Quibble: Beers from all of them are available in the States. On
I have purchased the following within the last year: Chimay Grande Reserve Rochefort 10 Westmalle Dubbel Westvleteren 12
So the Monasteries in question: Achelse Kluis Orval Koningshoeven (Netherlands)
So which one is not legally available? And why?
Dick
Each of the Trappistine convents have what is called a "Father Immediate". That monastery of 'monks' sort of assists their assigned convent to help them with support of all sorts, sometimes even physical work, farming etc. The nuns that I met from Belgium, headed to California, told us that their "Father Immediate" used to give them beer from their brewery. Seemed humorous to us that they lucked out with who their father- immediate was.
The bartenders and waiters at the restaurant I ate at last night think Belgium is spelled C-A-N-A-D-A. They confidently told me Blanche de Chambly was not from Canada as I told my lovely wife, but was from Belgium.
When was Belle-Vue good? The first time I tried it (in a bar in Tempe AZ of all places, circa 1991) I was distinctly unimpressed.
On 6/1/2008 7:44 AM Joel ignored two million years of human evolution to write:
See Joris's post for more, but Belle-Vue was in a long and unhappy process of dumbing down for years, so no surprise that you had yet another dull, lifeless Belle-Vue product in 1991.
The last Belle-Vue Selection Lambic was produced in something like 1999, AFAIK, and its appearance before then was also rather infrequent. It was, at the least, good. There are still hidden stashes of the '99 bottles in dwindling quantity.
It's not impossible for a bigger corporate brewing company to turn a specialty lambic-brewer loose to make something good. SCAM (Scottish Courage - Alken-Maes) did it with its Mort Subite brewery, in Kobbegem, Belgium, releasing the Oude Gueuze and Oude Kriek in recent years. I haven't seen them as imports in the USA, unfortunately.
On 5/31/2008 2:13 PM David V. Loewe, Jr ignored two million years of human evolution to write:
Yes.
If you see any, snatch it up. I'll do the same. Next time we meet we'll imbibe. :-)
Geez, what has it been now, seven years? The time, how it does fly...
I've already put aside a decent collection of sour beers, including several lambics, but if I were to stumble on a '99 Selection Lambic in upcoming travels, sure, yeah, maybe. My current Beery Grails are bottles of Soleil de Minuit and Goldackerl, both from Cantillon, and I wouldn't turn down a bottle of Druivenlambic from 3 Fonteinen. 3F's Hommage, Doesjel, and Schaerbekse Kriek are all good, as is Cantillon's Cuvee des Champions. With all that, the '99 Selection Lambic sort of fades into the background.
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