American here…Are these drinks truly Belgian?

37 comments
  1. Yes, they are. As far as I remember gulden draak = van Steenberge brewery, Orval = Belgian Abby. Quite high alcohol%. Nice to drink one or two, but not something I would drink all night.

  2. Being in a bar with your friends, having a discussion about the beers you ordered. Then one gets his phone and just asks some random Belgians om the internet a question. Just incredible the times we living in. What could be possible in 50 years from now?

  3. I believe Gulden Draak is brewed in/ around Gent where I live. It’s named after the city’s insignia/ mascot (a golden dragon). Not my favorite local beer, but probably a good find in the US.

  4. Fun fact with Orval is that some peoples will look for old ones as they taste better/differently after à few years

  5. Fun fact, There are a lot of belgian beers but only 5 here are labelled “Trappist”, which mean the conception have to follow strict rules when made. The Orval is one of them.

  6. True Belgians and orval is hard to find except bars. Sometimes you find them in the market but they sell with limits like 4 bottles per person.

  7. Question on top of your question : do people here know where Gulden Draak can be purchased, besides the net? Have to say I mainly go to Delhaize and I can’t find them there.

  8. No! You should get CARA from Colruyt, it is the only true Belgian beer!!!!

    Since it is the only true Belgian beer, you can also find it in all our Nightshops!

  9. Yes! Gulden draak is made in the city I live in! It’s named after the golden dragon (statue) who sits on top of one of the three towers of our city! The dragon sits on top of the Belfort, which is a building like a cathedral only not religious.

    EDIT: not made in Ghent, but in Evergem. But the dragon lives in Ghent.

  10. Definitly yes. Little tip for the Orval:
    – try to drink it at tempered temperature
    – try to have a at least one year old beer
    – the older the better
    – drink it in orval glass ( please, we beg you !)

    All those reason make the beer exceptional and authentic. The older the beer is the less bitter it become. I tried one of 10 years old, I had to feeling to drink honey. It was wonderful.
    Yes, we belgian have problem with beer but we love this tradition !

  11. And here we are. All beer drinkers enjoying their best lives talking quietly about beer with no anger.

    This is wholesome and make we want to drink beer with all of you whatever the brand ( well no Cara though we still have standard)

  12. Gulden Draak, is in my opinion the best one. There was a special variant that they made that was aged on Whiskey casks as well (forgot the name), that I was given for my viva/PhD defense (or whatever it’s called in the US) that was amazing and I remember it to this day 😛

  13. Little fun fact, in French, most beers have a feminine gender, Orval, for whatever reason is masculine. Some say it comes from the term “Val d’Or” which means Golden Vale, some say it’s because you have to drink it in the proper glass and is thus implied you are talking about a glass (which is masculine). It could also be because it makes the beer a bit more special and to have a discussion about it.

  14. Hey OP, if the reason you’re asking is because you find “Belgian Style” beers in the USA (e.g. Blue Moon), no real belgian beer will say “belgian style”.

  15. Orval?? As a Belgian myself those are extremely rare especially when bought in a “bak” crate so no idea how expensive that one bottle was 😮 also as I said before if they export Chimay Triple try that it’s heaven 🙂

  16. kind of interesting to see the importer of Orval is all the way in NorthWest USA, as opposed to anywhere on the Atlantic Ocean East side of the USA.. (or is this just because OP is from the West Coast, and this is the “local importer”?)

    Orval is one of the best Trappist’s in the world, btw.. enjoy!

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