Brussels part 3 - Poechenellekelder

This is the second spot I had mapped out to go to. Like Delirium, this has a large range of beers although no where near as much as Delirium. One thing I should mention is the location. As we were walking we came across a little fountain with a little statue of a boy pissing and he was dressed up as a fireman. Had I done any real research on Brussels other than beer locations I would have known that this was one of the most famous Brussels tourist attractions. The image above was taken at the fountain and so our destination of Poechenellekelder is right beside it.

It was not until we were inside and seated that we figured out the name of the fountain. There is a chocolate shop across the street that had the name Manneken Pis on it and on looking around the decor inside Poechenellekelder we saw all sorts of references to Manneken Pis.

First beers up were Caracole Amber (7.5%) & Blanche De Bruxelles. The Caracole was unfiltered with a massive white head. It smelled of Sherbert fizz, orange and quite spicy. In the mouth there was plenty of citrus, corriander, orange and a spicy/peppery thing going on. The finish was warm alcohol and I thought this was an excellent beer.
The Blanche De Bruxelles on the other hand was your average Belgian Wit, though more of a lemon wit than an orange wit. It was quite good but nothing to make it stand out.

Next up I ordered a Rochefort 10 and a Brugse Zot. The Rochefort I ordered for two reasons, one it is like the name of my town - Rochfortbridge. And the other, it is easy to say in my limited French. This is a strong 11.3 % Belgian Dark with plenty of caramel, brown sugar, and plums. Spice shows through in plenty and this was a great winter warmer. Very sweet though so I could only handle one though as a sipper it would last quite a while.
The Brugse Zot Blonde was a very citrusy Wit. Quite tasty and peppery. My wife described it as "Zippy" which pretty much sums it up.

In the Delirium beer cave I had seen people ordering so I gave it a go here. It came in a little swing top which I brought home with me. The head was massive and it was quite citrusy with lemon being very evident. It tasted of Alcohol and sweet caramel and at 8.3% is yet another big Belgian beer. I was more excited about the bottle than the beer to be honest. It was not bitter at all and while it was a perfectly good beer, I think it was just a little odd and overcarbonated. My wifes choice was a St Barnardus Wit which was a crisp but standard wit. I wonder is there such thing as an outstanding wit? This was lovely but I just can't get overly excited about Witbiers, though they are fantastic session beers.


I was drooling at the crates of Westvleteren 12. Unfortunately all empty.

One thing I should point out is the image above. You see the table and the railing? The entrance is just there to the left. A group of English people came in and ordered a massive cheese plate and about 10 minutes later the woman in the chair pictured realised her bag was gone. Someone had walked in and swiped it from the ground in between the railings. So be careful in Belgium in general but especially so if you are sitting by these railings.


I decided to be swayed by some beer mat advertising. As you can see, the beer mats provided were Gouden Carolus. I had the hopsinjoor which is a Belgian IPA. This turned out to be a rather delicous 8% beer. I was certain there was cascade in here from the aroma but it turns out not to be the case according to the website. It was a little like a double IPA and I got grapefruit and orange while tasting. I thought this was lovely if a tiny bit lacking in body. The Tripel seems to have been lost as I have no notes on it for some reason? I am sure it was a perfectly good beer as I only had one bad beer on the whole trip which I will talk about another time. It was truly awful though.



On the way downstairs to the bathroom you will find this picture displaying Manneken Pis dressed in various outfits. By the way, downstairs there is further seating and while it looks like a restaurant, the place does not serve much in the way of food (they do serve food though) so this is just part of the Bar that must open up later when it is busier.

So that is it for Brussels. There are plenty of bars to go in Brussels that have great beer but these are the two main places for beer lovers who want extensive beer menu's.
During my 5 nights we took two day trips. One to Antwerp and the other to Bruges and they will get their own blog post.