It’s without a doubt that Belgian beers rightfully have a top spot on the world brewing stage. Despite being a tiny country, Belgian brewers have had a massive impact on the beer brewing culture the world over, even if it's not readily seen in your average pale ale.

It doesn’t matter if you’re someone who enjoys thirst quenching dry saisons, ,malty sweet trappists, fruity lambics or big, heavy beers worthy of contemplating the world on, there really is a belgian beer for everyone.

This list of Belgian beers are some of our favourites which are also accessible year round and not made in super limited quantities meaning if you find one you love it shouldn’t be that hard to get your hands on some more.

We’ve organised the list from ‘light and refreshing’ through to ‘slow sipper’ so take that in mind when deciding which beer might suit you… and remember Belgian brewers tend to make beers that are higher in alcohol with their “lighter” beers typically being around 5-6% ABV.

Leffe Blonde

Style: Belgian Abbey Blond

ABV: 6.6

The story of Leffe began in 1240, when the abbey of Notre-Dame de Leffe began brewing beer for passing travellers and pilgrims. Due to unsanitary conditions at the time, water was not safe to drink, so beer was brewed to quench the thirst of the monks and travellers.

Over the centuries, the abbey was destroyed and rebuilt many times and beer wasn’t always brewed over that time.

In 1952 Father Abbot Nys and a brewer named Albert Lootvert revived the brewing tradition of the Abbey and over that time the range has expanded to include many other styles.

Leffe Blonde pours a pale golden straw colour with a white fluffy head. The carbonation is lively with the classic belgian yeast character on the nose. Vanilla, cloves with floral and spicy notes round out the flavour.

This is beer is a great introduction to Belgian beer.

Rodenbach Grand Cru

Style: Flanders Red Ale

ABV: 7%

Flanders Red Ale is a type of Belgian amber ale which is aged for extended periods of time in very large oak casks (called foeders) until it becomes dry, oaky and slightly sour from Lactobacillus (lactic acid - the same stuff that's in yoghurt!)

Rodenbach Grand Cru is made up of ⅔ beer that's been aged for 2 two years and ⅓ fresh beer to create a balanced sweet and sour beer.

A dark amber colour with a red hue and small beige head, Grand Cru will give aromas of cherry, oak and aged balsamic and also tannins in the flavour (which is why Flanders Red Ales are commonly called the ‘red wines’ of the beer world).

If you enjoy fruity sour beers we strongly recommend you try a rodenbach grand cru to experience a more traditional, ‘authentic’ version.

Saison Dupont

Style: Saison

ABV: 6.5%

Saison is a style of farmhouse beer traditionally brewed in the winter time to be served in summer to the ‘saisoniers’ or seasonal workers on a farm. Originating as a style brewed for thirsty workers after a hard days labour, this is truly a delicious style of beer.

First brewed in 1844, Saison Dupont has become one of the leading examples of the style, setting the benchmark for brewers wishing to brew it.

Pouring coppery golden, with a large white fluffy head (take care to pour this beer gently) aromas of banana, lemon and bubblegum take over the senses. When you take a sip you’ll get flavours of fresh cut straw, fruity yeast esters and a dry finish to balance it out.

Duvel

Style: Belgian Golden Strong Ale

ABV: 8.5%

During World War I, The Moortgat family brewery were so inspired by English ales that English soldiers brought over with them that at the completion of the war, Albert Moortgat went to the UK to learn about brewing ingredients. Bringing back with him a strain of Scottish yeast (which is still used in Duvel today) and the iconic Duvel was born.

On the nose, you’ll get lemon peel, clove and earthy pine from the hops. The flavour will bring in banana, herbal hops and a beautiful ‘champagne-like’ carbonation. To get the full Duvel experience, we strongly encourage you to try it in its matching Duvel beer glass. It was one of the first tulip-style glasses designed for beer drinking and will fit a 330ml bottle perfectly (the letter ‘D’ is positioned on the glass so that if poured correctly, the bottom of the head should cut through the middle of it; there are many youtube videos demonstrating this!)

Rochefort 10

Style: Belgian Dark Strong Ale

ABV: 11.3%

The heavy hitter of this list, Rochefort 10 is an authentic trappist beer, i.e. made under supervision of trappist monks. While a Belgian ‘Quadrupel’ is not always recognised by governing beer organisations, the term is often used as the logical step above the abbey ‘Dubbel’ and ‘Tripel’ styles. Deep dark amber, verging on black, with a slight ruby hue and a tan head, you’ll get complex flavours of raisins and dried figs, toffee, port and toasted bread.

Remember to take your time with this beer, not only is it quite strong, but also the flavours will develop with a little time warming up from fridge temperature.

A truly remarkable beer, good enough to match up against the best in the world.

There you have it, 5 of the best Belgian beers available in Australia. If you haven’t gotten around to trying any Belgian beers yet, make sure you do. For such a tiny country it has very diverse brewing traditions, so there will be something for all tastes.

If you’re still not too sure where to start we have some great curated Belgian beer packs which are always a good place to start, simply click the image below to view our latest Belgian beer packs.