Need beer prices in Belgium (urgent)

Have either of you ever travelled on a plane before? I have numerous times and it will be quite difficult to bring you back cases of beer. I used to have a hard Samsomnite case that I put 16 ounce Boddington's pub cans which I sneaked on a couple of Carnival Cruises because their beer selection was not great and it was very expensive (Back in the 90's they let you bring soda on board. I told the man at the x-ray machine that the cans in the case were soda & both times they took my word for it and let me pass without examining the case. They no longer let you bring anything on board except one bottle of wine per person). This case was extremely heavy to lug around.

These days the airlines are limiting how much weight you can travel with. If you exceed this there will be a surcharge (I fly Continental frequently and they have instituted such a policy since Spring 2003). Why not have your friend bring you back a few bottles of something you can't get here and be happy with that.

Bruce

How about changing your perspective a bit, and give him a list of beer that you can buy locally but have him bring back ones that *aren't* on your list? That way you get to try a bunch of new beers.

On Wed, 28 Jul 2004 02:07:20 -0500, Seppo Tolonen wrote (in article ):

I would recommend the Hoegaarden "Grand Cru" not the White (Wit). They come in 4 packs and are easy to carry. You can't get it here in the states and it's my all time favorite beer. Very high gravity with one of the most complex flavors I've ever tried. The variety of flavors you get as the beer slowly warms is incredible. I got it for $2.95 (American) a 4 pack in '98' can't say what it is now.

There is also the 4 Belgian Trappist Monasteries that export their beer. They are Chimay, Orval, Rochefort, Westmalle, the 5th Westletveren doesn't export and is very difficult to find, but is worth the effort if you are near the monastery. There is also a 6th Trappist Monastery in the Netherlands. The Schaapskooi Monastery does export to the US bit is very difficult to find. I've found it once and they haven't had it since.

All the Trappist beers are great. Of course that would depend on your tastes. The only one I would give you a bit of heads up on is Orval. You will either love it or you will find it one of the most disgusting beers you ever tried. Seems to be the only two reactions I've found. Dust dry with very odd and distinct hop characteristics and almost chocolate aftertaste. I'd recommend you find it locally and try it before bringing back a whole case.

Here's a link with some location info

They also have beer price info. You'll need to do some conversion.

It's been 8 years since I was there and to tell you the truth at that time I didn't pay too much attention to price. I wanted GREAT beer and was willing to let them take whatever it cost out of my wad. I couldn't even tell you what the exchange rate was. Whatever it was I got what I wanted and so did they. I even came in under what I estimated I would spend so it seems they were pretty honest with what they charged me. I estimated $40 (I'm ambitious) per day (spent $32) for beer and I believe I drank $50 (American bar cost) worth. So I was happy.

Bruce wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@worldnet.att.net:

Well I guess I wasn't being accurate, but who said anything about flying? He's from Belgium and he's going over to bring some of his stuff here so he's using a van. So few cases won't be a problem.

Of course the view about getting stuff you cannot get at all in here is a valid one. Someone else suggested that, too. The problem is, I've tasted maybe around 5-10 beers that have been made in Belgium (trappist and others) and there has been quite a lot of variation on how much I liked them. So blindly asking him to 'bring something that is not in this list' is not necessary a good idea. But I guess I could ask him to bring some sort of mix, too.

Seppo

oDDz Bodtkin wrote in news:LZednfHz snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com:

Thank you for the excellent and detailed tips! I will discuss these with my courier, maybe he has something to comment on these.

About Orval: Yes, I have tasted it earlier, it is available locally, and if I remember correctly, I quite liked it. At least I'm sure I didn't hate it :)

I think my 'basic order' will be a case of Chimay Triple (or other Chimay if it cannot be found) and a case of Westmalle Triple. I bought a bottle of both yesterday to sum things up and they were both quite nice. Of course they're a bit similar, too, but hey, I liked them. :)

Maybe I'll extend my order to three cases and leave the third one open so that my friend can pick some things that he thinks I might find interesting....

Seppo

On Thu, 29 Jul 2004 02:05:20 -0500, Seppo Tolonen wrote (in article ):

Glad to be of service.