... Our first port of call after arriving at Brussels Midi Station (the one where the Eurostar stops) was Cantillon Brewery ~ the Brussels home of Lambic and Gueuze beer!
~~~WHERE IS CANTILLON?
The brewery, bar and visitor centre is located at number 56 Rue Gheude Straat, in a suburb of ... Read review
NH Hotels, the hotel chain leader in Europe, with more than 300 hotels in 20 countries in Europe, Latin America and Africa. Enter into our web site and find the best available tariff at all times
Advantages: A fascinating insight into the history of brewing. Disadvantages: Not for the less mobile or for children.
...where the Eurostar stops) was Cantillon Brewery ~ the Brussels home of Lambic and Gueuze beer!
~~~WHERE IS CANTILLON?
The brewery, bar and visitor centre is located at number 56 Rue Gheude Straat, in a suburb of Brussels called Anderlecht. When you arrive by train at Brussels Midi Station you can either walk (it takes about ten to fifteen minutes) or get a tram or bus. The metro station is more or less attached to the ... ...and 47.
Cantillon is housed down an alley in an old building that actually looks a little like a run down workshop or garage. It really doesn't look very inspiring at first glance, but if you venture inside you are in for a bit of a history lesson and will be stepping back in time!
~~~A BIT OF HISTORY.
Cantillon Brewery is the only remaining family run brewery in Brussels, as opposed to over 50 that could ... more
During our trip to Belgium, earlier on this year, we travelled on the train from Ghent to Brussels for a day out. Even though it was raining enough to convince me to start building an ark we had a lovely (if extremely hectic) time. Our first port of call after arriving at Brussels Midi Station (the one where the Eurostar stops) was Cantillon Brewery ~ the Brussels home of Lambic and Gueuze beer!
~~~WHERE IS CANTILLON?
The brewery, bar and visitor centre is located at number 56 Rue Gheude Straat, in a suburb of Brussels called Anderlecht. When you arrive by train at Brussels Midi Station you can either walk (it takes about ten to fifteen minutes) or get a tram or bus. The metro station is more or less attached to the railway station and there is a bus stop outside too. The trams that head in that direction are numbers 18, 52, 55, 56, 81 and 82. The buses are numbers 20 and 47.
Cantillon is housed down an alley in an old building that actually looks a little like a run down workshop or garage. It really doesn't look very inspiring at first glance, but if you venture inside you are in for a bit of a history lesson and will be stepping back in time!
~~~A BIT OF HISTORY.
Cantillon Brewery is the only remaining family run brewery in Brussels, as opposed to over 50 that could be found at the beginning of the 20th Century. It is over 100 years old (it was founded by Paul Cantillon in 1900) and is a remarkable dusty old building owned by the Van Roy family. Much of the equipment you see is ancient and the brewing process used is fiercely traditional. You will end up wondering how Health & Safety or Hygiene officials would let some of what goes on pass!
~~~WHEN CAN I VISIT & WHAT WILL IT COST?
The museum opening hours (courtesy of their website) are as follows:
• June to September - 8.30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. 10am to 1pm on Saturday. • October to May - 8.30am to 4.30pm, Monday to Friday. 10am to 5pm on Saturday.
It cost €3.50 to go around the museum. You can go into the shop and have a drink in the bar for free, but it is worth having a look around the brewery if you've made the effort to get there. This included a two glasses of their beer and a booklet that told you about each part of the brewery and the history. Group bookings need to be arranged in advance by emailing or telephoning the brewery ~ prices vary according to group size and you can opt for a guided tour.
There is also an option to pay more for your visit (not sure of the price and it doesn't say anywhere on the website) and have more beer. If you just want to come in for a drink you can purchase your beer separately. Children are welcome but they (of course) don't get to drink the beer! I'm not sure if they would enjoy it though so it might not be worth planning to go if you have young children.
~~~WHAT DID WE DO?
We opted for the two glasses of beer and self guided tour, using the information provided. The man on the desk gave us a brief intro before we started our look round, but his attention was soon taken by the arrival of a massive coach tour! We had a look round adeptly managing to stay one step ahead of the tour otherwise we would have seen nothing due to the large number of them crowding into the various areas of the brewery. There are quite a few steps to go up to get to the different levels of the brewery and, although the bar area is flat, I wouldn't recommend the tour for anyone who has mobility problems or those who are uncomfortable walking on uneven surfaces. Some of the steps are a little steep and narrow too.
You pay for your tour on entry and you can spend as long as you like touring the building. Each area and item of interest is numbered and the guide leaflet is pretty interesting and comprehensive. We do have a pretty decent knowledge of the brewing process so we were quite glad we hadn't arranged a guided tour ~ this seemed to take ages on each part of the building and the guide seemed to go into very great detail (the group tour in progress behind us was in English). If we had wanted we could have held back a little and listened to the tour...nobody seemed to mind and the whole approach to the tour was relaxed and friendly.
I won't go into any detail about what we saw because that would spoil it for anyone visiting in the future. I will say that even those who aren't especially interested in brewing will find the equipment, old building and history fascinating. The sampling of beer at the end is also a nice touch ~ you actually get a chance to taste what you have been learning about while you have been walking round!
We spent about half an hour walking around but we could very easily have spent longer. Once we had completed our tour (no-one rushed us or made us feel we should hurry) we were told to give whoever was on the desk a prod and they would get our beer for us.
~~~WHICH BEER DID WE SAMPLE?
On the day of our tour we were given a glass each of two of the house beers. The first of these was a standard Gueuze beer. This was a sour, dry beer made from blending a two year old and a three year old Lambic beer (Lambic refers to a Belgian beer style that is sour, sharp and wine-like, usually made using wild yeast and 30% wheat). It was very acidic in flavour and incredibly tart to drink. The second sample was a Cantillon Kriek ~ a VERY sour Lambic made with added cherries that made your mouth pucker. One of our group took a lovely photograph of some of us drinking the Kriek…we look like we are sucking lemons!
~~~WHAT ELSE IS THERE TO DO?
There is a nice little bar area to sit in with nice rustic looking seats pleasant decoration (in contrast to the rather dilapidated exterior). We sat here to drink our beer samples were very settled until the HUGE party appeared to try their beers and take over the whole bar ~ this was our cue to drink up and be on our way! There is also a gift shop where you can buy bottles of Cantillon beers (either single bottles or gift packs), t shirts, books, etc. We thought the prices were pretty reasonable but didn't end up buying anything because we were conscious that whatever we purchased need to be carried around all day and it WAS still raining hard.
There is also a toilet you may find wise to use before you set off on your way into central Brussels!
~~~WHAT DID I THINK OF MY VISIT?
I found Cantillon Brewery & Museum provided a fascinating insight into the mysterious world of Belgian brewing. It was so different to the squeaky clean breweries that I am used to seeing in the UK. The guide leaflet was easy to follow, the route well planned out and allowed you to follow the brewing process through from start to finish ~ ending with the final product to taste helped put what you had just seen into context too! The inside of the brewery and the old equipment is full of atmosphere and provides some interesting photo opportunities.
My favourite areas were the granary and the barrel storage areas. The building is very impressive and the tour interesting, factual and informative. You may at times need to dodge cobwebs and spiders but this adds to the atmosphere and the interest. The staff spoke excellent English too and were more than welcome to explain anything if you asked.
I was really glad we took the time to go a little bit out of our way and pay a call on Cantillon Brewery. It was not only an excellent place to spend a couple of hours out of the rain it was a nice chance to have a little peek at how beer used to be produced. It was also a poignant reminder that these traditional methods of production are fast dying out ~ we need to support these little businesses before they are all swallowed up by faceless and characterless factories of the massive breweries.
Visit this little taste of the past while you have the chance!
~~~BREWERY DETAILS.
The Cantillon Brewery and Museum Rue Gheude 56 B-1070 Brussels. Tel: 02/521 49 28 http://www.cantillon.be/br/Cantillon.php?lang=3&page=001
Advantages: Cosmopolitan with plenty to see and do Disadvantages: Ridiculous hotel prices midweek
.
La Challoupe d'Or : situated in one of the guild houses of the Grand Place.
------------------
More about beer?
------------------
The Gueuze Museum (in the Anderlecht district), is situated in the still operational Cantillonbrewery and is famous for its authentic Lambic beers. Before you enter this brewery and museum, forget all you know about the taste of beer, and then try a Cantillon Gueuze or Kriek (cherry beer). You're in for a surprise !!!
The Brewery Museum is on the Grand Place and is open every day.
--------------
Mannekin Pis
--------------
The world famous peeing boy can be seen every day and night at the corner of Eikstraat/Stoofstraat near the Grand Place.
The Mannekin changes costumes regularly and on special occasions he 'pises' beer instead of water!
---------------
Toone Theatre ...
