Antwerp - Thursday 27 June 2019

A fourth consecutive June visit to Antwerp would provide an opportunity to visit some cafes featured in Regula Ysewijn's Belgian Cafe Culture, explore Antwerp Zuid, show Steve some favourite city sights and meet up at BierPassieWeekend with beer loving friends.

Bristolian Steve joined my train from Newbury to Paddington at Thatcham and later we boarded the 12.58 Eurostar train from St Pancras International to Brussels Midi after a late breakfast at the Barrel Vault.

Antwerpen-Centraal

A free ice-cold can of Coke Energy handed out at Antwerp Central station was a welcome bonus on a hot day. The first task was to purchase a Lijnkaart from a De Lijn ticket machine at the station (10 trips for 16 euros). The second task, to find the platform for the tram to Antwerpen Bres, would have been easier if Google Maps or the De Lijn map indicated that the Astrid tram stop is underground.

Hotel Rubenshof is only a short walk from the tram stop. The decor of the main floor has art nouveau features and is rather more impressive than the size of our rooms.

After checking in, we walked to Biercafe de Jordaan in nearby Boudewijnsstraat on the corner with Boudewijnssteeg. The small corner bar had a few tables inside and the windows were open on this hot day.

My first draught beer was Hapkin, a strong blonde beer enjoyed at a high table just outside, next to a Velo Antwerpen stand for the city bike hire system. Tourists can register for a one day (4 euros) or one week (10 euros) Velo pass that allows unlimited bike hires of less than 30 minutes. Longer trips involve extra charges. Unusual features of the red bikes are that the front wheel is smaller than the rear wheel and that some bikes have drive shafts instead of chains.

We walked towards the historic city centre with the intention of visiting some traditional cafes featured in Regula Ysewijn's book.

However, when we reached 't Half Souke, Hoogstraat 59, it was closed. The book mentions that it is named after an old coin and that inside the tiled floor is uneven due to ground movement.

We continued a further 100 metres to reach De Ware Jacob, Vlasmarkt 19. The outside tables were in strong sunshine so we enjoyed our beers inside.

Regula Ysewijn writes that 'true Jacob' has only been a cafe since 1977 but that the interior is much older and was salvaged from other cafes.

De Ware Jacob has clay floor tiles and for heating there is a free standing stove with a chimney pipe. The draught beer I enjoyed here was another favourite - Jack's Precious IPA by Brouwerij The Musketeers, based in Sint-Gillis-Waas about 25km west of Antwerp.

Aware of a nearby cellar bar from a tweet by Scot Haynes, we would next visit Pelgrom at Pelgrimstraat 15, a pedestrian street 150 metres away.

The entrance features an illuminated display of shelved bottles and lamps under suspended beer kegs.

Downstairs, there are several cellar seating areas but we sat at a table facing the bar. There are 24 equally spaced taps and beer details and prices for 12.5cl and 25cl glasses are clearly displayed above. The temperature was nice and cool below ground level.
The cheapest draught beers were from the independent, family run Haacht Brewery Super 8 range.

My choice was Super 8 Saison served in a distinctive ball shaped glass with a heavy base. This farmhouse style beer is brewed with rye, malt, oats, wheat and spelt grains. It was spicy from the addition of ginger and galanga. The 25cl glass of 4.8% ABV beer cost 2.75 euros.

Several Trappist beers are also available from the illustrated bottled beer menu.
We would return to Pelgrom on Saturday afternoon, with our beer loving friends, to escape the heat on an even hotter day.

The time was 9pm local time as we approached Cafe Pelikaan, Melkmarkt 14, set slightly back from the north east aspect of the Cathedral of our Lady. Regula Ysewijn advises 'There has been a cafe in this building since 1870 but the current interior dates from the beginning of the 20th century.'

Now was my opportunity for a Trappist beer with Orval listed at 4.20 euros on the beer menu (which it was necessary to ask at the bar for).

Steve and I both ordered a draught Tripel d'Anvers brewed by Antwerp's De Koninck brewery and the glasses show the Antwerp skyline.

We were soon joined by Richard, John and Keith who had enjoyed horse steak dinners at a nearby restaurant after arriving in Antwerp earlier than us. They would order draught Rodenbach, a permanent beer at De Pelikaan.

As well as brass bar rails, floor tiles are often found in traditional Belgian cafes and this was the case at De Pelikaan.
It was after 11pm local time when we left De Pelikaan. The others would go on to visit Zeezicht in Dageraadplats before returning to the Tryp by Wyndham Hotel with air conditioned rooms as standard.

Billie's Bier Kafetaria at night

Meanwhile, Steve and I walked back to Hotel Rubenshof, passing Billie's Bier Kafetaria. Further along, it was a good idea of Steve's to stop for a takeaway pizza. Our hotel rooms did not have air conditioning but unfortunately my room did have a mosquito or similar biting insect that would leave its mark.

A late return to Hotel Rubenshof

Belgian Beer Trip 2017 - Day 3

The 18th Antwerp Beer Passion / Bierpassie Weekend opened at 5pm on Friday 23 June, 2017.

Sint Andries stroll
 
After breakfast, with seven hours until the festival opens, Dave / Bod and I set off from Bogaardestraat for Antwerp's Museum of Contemporary Art, M HKA. We headed south west, towards the Sint Andries neighbourhood.

We passed a building featuring interesting brickwork and an art nouveau style balcony at the angled corner of Waalse Kaai and Timmerwerfstraat.

We arrived too early for the museum opening at 11am so sat at a table outside Nick's cafe, Waalse Kaai, and ordered a coffee, which was kindly served before their usual opening time. This is a plesant spot with a wide cobbled street lined by trees and the bonus of a classic blue Renault van parked nearby.

The main museum entrance leads into a large room lined with shelves for books and displays including old camera and film related items.

A long table with assorted chairs allows further study of the large format catalogue and other books at leisure.

We ventured further inside to the free section of the museum where 'Olympia' a film of the Berlin Olympic stadium by David Claerbout proved fascinating. Software imitates a camera, moving at a constant slow speed, recording the view of the stadium's exterior and grounds during elevated circumnavigations.

There are two approaches to M HKAFE, the rooftop cafe bar, either by lift, for museum visitors who have paid for admission or from a separate external entrance and several flights of stairs, in our case.

I enjoyed a glass of De Koninck 'Wild Jo' from the bar and we sat outside in the sunshine. A 33cl bottle of this fresh tasting beer cost 4 euros. The bottled beer is fermented with wild yeasts and is named after Joseph van den Bogaert, who ensured the survival of the brewery after WW1.

Seating is also available in a greenhouse but we guessed it would be far too hot in there! An untitled Keith Haring mural painted in 1987 adorns the interior of the M HKAFE. An inspiration for the mural was the work of Tanzania born artist George Lilanga.

Although it was closed for renovation, we passed Antwerp's main art gallery, the Royal Museum of Fine Arts on the way back to the city centre.

Howevere, some sculptures remain on display outside the Royal Museum of Fine Arts. 

Our next stop was at Coffee and Vinyl, Volkstraat 45, where the presence of a red De Koninck caravan outside indicated that beer was also available.

We had a look around the shop which has a huge selection of vinyl records with art displayed on the walls. The Temple of I and I by Thievery Corporation was one of the music tracks played on the sound system.

There were various bottles of beer in a fridge behind the counter and it was nice to be able to sit at the front of the store with a glass of chilled Duvel Tripel Hop Citra (9.5% ABV). Since 2007, Duvel have innovated by introducing a third hop to the Saaz-Saaz and Styrian Golding hops. From a contest in 2016, Citra was chosen as the permanent third hop in preference to Mosaic, Amarillo, Sorachi Ace, Equinox and HBC291. The Citra hop from the Yakima Valley, Washington, is also used at the dry hopping stage.

Before leaving, a trial of the Wild Jo electrical test of hand coordination skills, with a bottle opener as a ring, proved irresistible. My skills were found to be limited, I blame the effect of the strong beer!

Across the road at Volkstraat 40 stands the ornately decorated Rudolf Steiner School building.

Shortly before reaching Groenplaats, the site of the Beer Passion Weekend festival, we walked down Korte Gasthuisstraat and passed an older building signed as Goossens. Antwerp certainly has a lot of interesting buildings sandwiched between less interesting examples. 

Bierpassie Weekend XVIII - Friday opening

By now it was 5pm and the beer festival had started so it was time to pay 5 euros for a tasting glass and programme and buy some 20cl beer tokens at 2 euro each. We exchanged our first tokens at the Delirium bar with Dave choosing Mongozo Banana while my choice was Mongozo Mango. 

At the bar, Martin spotted my Danske Ølentusiaster (Danish beer enthusiasts) cap, a gift from my Danish brother-in-law. With a Danish parent himself, Martin was probably better qualified to wear my cap!

Boulevard Brewing Co Tank 7 Farmhouse Ale was spotted on draught at the Duvel Moortgat bar. My first bottle of this beer proved delicious in 2016 and the draught version was also refreshingly compatible. Tank 7 was a rare example of a non-Belgian beer on sale at the festival.

Keith, John and Andrew (the latter two wearing festival t-shirts from previous years) arrived at the festival to join our table.

Keith Moore lives in Langen, near Frankfurt airport. He kindly shared out a large bottle of the Black IPA, brewed under his supervision at Rheinhessen Brau, Mainz-Ebersheim, for the second CraftBeerMesse in Mainz in November 2016.

The extra label tag for the bottle gives details of the hops used. Cheers Keith!

Leffe blonde is easily obtainable in the UK but there was an opportunity to taste Leffe Royale, hopped with Cascade, from the high counter of the Leffe bar. A further bonus was two sticks of cheese to go with it. Leffe Royale (7.5% ABV) is also available with hops from Australia (Ella), Argentina (Mapuche) and England (Whitbread Golding).

We had been sharing our table with a friendly Belgian couple and when it was time for them to go they agreed to pose with a spare copy of Ullage, the West Berkshire CAMRA magazine, for later perusal.

L to R: John, Mark, Keith, Simon, Dave / Bod, Andrew & Richard

Now there was space for our group of eight to sit down on the table.

Musical entertainment was provided by a jazz band who stopped to perform at various points around the festival. 

My last beer at the festival's first day was Waterloo Recolte. This seasonal beer is brewed at the Mont-Saint-Jean farm, the 'English hospital' of the battle of Waterloo. The Belgian Beer Tourism website describes the 6% ABV summer beer as falling between a white beer and a blonde. The brand has the tagline 'The Beer of Bravery!'.

An Orval nightcap

However, this would not be my last beer of the night as Mark, Dave, Simon and I returned to the hostel bar for a beer before it closed at 1am. Here it was possible to enjoy a 33cl bottle of Orval with its distinctive fruity and bitter taste, for 3 euros after Hostelling International discount applied.  

Twitter links:
@m_hka Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst Antwerpen - Musée d'Art Contemporain d'Anvers - Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp