Antwerp - Beer Passion Weekend 2024

Overlooked by the Cathedral of Our Lady, Groenplaats is the setting for the annual Bierpassie Weekend in Antwerp. The 23rd edition opened at 5pm on Friday 21 June 2024.

Our group supported the festival for a few hours on the Friday (early evening), Saturday (mid evening) and Sunday (lunchtime). Tim and Simon were glad to return after missing the 2023 edition after finding out too late that we had booked travel and accommodation for the following weekend. Richard and Andrew were back as usual but Keith was missing in Germany this year. Paul, Jennie and Linda were attending for the first time.

L to R: Simon, Jennie, Paul, Linda & Richard 

On the Friday evening we found a table in Ben Vinken's Beer Sommelier bar which was less busy than usual. Ben and his friends sat at a nearby table smoking cigars.

Entrance to the Bierapassie Weekend costs 10 euros and includes a programme, tasting glass and two beer tokens (each with 3 euro value for a a 20 cl serving). Tim and Simon reused their old tasting glasses and simply bought 10 tokens for 30 euros to start off with. To access the toilets costs 1 euro. N.B. Bubble wrap or similar is useful for keeping your glass safe from one day to the next. 

In addition to Ben's bar in the marquee near the entrance, this year there were 16 brewery stands and 3 brewery beer trucks. Glasses are routinely rinsed or replaced before each beer is served. Breweries staff their own stands and at quiet times are happy to chat about the beers served.

A new stand this year was for Apropos IPA from Antwerp. Tom Snels and Bart Wynants from Cafe Apropos, Schermersstraat 33, near Mechelsplein and Leopoldplaats, a kilometer away. They collaborated with Brouwerij De Graal to brew their house beer, a blond 7.5% ABV IPA.

Le Plan-Vermeersch brought a beer truck to the festival. Taking its name from former Belgian rally driver Dirk Vermeersch, who subsequently built up a winery in France and more recently developed a range of Belgian beers.

Keen to try flavoured beers, Tim enjoyed a glass of Le Plan Beat, a 5% ABV red wheat beer with a hint of beetroot.

Dixieland Street Band

During the festival there are several performances around the site by musicians including Dixieland Street Band (Friday and Saturday) and Tussen Neus en Lippen, a Dutch brass band from 's-Hertogenbosch known for its Oeteldonk carnival (Sunday lunchtime).

'Tussen Neus en Lippen' (NL)

Staying at nearby Hotel National, Tim was the first to arrive on Sunday morning and his first drink of the day was Floris Framboos, a 3.6% ABV fruit beer from Brouwerij Huyghe, the brewers of Delirium Tremens. 

See you at Bierpassie Weekend next year? While Tim has only been a regular since 2016, Richard, Andrew and Simon have been attending since the festival started and have the t-shirts to prove it!

The festival programme reveals that the 24th Bierpassie Weekend in 2025 is moving to a new venue indoors - the historic Handelsbeurs building. Once a commodity exchange and later a stock exchange it is now part of an events venue.

Birmingham pubs and bars

We arrived at the Charlotte Street / Newhall Street Travelodge after 4pm on Tuesday 28 May after a bus ride from Dudley. This hotel is on the southern edge of the Jewellery Quarter in a quiet location near Birmingham's extensive canal network.

View to southwest from Newhall Street

After checking in, we walked northeast up Charlotte Street towards the railway arches for the line that runs from Snow Hill to the Jewellery Quarter and beyond. 

We passed the attractive sloping square space with St Paul's church in the middle.

At the junction of Charlotte Street with Livery Street we noticed the large building that will house Indian Brewery and its Taproom later in 2024. The brewer was by the open doorway when we passed.

We continued under the railway as far as Constitution Hill where we noticed Hen & Chickens on the corner but only stopped to take a photo, not realising that it was a Cask and Curry desi pub.

Indian Brewery, Snowhill

We turned back and soon reached the Indian Brewery Taproom in two railway arches, just before the side entrance to Snow Hill station. It was a nice surprise to be greeted by the Indian Brewery's brewer who was at the entrance and recognised us after we had passed him earlier.

There's a beer menu in the window which includes two cask ales.

We found a sunny spot to sit by the full height windows and ordered Indian Brewery Pekok lager which was chilled and refreshing and served with a smile by friendly bar staff.

The lower room has some individual tables and chairs and a window to the kitchen while the main bar has a long table with bench seating.

We would return here on Wednesday evening for 'Faat Naan' curries.

The Good Intent

Based near Stourbridge, Craddock's Brewery have an outlet in a Birmingham arcade. It was only a short walk from the Indian Brewery to find The Good Intent at 32-33 Great Western Arcade, which has an entrance opposite the main entrance to Snow Hill station. It's a Non Profit Bar donating profits to local charities.

They have a shortage of half pint glasses and my Saxon Gold was served in a Brooklyn lager glass!

We would return to this bar with Mark Geeson, Jon Gadd and CAMRA friends tomorrow for our third rendezvous of this trip.

Jon Gadd is on the left of the group at the bar in the photo above. It was interesting to see the casks elevated to the left of the bar in a cooled environment. 

A mini blackboard on the bar lists bottled beers available from the fridge including Dutch and Belgian options.

Thanks to Mark Geeson for supplying this photo of our group at the back of the Good Intent taken by Meg Thomas. 

The Colmore Tap

The Colmore Tap, a collaborative project between Thornbridge Brewery and Pivovar was the next destination after our second visit to The Colmore Tap. It was a short walk to find it, on the other side of the cathedral.

There's a handsome bar with the keg taps set in a slab of marble on the wall behind.

My choice of beer was Big Ozzy, named after a mechanical bull named after Ozzy Osbourne who was born in the city. Weighing in at 5.6% ABV, the IPA is a collaboration between Thornbridge Brewery and Birmingham based Burning Soul Brewing Company. 

Our group was able to enjoy our beers in a pleasant partially screened area at the back of the room with comfortable leather banquette seating and marble topped tables.

Purecraft Bar and Kitchen

Our next move was just around the corner of Waterloo Street to Purecraft Bar and Kitchen after a brief stop to get a photo of the 'Floozie in the Jacuzzi' en route!

There are 20 beers listed on the blackboard behind the bar including Purity Brewing beers from the five handpumps on the bar.

Luckily there was plenty of room to accommodate our large group in comfort as the photo below from Mark Geeson taken by Meg Thomas shows.

Sommar Birmingham

The Sommar bar is just across Waterloo Street from Purecraft. (The Sommar Brewery and Taproom overlooks the canal at Utilita Arena and is only open from Thursday to Saturday.)

Twenty draught beers and ciders are listed on the screen behind the bar including a Milkshake IPA brewed by Sommar. There is a mixture of comfortable seating options and plenty of space for our group.

The main group would visit the Post Office Vaults next and Tim took a farewell group photo before heading to the Prince of Wales with Meg, passing Birmingham Library (below right) and Repertory Theatre (below left) in Centenary Square on the way.

Prince of Wales

Unlike the main group we had not yet visited a Black Country Ales pub on this trip so this was an opportunity to catch up. The Prince of Wales is situated on Cambridge Street, behind the International Convention Centre (ICC). 

We entered by the left hand door and found the pub busy with many tables occupied but we were able to find a good table at the back of the room.

There are framed historic photos of Birmingham and its canals on the walls. Apart from the Old Contemptibles, a Nicholson's pub near Snow Hill station that offers a CAMRA discount, where we had first met the main group after their arrival from Wolverhampton at lunchtime, this was the most traditional of all the pubs we had visited today. 

We had spent Wednesday morning with breakfast the The Briar Rose (JD Wetherspoon) followed by a visit to the Victorian Radicals exhibition organised by Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery at the Gas Hall.

On Tuesday night, our bus from the Figure of Eight (JD Wetherspoon) towards our hotel had passed the Prince of Wales but this evening we had the chance to walk there directly along the towpath, passing Farmer's Bridge locks on the way.

The Jam House

Later on Wednesday evening, we walked back to the Indian Brewery for a meal (see earlier section) and then enjoyed some live music at The Jam House, St Paul's Square on the way back. We were lucky to find Acoustic Sessions with Ben Drummond on this date, a free monthly event at the impressive venue which features live music on several nights of the week. Mainstream keg beers and ciders are served at the bar.

The Jewellery Quarter

On Thursday 29 May, the last day of our trip to the Midlands, we went for a morning walk around Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter. Our Travelodge hotel had copies of the useful free Heritage Trail multifold leaflet produced by the Jewellery Quarter BID to guide and educate us. 

Other guides are produced by the JQ Business Improvement District including an Ale Trail. 

We passed two pubs of interest on the route but they had not opened for the day yet. The substantial Rose Villa Tavern, also featured on the cover of the Heritage Trail leaflet behind the Chamberlain Clock, has an interior recognised by CAMRA as being of outstanding national historic importance.

The Jewellers Arms, 23 Hockley Street, is a Black Country Ales pub serving beers brewed at its brewery in Gornal.

Today's breakfast in the Jewellery Quarter was at Costa Coffee, 32 Frederick Street. Subsequent research shows that this handsome building dates from 1914 and was built as a manufactory for E.L. Guide Ltd, Diamond Mounters. It is now Grade II Listed.

Returning to our hotel, we passed a 'peaky blinder'! After collecting our bags and checking out before 12pm, we walked to Snow Hill station to catch a local train to Worcester Foregate Street via Stourbridge on the way back to Newbury via Reading.

A final view of Birmingham was taken from the platform looking southwest towards an A38 Queensway tunnel. There are lots of reasons to revisit Birmingham soon but not roads like this dividing the city!