I was having a Brugse Zot the other evening and I started to thinking about a trip last year to the wonderful city of Bruges. The town centre is really well preserved and there are some fantastic specialist beer pubs. Brugse Zot (Bruges Fool) is the only beer now brewed in the old town. It’s named after a comment from the reigning Hapsburg Emperor who was asked many centuries ago for funds for an asylum. He said that the handiest thing to do would be lock the city gates and be done with it! A decent charitable sort then. The beer is golden and I find it more sweet than bitter. Very easy drink.
Far more memorable for me was the Tripel De Garre which is the house beer at Staminee de Garre. I remember the guidebook saying you were only allowed three of these in a sitting. Now while I didn’t see anyone getting refused the beer is 11.5% so it’s a pretty good rule of thumb. It’s a blonde tripel which they serve with some cheese. It has a giant frothy head and some orange and clove flavours. The alcohol doesn’t overwhelm the beer and it’s among the very best I’ve ever had. It’s a little hard find this pub but if you find the right alley you are in for a real treat.
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