Maastricht is located in the south of the Netherlands in the province of Limburg, a Dutch peninsula tucked in between its neighbours, Belgium to the west and Germany to the east. From original Roman settlement to the birthplace of the European Union, Maastricht is a delightfully historic city built on both sides of the river Meuse, with many squares and caf
és, featuring some wonderfully unique cuisine and a deep beer culture.
After our train-bus-train ride from Amsterdam, we
relax on our hotel's terrace, watching the square and
quenching our thirsts with fruit beers. The local
De Ridder Brewery makes
Wieckse Rosé (4%), it's bubbly and clear pinky red, sweetish, cranberry-raspberry tart and easy to drink. The
St. Louis Kriek (3.2%) is an aged lambic, sweet but with sour overtones, also pinky-red, tighter head, fruity aroma, delicate body. We followed that up with an
Erdinger Weissbier (5.3%) a classic German wheat beer, banana and cloves notes in play, cloudy, creamy and smooth. Across the square and seemingly on the wind, we hear the
sounds of distant music. Ready for a stroll, we wind our way
through the narrow cobble-stone streets, drifting ever closer to what we
discover to be a music festival, their annual
Bruis Free Festival and they were rocking day two with a full line up on two stages. The weather was great, blue sky,
+20s, and the fair grounds were packed. We saw several very cool Dutch
bands (including the Mary Shade Experience, Ozark Henry) and sipped back many
Brand Weizen beers at 2 Euros a pop, what a great afternoon! With bands still playing and the sun going down, we make our way back into
the labyrinth of the old city looking for food. After getting lost (what's new?) we circle back around a church terrace and find
Café Seijk, a beautiful little classic diner serving traditional Maastricht dishes and great wine. We jump right into two amazing dishes, Maastricht Zoervleis (horse stew in a dark, rich and beery sauce) with Belgian frites and apple sauce and the daily special, a roasted '
lapin' with a beautiful side salad of fresh seasonal veggies. Stunningly delicious, served with aplomb and humour from our fantastic waiter and perfect after an afternoon of dancing and beer at the free festival. Sated, we eventually find the river and our bearings, making it back to our hotel terrace (which seems to be
the happening place on the square!) for a night cap of
Affligem Dubbel (6.8%)
and conversation. We meet a nice couple on holidays from the
north of Holland, but their English is halting and our Dutch
non-existent so we just laugh a lot and drink our beers. Then we meet a
couple of locals guys back from the festival who regale us with tales of
the bands, the festival, the city and life in this lovely little part
of the world. Slowly the night winds itself up, fewer and fewer cyclist whiz by, the pedestrian traffic seems to evaporate and only the odd bus and occasional taxi seem to cross the square now. We decide to call it a day as the tower bell in the square strikes 12. Good night Maastricht, tomorrow is another day.
Of course it was. We cross bridges, explore parks, enjoy coffee in the sun and before we know it, it is time for a beer. We find ourselves in another beautiful square, Vrouweplein, at
Café de Comedia, where all the chairs face out, the better for people watching, and settle in to do the same. The caf
é features the beers of another Limburg brewer,
Gulpener. Neither of us cared for the
Gulpener Lager, but their
Chateau Neubourg Pilsner was passable, the Belgian wit
Korenwolf was cloudy with substance and flavour and the
Dort was the copper coloured, more malty
alternative. The day was warming and so were we. Off into the streets we
go again, intrepid explorers, perusing boutiques and
after additional window shopping we are happily lost again, in the maze of streets, until we find the '
speciaalbierencafé' Café Falstaff in the delightful Amorsplein in time for lunch. A tasty smorgasbord of local delights was the way to go, cheeses, chacuterie, dips, bread, bitterballs, accompanied, of course, with a couple of delicious beers.
Palm was promoting their
Hopper (6%) beer, made with their own estate grown Hallertau hops - some hop dryness, gold, carbonated, easily drinkable brew. Also,
Ciney Blonde, (7%) a Belgian strong ale of character, tight white head, clear amber, malt accented, dry finish. A nice pair of beers to start, but the next up
were even lovelier.
La Trappe Isid'Or (7.5%), brewed for the 125th anniversary of the founding of the
Brasserie de Koningshoeven
at the monastery, in limited edition numbered bottles. Spicy aromatics,
cloudy, yeasty, creamy and a long finish, this is a very special brew
indeed. Also on the table was
Urthel Hop-It (9.5%), pale gold,
fresh herbal nose, golden yellow, a big malt based bully of a beer but hopped up,
truly one of the first Belgian double IPAs, bitter and balanced with a
long, dry finish allowing the hops to prevail. The rest of the day went by in a blur, more sightseeing, nosing around interesting public statuary, awing at historical architecture, we might have slipped a siesta in there too, then we sat by the river and thought about this beer journey we've been on. Pretty lucky, pretty fantastic.
That night we dine on '
moules et frites' one more time, accompanied by monk made
Orval (6.9%, orange-amber, creamy, smooth on the tongue, notes of bread, yeast, fruit, spices) and
Judas Tripel.
(8.5%, strong Belgian pale ale, golden, fruity, hints of spice). It's another quiet night in town, in fact we are only 2 of 5 people eating at
Basilica this evening, a Monday. The waitress tells us tourist season is pretty much over, students are all back at school, the evenings are getting cool, autumn has arrived. Time to head home.
tiny rooms. They appear to have no draft this day, so we coax a bottle of Beersel Oude Gueuze (6%, tart, refreshingly sour) from out of our distracted barmaid, take in the ancient atmosphere and move on. After a
relaxing dinner, it's back to Delirium Village for one last tour. We start in the Delirium Taphouse, enjoy a Vivien IPA (a hoppy favourite) and an Ename Abbaye Double from the Roman brewery (6.5%, roasted malt, hints of dried fruit, caramel, dry finish) then descend the back stairs to the main room of the Delirium Cafe. The place is packed as always, but we manage to
share a table with a couple from Cleveland, chatting about beer and
international travel. I go to the bar and order a big bottle of Augrenoise
(6.5%, bottled conditioned, cloudy, straw coloured, citric nose,
quickly dissipating head, wheaty and winey with a slight sourness). We finish with a 750 ml. bottle of Saison St. Feuillien (6.5%, traditional golden farmhouse, warm and rich) and decide it's time to stumble home. Instead, we stumble into the Monastarium for one last look around (100 Trappist/Abbey beers, 400 vodkas).
were checked in Brussels right through to Vancouver, so we easily navigate the free public buses to our nearby hotel. Donna's friend Helen is waiting for us
downtown, so we quickly head right back out to the tube and find
ourselves in Picadilly Circus in no time. Helen's has done her real ale homework and takes us to the Dog and Duck, featuring four hand pulled tasty real ales. Topaz Gold (4%) seems to be the bar favourite, a golden pale ale from Admans, fruity with medium bitterness and a long dry finish. All too soon they're out. Junga (3.9%) from Itchen Valley, a very dark and roasty, malty mild-like brew, gets my juices flowing and I'm starting to feel human again. Up next, Lamplighter (4.8%) premium bitter, amber, heavier malt but a balanced, dry finish. Reverend James (4.5%, rich fruity palate, aromatic, long
