Bring some continental class to your next park booze up with these 11 excellent Belgian beers
On the hops
2026 marks 100 years since Stella Artois was founded by Brouwerij Artois in Leuven, Belgium. Artois added the name Stella because the first batch was made as a Christmas present, so he added the word Stella (Latin for “star”) as a nod to the so-called Christmas Star (otherwise known as the Star of Bethlehem). 100 years on, beer lovers around the world have developed a serious thirst for Belgian beers, and we decided it’s high time to raise a toast to some other seriously moreish Belgian beers. And no where are they better enjoyed that barbecue-side in a London excuse for a garden, or thrown in a bag and taken to your nearest green space for a picnic.
Duvel 666 Belgian Blond
Duvel was founded in 1827 by Belgian brewer Jan-Léonard Moortgat, although it was his sons who shaped the company. Albert Moortgat was particularly passionate about English and Scottish ales and in the early 1900s obtained a sample of yeast used by a Scottish brewery. That same strain is used today, including in Duvel 666, which uses a precision-engineered blend of six hop varieties to create a beer which is fruity and aromatic, with its hit of citrus pairing especially well with its fabulous hoppiness. It’s a deliciously drinkable tipple, even if its ABV comes in at 6.66 per cent (which, let’s face it, isn’t exactly high for a Belgian beer).
Chouffe Cherry Beer
Chouffe is one of the brands you’ll probably have seen on posters around London’s various undergrounds. Founded by Pierre Gobron and Chris Bauweraerts, is known for its high-ABV beers, but does things a little differently. Take the logo. When the brewery was founded in 1982 (more specifically, in a garage owned by Chris’s mother-in-law), images of monks adorned the labels of most Belgian beers, but Chris and Pierre opted for a gnome, instead. Although it’s one of the sweetest beers in our round-up, the notes of almond and strawberry add a wonderful balance. The experts at Chouffe suggest pairing it with game dishes, or ones containing red peppers, red cabbage or fennel. In our experience it pairs just as well with a Mr Whippy from the ice cream van on Tooting Common too.
Vocation Brewery The Surrealist Belgian Witbier
This is one of the fruitiest Belgian-style beers we’ve come across for a while – and it’s gorgeous. Hits of grapefruit, orange peel and coriander give it a crisp brightness which makes it a joy to drink on warmer days, but there’s also a gorgeous smoothness. We were somewhat nervous to read that this beer has bubble-gum nuances, but it wasn’t a note we could identify. Whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing (we suspect the former) remains to be seen, but this is an all-round winner perfect for summer sessions, especially if they’re accompanied by a local lido. Oh, and bonus points for the very cool label, depicting a hop-themed take on Belgian surrealist painter René Magritte’s Son of Man, with a hop replacing the famous apple.
Chouffe alcohol-free beer
Far too many alcohol-free beers simply don’t cut the mustard, but this is one we’d be happy to drink during periods when we’re giving our liver some time out. It’s a golden beer with plenty of bubbles, a hit of spice and a subtle fruitiness which is guaranteed to keep you coming back for more. We’ll be honest – alcohol-free beers are hard to get right, and we generally avoid them, but Chouffe’s offering is a reminder of how far this type of beer has come.
Fruli Strawberry Beer
Fruli’s brewery is near the historic Belgian city of Ghent, and the brand’s speciality has always been strawberry beers. This is one of the beers we were most sceptical about (despite having a weakness for strawberries) but somehow the flavour combination – strawberries, coriander and orange peel – works unexpectedly well. Its ABV comes in at 4.1 per cent, which is just enough to let the strawberry notes shine, rather than overwhelm. Interestingly, fruity notes are becoming increasingly common in today’s Belgian beers. “Brewers of Belgian beers have been smart about embracing new ideas without throwing away tradition, combining established Belgian techniques and flavour profiles with modern ingredients,” says Rob Beck, head Brewer at Vocation Brewery. “For example, we're now seeing more aromatic, fruit forward hop varieties used in Belgian beer. These perfectly complement the fruity, spicy yeast character that makes Belgian beer so recognisable.”
Hoegaarden Belgian Lager
Famous for its wheatiness and cloudy appearance, Hoegarden is one of the world’s most famous Belgian beers, and it’s a recipe which has remained largely unchanged since 1445, when monks created a wheat beer using orange peel and coriander sourced from the island of Curaçao. They used these ingredients to offset the bitterness of wheat beers brewed prior to the 1500s, and their tipple was an instant hit. We’re huge fans of this lager’s smoothness, although we’ll also impart a top tip which left us loving it even more. When pouring, tilt the glass to a 45-degree angle before pouring two thirds of the bottle into the glass, then swirl the bottle around to liven up the yeast sediment at the bottom of the bottle.
Delirium Blonde Belgium Ale
Brouwerij Huyghe, founded in 1654, is the last remaining brewery in Belgium’s Ghent region. Its bestselling beer is Delirium, a triple-fermented (a process designed to improve clarity and reduce so-called hop debris, which can affect the various flavour notes) delight packed full of flavour. There’s a soft maltiness, a hit of spice and an aftertaste which has a slightly bitter dryness – although in this case, that’s not a bad thing. For us, it’s a beer best drunk on colder nights, maybe whilst tucked into a proper old style London boozer, or when you’ve swapped the club for the sofa and some telly. It’s the boozy equivalent of a hot chocolate, and one which pairs brilliantly with blue cheeses and dark breads.
Chimay Triple Blond
This is a Trappist beer in every sense – it’s made by monks at Scourmont Abbey in Chimay, Belgium. The majority of the brewery’s profits go towards various charities (including ones which support disabled adults, and others which focus on education). Yes, it packs a punch with its 8 per cent ABV, but the slightly bitter notes of the hops are expertly balanced by the dash of fruit and spice. Fancy another serving suggestion for Belgian beer? This one relates to glassware, and the reason Belgian-style beers are traditionally served in curved glasses. “The shape helps with the delivery of the beer’s aromatics,” says Rupert Ponsonby, founder of the Beer and Cider Academy. “The shape of the glass is crucial to the delivery of these notes – the yeast, the hops and the barley aromatics. If the glass is too tight the scents can’t be delivered correctly. Too wide and they escape.”
M&S x Huyghe Belgian Cherry Wheat Beer
Cherry Belgian beers, it seems, are having a moment, but if they all taste as gorgeous as this one we’re fully onboard. This particular beer, which has a low ABV of just 3.5 per cent, is a collaboration between Marks and Spencer and the Flanders-based Huyghe Brewery (which also produces the Delirium beer we’ve recommended). Expect a full-on cherry blast – the fruits’ sweetness does a brilliant job of cutting through the bitterness of the hops, and the cherries’ tartness pairs perfectly with this beer’s maltiness. Our only gripe? We wish Marks and Spencer provided more information about this gem on the Ocado website.
Heverlee Premium Pilsner
This delicious Belgian beer is brewed using a recipe discovered in historic records belonging to the Abbey of the Order of Premontre’s monks, who used it to brew beer in the 1100s. In 2013 the recipe was used to create what’s now Heverlee’s most popular pilsner, largely due to the fact it’s made with Noble Saaz hops, regarded as the best in the world. It’s a complex but incredibly drinkable pilsner, with notes of sweetcorn and malt alongside hints of bitterness, but the sweetness of the tropical fruit notes do a fantastic job of bringing balance to this gorgeous brew.
Blue Moon Belgian Belgian-Style Wheal Ale
We’ve got a healthy amount of scepticism when it comes to beers which are Belgian-style but not actually brewed in Belgium, but this one’s one of the few exceptions. After completing a PHD in brewing at the University of Brussels, Blue Moon’s founder and head brewmaster Keith Villa set about creating his famously crisp brews, and Denver-based Blue Moon was founded. What sets Blue Moon ale apart is the sweetness – the beer is brewed with orange peel to ramp up the sweetness while dialling down the tartness associated with Belgian beers. We loved the way the citrus notes cut through the wheat notes while still letting them shine, resulting in a beer which is perfect for year-round sipping but especially well-suited to warmer weather. It’s the kind of one it’s good to have in your cupboard all year round, and whacking a couple into the freezer pre picnic-in-the-park antics.
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