EP035 | A Year In Review 2021

Words by Breandán KearneyPodcast featuring Breandán Kearney and Eoghan WalshIllustration by Flore Deman we approach the end of the year, this podcast episode is a look back at Belgian beer in 2021. It’s a conversation with Eoghan Walsh, who writes at Brussels Beer City. Eoghan is a fellow Irishman in Belgium and the winner of several awards at the North American Guild of Beer Writers Awards this year, including those for Best Beer Review, Best Short Form Writing, and Best Beer and Food Writing.  In this episode, Eoghan and I started off by chatting about developments in the world of Belgian Trappist brewing over the last 18 months. In October 2020, Rochefort released a new Tripel. In March of this year, Westmalle made their lower alcohol Extra available outside the Abbey for the first time. And in May of 2021, Chimay released a Strong Blonde Ale they called the Chimay 150. There was also some confusion in January of 2021, when Achel lost the right to display the Authentic Trappist Product Logo on its labels. Eoghan and I discussed all of this, and tried to gather some thoughts on the health of brand Trappist as we approach 2022.  The Belgian Golden Strong Ale and the Strong Belgian Blonde Ale are two styles of beer whose popularity in Belgium continues to grow. Eoghan and I discussed the most successful proponents of these two styles, as well as the reasons why these beers might be interesting to Belgian drinkers. The biggest story in global beer this year was about toxic work environments, bullying, and discrimination against marginalised communities in the beer industry. Most of you will be aware of the work of Brienne Allan in the US and perhaps have followed stories, in particular, about Punks with Purpose and Brewdog in the UK, and Fanny Wandel and Mikkeller in Denmark. Eoghan and I talked about the situation in Belgium and discussed whether there are any initiatives that might ensure the Belgian beer community becomes a safer, more inclusive, and more equitable place.  One of the most interesting parts of Belgian beer is the Lambic world. Like other producers, Lambic breweries and blenders have had a tough time over the last 18 months. But it’s been a really exciting time for drinkers of spontaneous and mixed fermentation in Belgium as newcomers enter the market, as diversity of flavour grows amongst the established producers, and as the quality across the board improves. Eoghan and I discussed what happened in 2021 and why 2022 might be another great year for Lambic. There have been other, more quixotic trends that have emerged or taken root in Belgian beer in the past 12 months. Spirits continued to be a productive area of interest for Belgian breweries, with Bourgogne de Flandres, Het Anker, Ter Dolen, Duvel, Wilderen, Waterloo, and St Feuillien all committing to their distillation projects. On the extreme opposite side of the industry, though, low alcohol beers continued to be a major source of interest for other producers, although offerings were often hit and miss. There seemed to a maturing of several breweries which came into existence in the last two decades, with the Musketeers, De La Senne, Brussels Beer Project, and Minne all continuing to scale up and introduce new products,