History
Van Honsebrouck brewery is located in Ingelmunster (West Flanders, Belgium) and is well known for its special beers. The history of the brewery started way back in 1900 when Emiel and Louisa Van Honsebrouck bought a small farm. In 1922, Paul and Ernest Van Honsebrouck succeeded the founders of the brewery. However, during its time, the brewery was not that successful. And in 1953, with the help of Luc Van Honsebrouck, the brewery had its big breakthrough.
The present day castle or building in Ingelmunster goes back to 1736 (with its cellars dated back in the Middle Ages) is classical of its period. It is when castles had lost it function for the purpose of the military.
The castle of Ingelmunster has owned by the Van Honsebrouck family since 1986, who had been brewing in Ingelmunster since 1900. The company that Van Honsebrouck established was called “Castle Brewery Van Honsebrouck.” Unfortunately, the brewery was completely destroyed when a fire broke on September 17, 2001.
The flagship or the most important product of the brewery is the Kasteelbier or Kasteel. It has five (5) kinds, the Kasteel Bruin, the Kasteel Triple, the Kasteel Blond, the Kasteel Rouge, and the Kasteel Gift.
Kasteel Bruin
The Kasteel Bruin is brewed traditionally and is re-fermented in a bottle. This beer is a strong brown ale style beer which contains 11% alcohol. A bruin is another name for a brown bear and that is how Kasteel Bruin got its name because the color of the beer is dark brown to reddish hue with little head or small tightly packed bubbles. At first, it might smell like wine. It has actually a strong smell of malt with a little hint of caramel and chocolate. The taste is mild and very tasty. It is sweet and alcoholic at the same time. You would not recognize the alcohol until you finish the whole bottle. The alcohol is not overpowering. It is full-bodied because of the abundance of flavors. It is rich and very smooth, a soft and easy texture. It is well-balanced because of the perfect combination of sweet and bitter tastes. It has a good finish because of its richness, smoothness and subtlety. The bitter taste does not linger. All the flavors seem to interlock. And because of these, the pleasant nature of the beer tempts us to take another sip.
Recommendations
In drinking this beer, remember to sip and slowly absorb the flavors to totally appreciate it. This beer is quite strong because of it 11% alcohol content. It is quite deceiving when you taste it because the alcohol is not overpowering. It is after you finish the bottle that you really feel the kick. One bottle is enough. It is best if served cold.
The Belgians seem to have perfected the art of brewing "fine" beer as most in this blog traces itself to Belgian roots. Perhaps such trend is a reflection of their culture.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, it is no surprise that a castle is used for the storing of beer. The environment inside the castles are perfect for distilling. Actually, I think they can even go beyond beer. Perhaps, other types of alcoholic beverages such as wine, etc. can be produced as well. After all, it seems that they've gotten the process all figured out. :)
Hi! This beer is my boyfriend's favorite and I wanted to import it as a surprise for his birthday but found out that the brewery no longer produces it. Do you know of any other beer that is similar to this one?
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