Happy Oktoberfest Friends. Our trip to Munich was cancelled at the last minute, so instead we celebrated with some German friends in Liège. Maybe next year Hayden can have his first taste of bier und brezel (beer and pretzels).

Last weekend Adrian treated me to a spa package in Spa, a small town in Belgium, from which the word originates. To get there, I caught the train through the Ardennes, passing over rivers and watching the spring calves find their legs. I found most of the activity of the town of Spa to be centered around the main road. As it was a beautiful day, most people were eating and drinking out on the terraces of the cafes. While in Leuven, most cafes will proudly display “Stella Artois” signs to advertise their house beer, the most prominent beverage advertising here was that of “Spa water”. Looking down the beverage list, I discovered ten different types of Spa water on offer. I decided on a Spa citron to accompany my Tagliatelles fraîches aux truffes noires.

The town still retains the semblance of a nineteenth century sanatorium, with many couples walking through the classical parks for their daily constitutional. I visited the Museum of Water, finding the most interesting part to be the temporary exhibition of historical advertising posters proclaiming “Eaux minerales ferrugineuses” (iron-rich water), “tir aux pigeons” (shooting pigeons) and “trajet en 7 heures de paris” (journey in 7 hours from Paris). Those who came from France and Spain in their flamboyant costumes to partake in the water from Spa were called bobelins (perhaps derived from the Latin bibelus (heavy drinker)), which I believe now is used in Wallonia to mean “stupid and weird”.

On Sunday I caught my private funicular to the top of the highest hill to visit the Thermes de Spa. Nestled amongst the trees are some very picturesque indoor and outdoor baths. I began my relaxation in the outdoor baths, enjoying the feeling of weightlessness, as well as the contrast between the cooler air and the warm water. Eventually wandering back inside, I enjoyed a bubble bed before drying out in the dark and forest-scented relaxation room. My Spa weekend culminated in a Watsu – a water shiatsu massage. The therapist attached foam to my legs so that I could float effortlessly, and then gently whoosh me through the water while tenderly stretching and relaxing my limbs, leaving me feeling completely relaxed and rejuvenated by my Spa weekend.

The picturesque Walloon town of Dinant, in addition to being Adolphe’s Sax birthplace and hosting an annual bathtub regatta, is also home to possibly Europe’s hardest biscuit, the Couque de Dinant.

The story goes that in 1466 the city was under siege by the Duke of Burgundy Charles the Rash. After some people from Dinant cast doubts on Charles’ true parentage, he marched into the city and destroyed all supplies. Forced to improvise, the remaining citizens took honey and flour and pressed it into the intricate moulds used for copperware to produce biscuits in the shapes of landscapes and animals.

Today, the moulds are carved out of pear tree wood and depict everything from piglets to shopping carts. One place to sample these treats is at Patisserie Jacobs on Rue Grand, where these impressive biscuits have been produced since 1860. The biscuits are easy to display, as they can be hammered directly onto the walls and last for years.

We have spent quite a few happy evenings at the Delirium Cafe in Brussels, but last weekend I was lucky enough to go to the source. Our friends Michelle and Grant managed to wrange us onto the end of a private tour of the Huyghe Brewery in Melle. The Hughe Brewery makes two of my favourite beers.

Photo by Grant.

The first beer is called Delirium Tremens, and prominantly features a pink elephant, one of the stereotypical hallucinations experienced by those with the “trembling madness” caused by withdrawal from alcohol. It is a very young recipe, as it was released to the public on December 26, 1989. It is a strong, golden ale that is made from three different strains of yeast, and contains 8.5% alcohol. The producers love calling it “the best beer in the world” because it won the 1998 World Beer Championships. While I don’t really like the taste of the beer, the sight of those cute pink elephants on the glass will often win me over. After the tour I bought two Delirium Tremens mugs and four bottles of the Delirium Noel seasonal brew, simply because they had skiing elephants in Santa hats on their label.

My second favourite Hughe beer is Floris Passion, and beer purists will insist that it shouldn’t be called a beer at all, as it is a white beer with a great deal of passion fruit syrup added. It is an even younger recipe, as the range of Floris fruit beers was first released in 1993. We were given the so-called Floris Kriek to try. This beer, while delicious, is not a true Kriek lambic. The brewers use one specific strain of yeast, rather than the a variety of wild airborn yeasts required for a traditional kriek. I returned home with six Floris Passion beers and two Floris glasses. When unpacking, I discovered that I had sadly broken both the glasses, but luckily the beers themselves were safe. We will have to return to the Delirium Cafe for some replacements in the near future.

Photo by Grant.

The brewery is in Melle, a small town that doesn’t have much else to speak of. We tried to find lunch, and we were first drawn to a cafe called Melle Rose Place. However, it was full of smoke, so we spent a long time walking up and down the two main roads to see if we could find a smoke-free restaurant. Finally, we settled on a small frituur (fries shop), which turned out to be excellent. I ate my fish-burger while watching the arrival of Sinterklaas and his entourage on television.

Photo by Grant.

The tour was conducted in Flemish, and our translator was a retired professor who was mostly deaf. So while we didn’t get to hear much about the brewery, we were able to walk through the various stages of brewing. We explored the warehouses containing the blank bottles, painted to resemble grey ceramic rather than glass. We finished the tour with a beer tasting in the old museum, filled with Hughe memorabilia from 1654 to today.

Photo by Grant.