of purchasing Belgian beer from a vending machine to drink on the train, but alas, it required ID and none of us trusted that our California ID would work. So we ended up having fun buying several bottles of cola which had our coworkers’ names on them.

Once in Brussels, it was another short walk to Cantillon. Like nearly every other beer geek, Cantillon has been on my list of bucket list breweries to visit since my first introduction to the Cantillon Gueuze in my craft beer drinking infancy. I had heard stories of others’ visits, so I knew to expect the brewery to be oddly located in an unassuming industrial building, in a not-so-glamorous area of town (sound familiar?).

The instant we walked in, a change in atmosphere could be felt. We went from the warm sweaty streets of Brussels to a cool, pleasantly humid, and deliciously smelly interior. The stern-faced lady behind the counter greeted us with a friendly smile and gave us her spiel of the brewery basics, the lambic brewing process, and how to proceed on the self-guided tour. Soon enough, we were on our merry way.

The first stop was the ‘Mashing tun’. The rustic white walls and floor of the room complimented the rustic wood and antique looking metal equipment as if it were staged for a museum… except, unlike a museum, this is completely functional and makes some of the best lambic beer around.