For Jon’s 30th birthday, he decided he wanted to do a weekend trip to Belgium (check out my packing list). Specifically he wanted to do a tour of the Delirium Tremens Brewery outside Ghent. Jon started drinking this high-alcohol beer in Colorado with one of his friends, so when he realized it was so close, we knew we had to go. I’ve never been much of a beer drinker, but was excited for this brewery tour since it is a smaller brewery and I expected a more in-depth tour than most commercial breweries.
The brewery was started in 1654, but the Delirium Tremens beer it’s famous for wasn’t invented until December 26th, 1989. In the 90s, it was named “best beer in the world” at the World Beer Championships in Chicago. But to be honest, to me the best thing about the beer is the high alcohol content. For someone who doesn’t care for beer, it’s never been worth it to drink one. I’m usually full and not even buzzed after one. Not the case with Delirium Tremens.
I’m still not a big beer fan (don’t think I ever will be), but it was neat to see the brewery and get to know so much about their process and history. One of the things I found most interesting was how sustainable the brewery is. Something like 16% of their energy comes from solar power and the rest from wind. They also recycle ALL of the water used in the facililty. Pretty cool.
Our guide, Jose, was super nice. Leading up to our trip, we emailed with him directly to book the Delirium Tremens Brewery tour. Normally, the tour can cost 80EUR a person, but if you email our guide Jose (jose.debock@telenet.be) and ask to be included with a larger group, it’s only 8EUR! We were with a large Dutch group, and ended up being the only English-speakers. It was a little difficult going through the tour and getting the back-translation of everything, so if you make a trip out, I’d recommend getting together a large group.
Best part of the tour of course, was the beer tasting afterward. The guides join you in having a drink (or several) and encourage you to try all their beers. Some of the beers we tried were Mongozo – an organic, fairtrade, gulten-free beer, the classic Delirium Tremens, Floris – a fruit beer, and La Guillotine.
Overall, it was a really cool experience. We followed it up with dinner (and a Belgian waffle) in Brussels, but I have to say I switched to wine by that time.
Are you a brewery fan? What have been your favorite beer or brewery experiences?
Xx, Kelsey
OUTFIT DETAILS:
Jacket is sold out on Goosecraft but similar ones here and here | Similar blush scarf | Gap distressed legging jeans | Steve Madden Diana boots
Their logo is so stinkin cute!
Right?! Best thing about it!