Any one of you guys remember my buddy 'belke' from Belgium...

He was an avid E30 enthusiast and last we heard from him; he was working as a volunteer on a hospitals ship that was trying to be ready for victims of hurricane Katrina.

Most important was his love of Belgian beers! I have always remembered his descriptions and recommendations but never really got a chance to sample any of them...until recently.

As it turns out; my former boss and good friend is a Belgian craft beer enthusiast. He likes the stuff so much that he actually imports small amounts of the best Belgium has to offer.
I got to sample a few of these historic beverages earlier this week and I can tell you that I never knew that beer could taste so good and be such a wonderful beverage!!!

Anyway; if 'belke' sees this or if any of you have kept in touch with him, I sure would like to get re-acquainted with him

Meanwhile; if you like a good solid beer that's great for the colder months; see if you can find some Kasteel Donker. It's a dark, full bodied Belgian style brew that is sure to warm your innards.
Careful to limit yourself to two or else you will definitely not be able to operate machinery...one will break a breathalyzer

BTW...my buddy left me with a nice sample pack of the brews he imports and has promised me at least one bottle(650ml) of the 'Best Beer in the World'. I am so looking forward to that because I already though I had had two or three of those!

Cheers and enjoy your holidays

Hah... What's his name again... He was a friend of Joost, if I'm right... Johan...? Let me search for a minute.

About the beers: hell yeah, we have the best in the world! Actually, going abroad isn't fun, as the beer over there isn't that good.
The Kasteelbier you mention isn't bad (especially on cold days), but a bit to sweet for me. I like it bitter.
Yesterday I enjoyed a good Maredsous. The tripel kind.
The Best Beer in the World you're talking about must be the best of a couple of years ago, elected by Michael Jackson (not the singer): Westvleteren. Very hard to get hold of, usually only on sale at the abbey itself, you have to call before, you have to ask if they will have a case for you on a certain date and you need to tell your license plate to be able to pick it up. Last year they sold in supermarkets on a one time occasion to be able to restore one of their stables, still have two of those bottles. I keep them for a special occasion.

If ever you'd end up here in Belgium we can go to a couple of pubs, selling more kinds of beer you'll ever be able to drink!

OK... Two minutes on Facebook (of which one minute replying to other shit) made me come up with this:
Joost Buntinx (the 318iS owner) and his friend Johan Wauters, aka trobbelke.

Sounds like reunion time!

Quote
Michiel 318iS
OK... Two minutes on Facebook (of which one minute replying to other shit) made me come up with this:
Joost Buntinx (the 318iS owner) and his friend Johan Wauters, aka trobbelke.

Sounds like reunion time!

Facebook is awesome at times!

Quote
Michiel 318iS
OK... Two minutes on Facebook (of which one minute replying to other shit) made me come up with this:
Joost Buntinx (the 318iS owner) and his friend Johan Wauters, aka trobbelke.

Sounds like reunion time!

Yes; that's him! I remember Joost too.

If you can; maybe get them to drop by here for a reunion

Quote
Michiel 318iS
Hah... What's his name again... He was a friend of Joost, if I'm right... Johan...? Let me search for a minute.

About the beers: hell yeah, we have the best in the world! Actually, going abroad isn't fun, as the beer over there isn't that good.
The Kasteelbier you mention isn't bad (especially on cold days), but a bit to sweet for me. I like it bitter.
Yesterday I enjoyed a good Maredsous. The tripel kind.
The Best Beer in the World you're talking about must be the best of a couple of years ago, elected by Michael Jackson (not the singer): Westvleteren. Very hard to get hold of, usually only on sale at the abbey itself, you have to call before, you have to ask if they will have a case for you on a certain date and you need to tell your license plate to be able to pick it up. Last year they sold in supermarkets on a one time occasion to be able to restore one of their stables, still have two of those bottles. I keep them for a special occasion.

If ever you'd end up here in Belgium we can go to a couple of pubs, selling more kinds of beer you'll ever be able to drink!

My friend has tried to get some Westvleteren but as you say it is difficult. He is returning to Belgium in Feb. and has made an appointment; so we'll see if he has any luck.

The 'Best Beer in the World' he is talking about comes from a small three person craft brewery run by a lady who is a direct descendant of the original brewmaster of 300 years ago. I can't recall the name of the beer or the brewery since a lot got muddled up during the tasting session; but I will get to sample this as it has just arrived at his warehouse and is ready for pickup.

BTW...I sampled a 2008 Pannepot Grand Reserva last night! Pure ambrosia to my palate

Yes indeed, Belgian beer is good stuff. I'm a big fan. Lots of breweries in North America are doing a good job producing good examples of them (including the one in my backyard ). Brewery Omegang in NY state was bought by a Belgian brewery a couple of years ago (Duvel) and they didn't even change any of the recipies. [en.wikipedia.org]

Westvleteren is pretty hard to get in the US. They did a special issue of beer for the US market that was put on sale just a week or two ago. As you would expect, it sold out in no time and bottles were on E-prey for $350 each within hours. The original price was $85.00/six pack.

If I ever am lucky enough to get to Belgium I'm going to be expecting a really good brew tour in an E30 from you, Michiel.

John

I wish it were easier to find good Belgian beer around here. We're currently experiencing a big Belgian witbier fad around here, so it's pretty easy to find a halfway decent selection of witbiers -- but beyond that, not so much. There's a place in town that has a rotating selection of interesting imported beers - maybe I should ask them to do a special order.

__________
Dave
'91 325iX

message sent
now just wait and see

Now, if we could only find a few others I used to love to talk to here.... I'll have to think of their names though.....

Vlad?