Hoegaarden - Definitely the best beer in the world!!

jellybean520

Like the slogan?!......take that Carlsberg, no 'probably' about this one!!

Anyway, I think this came up on the boards a long time ago but I would be very keen to see where the latest deals are to be had for buying either cans or bottles of Hoegaarden either online or in offies.

Also, is there a directory of pubs that serve it, so I can choose accordingly when going out?

BeerNut

I was about to ask how many InBev shares you own, forgetting that it's one of the few privately-owned soulless transnational corporations.

There's a good article on the history of Hoegaarden here.

Cheapest place to buy it, I find, is Dunnes.

jellybean520

Thanks BeerNut. I was introduced to this fine white beer back in 1994 while on holidays in Belgium and I've been in love with it since. Needless to say it was dirt cheap to buy it there and it still is very cheap in most "advanced/progressive" European countries, including Switzerland renowned for being really expensive.....it's one third the price there as it is in Ireland in any of the supermarkets in Zurich. We are being shafted royally here (no news there). Yet we are still "apparently" an excessively boozey nation compared with our neighbours. Clearly inflated prices is not the cure.....good old rip-off republic will get you every time.

Anyway, enough on the pricing rant.

I must check out your link and also try to get my mits on some form of pub directory listing all those who sell the stuff.

Tallyho.

jellybean520

.....an overnighter on the ferry to France with a nice big van is probably the only solution as it's about one third the price there also. Wine being my other vice so it would definitely be a worthwhile trip.

And a big "UP YOURS" to customs and excise!

JæKæ

Nice beer alright, although too sweet to drink any more than 4 at a time. I prefer leffe, not quite as sweet, but similar Belgian blonde beer

jellybean520

Yes Leffe is also nice. Ever tried the triple Leffe? About 14% :eek: Two bottles and one knows all about it

_blank_

I don't like the blonde beers.

oblivious

jellybean520 wrote: »

Yes Leffe is also nice. Ever tried the triple Leffe? About 14% :eek: Two bottles and one knows all about it

it think its more around 8.4%

jellybean520

Is there a bit of an anomaly with the description "blonde" beer, because for a lot of beers on the continent, this effectively describes standard "clear" lager like Carsberg, Amstel etc?

Hoegaarden on the other hand is "white" or "blanche"....as opposed to "blonde".

Gordon

Tastes too much like banana to me, even with a slice of lemon.

jellybean520

Depends on brand really. I had a couple of bottles of a Triple Leffe in a bar in Antwerp and the % was around that of a strong wine 13 or 14%. Amazingly it didn't taste over-strong but after 2 500ml bottles you knew all about it. I'm sure such brands / % levels are banned from entering Ireland - :mad:

With so many micro breweries in Belgium, there are plenty who squeeze out some serious alcohol concentraitons.

oblivious wrote: »

it think its more around 8.4%

jellybean520

Hmmm....banana

I find it tastes more lemony even without the lemon or lime. I guess tastes will always differ. I could drink this 24 x 7. Just as well it's expensive and not as freely available as I'd like!

Gordon wrote: »

Tastes too much like banana to me, even with a slice of lemon.

oblivious

jellybean520 wrote: »

Is there a bit of an anomaly with the description "blonde" beer, because for a lot of beers on the continent, this effectively describes standard "clear" lager like Carsberg, Amstel etc?

Hoegaarden on the other hand is "white" or "blanche"....as opposed to "blonde".

Blond beers are generally ale's and in some case produced to compete directly with lagers, this is the case with English blond/golden. summer lighting and are good example of this style

Belgians on the other hand can range for a session beers to the strong golden ales such as duvel, which is the originator of the strong style

oblivious

jellybean520 wrote: »

Hmmm....banana

I find it tastes more lemony even without the lemon or lime. I guess tastes will always differ. I could drink this 24 x 7. Just as well it's expensive and not as freely available as I'd like!

that will be the Corriander seeds, they have a really nice citrus/ orange aroma, crush some and see

Blackhorse Slim

I love Hoegaarden, but I find it difficult to drink a lot of it. Perfect for having a few beers watching a match or film, but when I'm going to be drinking all night I prefer something like Paulaner.

BeerNut

jellybean520 wrote: »

Depends on brand really.

What? Leffe is a brand, owned by InBev. Their tripel, according to their web site, is 8.5% ABV

jellybean520 wrote: »

after 2 500ml bottles you knew all about it

Never seen any tripel in 500ml bottles: only 330, 750 or bigger.

jellybean520 wrote: »

I'm sure such brands / % levels are banned from entering Ireland - :mad:

You can buy a 25% ABV beer in Ireland, were you so inclined.

milli

Gordon wrote: »

Tastes too much like banana to me, even with a slice of lemon.

I used to work in an Irish pub in Germany - they had a drink (name of which escapes me) where you mixed banana puree with weissbier. Made my stomach turn just serving it to people..

Love Hoegaarden myself, plus hangovers aren't near as bad after drinking it.

oblivious

milli wrote: »

I used to work in an Irish pub in Germany - they had a drink (name of which escapes me) where you mixed banana puree with weissbier. Made my stomach turn just serving it to people..

I have had that interesting, but one is enough

jellybean520

Hey BeerNut, you are most probably right.

After all, it is 14 years since I was in that bar in Antwerp, so forgive me for being sketchy on the details. This coupled with the fact that during that week I was drinking single, double and triple Leffe at various stages, basically trying most of Belgium's delights. I also tried specifically banana flavoured beer (and various other fruits) which I didn't like.

The key points that stand out in my memory were the alcohol content being circa 14% and the bottles were quite large, maybe 500ml or perhaps 750ml....so I just made an assumption it was a triple leffe.

By "brand", of course I meant "variant".

Anyway, Hoegaarden is all I want to talk about! Hmmmmmm.

super_furry

I actually prefer Kronenberg Blanc to Hoegaarden right now. Shame it's impossible to find. Leffe is nice too but a bit heavier stronger than both of them.

jellybean520

Absolutely, for me that's a very close alternative to Hoegaarden. I only discovered that one becasue of being in a pub were they didn't serve H but offered me that. I was pleasantly surprised that there was another option. In fact I'm glad you brought up that point - Outside of these 2 white beers, are there any other ones that may be more widely available / cheaper? I'd certainly give them a shot.

super_furry wrote: »

I actually prefer Kronenberg Blanc to Hoegaarden right now. Shame it's impossible to find. Leffe is nice too but a bit heavier stronger than both of them.

BeerNut

super_furry wrote: »

I actually prefer Kronenberg Blanc to Hoegaarden right now. Shame it's impossible to find.

Really? I see it around quite a lot. Too lemony for my liking.

BeerNut

jellybean520 wrote: »

Outside of these 2 white beers, are there any other ones that may be more widely available / cheaper? I'd certainly give them a shot.

Tesco do an own-brand French wheat beer in the same sort of style, though I found it too dry. And it's only about a euro cheaper than Hoegaarden for a 75cl bottle.

romarr

really enjoy the Hoegaarden too ... and the buckets they serve it in are fantastic !

last sat found myself on an impromptu pub crawl, criteria was Hoegaarden only ... we got to about 5 pubs, who all obliged

one discovery was that much like pints o' plain, it really depends where you drink it, in some bars its perfect in others, well ... price varies considerably too

rekon anseo is prob the best,

jellybean520

Yup, I've had bad pints of H also where they taste bitter and acidic. Naturally I would move on in this instance. Problem here is, in many joints there is not enough of a draw on the stuff and you're tasting the caustic soda used for cleaning the pipes......:eek:

Thankfully, there is consistency in bottles but u can't beat a good draught pint.

Blisterman

The tesco stuff is surprisngly tasty, for Tesco beer.
Actually. They do some good champagne too. Who would have thought it?

aidan24326

I'm surprised so many like Hoegaarden. Can't stand the stuff myself. Seems to be one of those things you either love or hate though.

jrar

I like the taste of Hoegaarden tto, but for some reason I nearly always seem to get a gut reaction to it .....which I find strange because I love Leffe and could drink weissbiers all day/night ! Just seems to be the Hoegaarden that gives me a reaction

Mr Magnolia

I've only tasted the regular Hoegaarden. I must say I didn't like it at all. As far as wheat beers go I'd prefer leffe by a distance. The Erdinger Weibbier is also a nicer drink imo.

I would always recommend the Chimay beers, they are my all time favourites.

jellybean520

Thankfully me bag has no adverse reactions to it.

But I agree it must be an acquired taste. I have tried unsuccessfully on many occasions to get a few of my mates into it and they turn their noses up at it....hardened heineken drinkers.....and I hate heineken. Of all the mainstream lagers that would be last on my list, well second last, Fosters comes last!

BeerNut

Mr Magnolia wrote: »

As far as wheat beers go I'd prefer leffe by a distance.

There are no Leffe wheat beers.

Mr Magnolia wrote: »

The Erdinger Weibbier is also a nicer drink imo.

Weissbier. ß isn't a b: from the Things-I-Learned-From-Beer file

Mr Magnolia wrote: »

I would always recommend the Chimay beers, they are my all time favourites.

I'd put the Westmalle range just above them, but yeah, the blue is particularly good and raisiny.

jrar

BeerNut wrote: »

I'd put the Westmalle range just above them, but yeah, the blue is particularly good and raisiny.

Westmalle ? - now that's one friggin' seriously good beer (as is Orval).......

phrage

hoegaarden is yummy but the ultimate beer is cantillon

Aidric

I'm a big hoegaarden fan as well, as indeed I am of most Belgian beers and chocolates come to think of it.

the beer revolu

The makers of Duvel have brought out Vetett White.
The Abbott's in Cork had it on draught for a while - rather similar to Hoegaarden to my taste but I'm not a regular Hoe drinker.
They still have it in bottle.

Hoegaarden being the the best beer in the world seems a bit of an excessive statement to me!! I would consider it as an above average pretty mainstream beer. Having said that, I'd drink it before Paulanner any day!!

Just got a few bottles of Hoegaarden grand cru from the abbots ale house a while ago, happy days

oblivious

the beer revolu wrote: »

Hoegaarden being the the best beer in the world seems a bit of an excessive statement to me!!

True

the beer revolu wrote: »

Having said that, I'd drink it before Paulanner any day!!

Ah, you just can't handle your Paulanner:p

anonymous_joe

Deleted User wrote: »

Just got a few bottles of Hoegaarden grand cru from the abbots ale house a while ago, happy days

That stuff rocks!

Love normal Hoegaarden too. It's very expensive here, given I used to spend a lot of time in Holland and it's dirt cheap there.

the beer revolu

oblivious wrote: »

Ah, you just can't handle your Paulanner:p

Tis true - It's like I own shares in the "antiPaulanner Company" but I feel just as strongly about UK Stella and Coors.

Deleted User wrote: »

Just got a few bottles of Hoegaarden grand cru from the abbots ale house a while ago, happy days

Now, that I do like. Word was a few years ago that they'd ceased of that but there seems to be plenty of it about now? Beernut??

BeerNut

the beer revolu wrote: »

Word was a few years ago that they'd ceased of that but there seems to be plenty of it about now? Beernut??

News to me. I'm sure if there's anything not selling, A-B InBev will bin it.

oblivious

the beer revolu wrote: »

Now, that I do like. Word was a few years ago that they'd ceased of that but there seems to be plenty of it about now? Beernut??

Apparently they when but changed there minded

From wilki

In November 2005, InBev announced the forthcoming closure of the brewery in Hoegaarden, among other changes in Belgium. The brewery was to close in late 2006 with production moving to InBev's larger brewery in Jupille. The beer 'Julius' is said to have been an immediate casualty, and worries were that all beers that were bottle conditioned would be changed.

The closure sparked protests from Hoegaarden locals, upset at the loss of the town's most famous symbol (and largest employer).

The move was never completed. The brewers in Jupille remained unsatisfied with local production of the witbier, so on September 10, 2007 Inbev decided to keep the production in Hoegaarden. Inbev also decided to invest part of a 60 million Euro budget in the Hoegaarden site to upgrade the facilities.

the beer revolu

oblivious wrote: »

Apparently they when but changed there minded

From wilki

In November 2005, InBev announced the forthcoming closure of the brewery in Hoegaarden, among other changes in Belgium. The brewery was to close in late 2006 with production moving to InBev's larger brewery in Jupille. The beer 'Julius' is said to have been an immediate casualty, and worries were that all beers that were bottle conditioned would be changed.

The closure sparked protests from Hoegaarden locals, upset at the loss of the town's most famous symbol (and largest employer).

The move was never completed. The brewers in Jupille remained unsatisfied with local production of the witbier, so on September 10, 2007 Inbev decided to keep the production in Hoegaarden. Inbev also decided to invest part of a 60 million Euro budget in the Hoegaarden site to upgrade the facilities.

AFAIK they did move it to the new production but the results were very inconsistent so they moved it back. There was a break in the supply of draught Hoegaarden at that time cause alot of it had a nasty metallic taste. For a few months, Hoegaarden couldn't be got in keg in Ireland!!

rubadub

Hoegaarden & Leffe blonde are both 4x330ml for €5.59 in tesco at the moment.

The leffe is a very good price taking into account that it is ~1.5 times as strong as your normal €1 bottles.

BeerNut

rubadub wrote: »

Taking into account that it is ~1.5 times as strong as your normal €1 bottles.

Though contains ~2.5 times less flavour than Brooklyn Lager at €1 a bottle.

If it's just alcohol you're after, beer is bad value.

rubadub

BeerNut wrote: »

Though contains ~2.5 times less flavour than Brooklyn Lager at €1 a bottle.

Never had it, where is it €1 a bottle? I think I saw it in tescos too in the same area, but it was not €1 a bottle, think it was over €2 IIRC.

If it's just alcohol you're after, beer is bad value.

But if you like beer and only have €6 to spend I would sooner get the 4x leffes, than 6x coors light, or whatever other stuff is on offer there. My point is many think some beers are expensive e.g. the leffe at 6.6% while their mass produced stuff might have originally been brewed to 6.6% and then diluted down! Others ignore bottle size too, I have a mate who goes mad if I tell him the true cost of his "pint", i.e. his €5.20 bottle of corona is really almost €9 per pint.

BeerNut

rubadub wrote: »

Never had it, where is it €1 a bottle?

Redmond's of Ranelagh and Deveney's of Dundrum, that I've seen so far. There seems to be a bit of a glut of it on the market right now. But I'm doing my bit to change that...

rubadub wrote: »

But if you like beer and only have €6 to spend I would sooner get the 4x leffes, than 6x coors light, or whatever other stuff is on offer there. My point is many think some beers are expensive e.g. the leffe at 6.6% while their mass produced stuff might have originally been brewed to 6.6% and then diluted down! Others ignore bottle size too, I have a mate who goes mad if I tell him the true cost of his "pint", i.e. his €5.20 bottle of corona is really almost €9 per pint.

It looks like the alcohol content is the single criterion on which you're judging the value of beer.

the beer revolu

Beernut,
The duty on beer is directly related to its alcohol content (as you well know).
Stronger beers attract more duty and are therefore,usually, more expensive.
If one finds a higher alcohol beer at a low price, it can be considered a bargain. This makes no reference to the quality of the beer - good or bad.

BeerNut

the beer revolu wrote: »

it can be considered a bargain. This makes no reference to the quality of the beer

By that rationale, a can of Carlsberg Special Brew for €1 would be a bargain. I'd consider that a rip-off as it tastes awful and I do not buy drinks solely for the alcohol content.

rubadub

the beer revolu wrote: »

The duty on beer is directly related to its alcohol content (as you well know).
Stronger beers attract more duty and are therefore,usually, more expensive.
If one finds a higher alcohol beer at a low price, it can be considered a bargain.

That is what I was getting at. Not only the duty being more but more ingredients went into it in the first place. It would be like getting a tiny jar of curry paste which could go onto make 3 regular sized jars of already watered down curry sauce. It has a stronger taste than most sauces, so I use less.

Or it would be like comparing a bottle of smirnoff blue to red. I have heard people say guinness foreign export is either the draught or stout just watered down, if it was cheaper you could water it down yourself with fizzy water

BeerNut wrote: »

By that rationale, a can of Carlsberg Special Brew for €1 would be a bargain. I'd consider that a rip-off as it tastes awful and I do not buy drinks solely for the alcohol content.

But in this case I like the taste of leffe more than the readily available ones in offies near me. And I would not drink nearly as many as other beers as I would end up too pissed. I have no shame in saying I drink alcohol most of the time with the aim of getting intoxicated to some degree, alcohol is a commonly used recreational drug. I know people who hate the taste of beer and force it down for the drug effect, I like the taste and the psychoactive effects. I like the taste of coke but would not drink 6 pints.

BeerNut wrote: »

If it's just alcohol you're after, beer is bad value.

I mainly drink karpackie at the moment, 4 for €5. 5%x500ml. That is 20ml of pure alcohol for €1.

So what is better value, solely on a alcohol content basis?

A regular bottle of spirits is 700ml x 37.5%=262.5ml

So to get 20ml for €1, the 700ml bottle should cost €13.12. It would be hard to find one that cheap.

Perhaps some ciders cost less, but most are more, and they are full of methanol.

BeerNut

rubadub wrote: »

It has a stronger taste than most sauces, so I use less.

Yes, but you weren't talking about the value of the Leffe being based on its taste, but based on its alcohol.

rubadub wrote: »

I like the taste of leffe more than the readily available ones in offies near me.

Which is fair enough, but it's the first time you've mentioned the taste, following two posts running numbers on the ABV.

rubadub wrote: »

So what is better value, solely on a alcohol content basis?

Bottle of cheap plonk; 12% ABV; €6. Howzat?

Mind you: Carlsberg Jacobsen Saaz Blonde is 7.1% ABV and costs €1.99 for a 75cl bottle. Care to do the maths on that one for me?

rubadub

BeerNut wrote: »

Yes, but you weren't talking about the value of the Leffe being based on its taste, but based on its alcohol.

I was mentioning it pre-empting people saying they could get cheaper beers. Many ignore % in spirits and beers, they also ignore volumes, i.e. pints being larger than bottles. Like I said

I have a mate who goes mad if I tell him the true cost of his "pint", i.e. his €5.20 bottle of corona is really almost €9 per pint.

I also have mates thinking I am being "ripped off" if I buy 500ml bottles of erdinger, while they drink their €5 bottles of heineken. It is a pet hate of mine.

BeerNut wrote: »

Bottle of cheap plonk; 12% ABV; €6. Howzat?

750x12%=90ml @ €6. So only 15ml per €1. So the beer is cheaper at 20ml/€1. Your bottle needs to be €4.50 to match it. Most students/teenagers/winos get the calculations wrong and get buckfast! thinking it is the best bang per buck.

I used to distil so am well used to all these calculations, they are very basic compared to other ones used.

The carlsberg is surprisingly cheap alright, where can you get it? Is it nice? I can only manage around 3 pints over 6%, but like the odd one to start with.