Since my arrival in Belgium, I’ve sampled several beers new to me, some good and others, well, less exciting. One of the standouts, however, was a draught Bersalis Tripel I enjoyed at the Delirium Café on my first night in town. Not a lambic, for which the venerable, thankfully resuscitated Oud Beersel brewery is known, but a strong golden ale, it struck me first with its remarkable subtlety – for an ale of 9.5% alcohol! – and then with its grace, balance and integral mix of flavours.
The surprise? I am reliably told that this beer is brewed for Oud Beersel by that much- and often unjustly-maligned brewery, Huyghe, makers of Guillotine and Delirium Tremens.
I’ve long maintained that Delirium Tremens in particular is a serious beer obscured by a kitschy name and bottle, and that Huyghe is a much better brewery than their reputation for gimmick and label beers would suggest. Bersalis Tripel is yet more evidence of this.