I've been a serious fan (as in, not drinking Coors) of beer for about 2 years, and my friend introduced me to Chimay a couple months ago. Now I see it everywhere and wonder how I missed it. What are some other great beers that I might not have come across?
Posted Feb 22, 2010, 3:37 AM UTC
Speaking of Unibroue, if there's a Trader Joe's near you, pick up their holiday ale next December. It's brewed by Unibroue, but it is less expensive.
Speaking of Unibroue
Wait what
Other people mentioned it.
I see now, I thought this was in direct reply to the OP. Carry on.
I don't know why it reminds me of it, but Bell's Third Coast Old Ale is similar (sort of) as Chimay Blue. I love both of them, and haven't tried them back to back to see if I REALLY think they are similar, but I love them both regardless.
Pretty much anything by Bells is at the top of my list....
Look for an Belgian Strong Dark. Unibroue is mentioned here, and rightly so. Other real Belgians will treat you nicely. Explore.
Visit beeradvocate.com and ratebeer.com, explore the styles.
You're on a happy discovery!
I absolutely swear by Maredsous 8.
I've always found trappist ales to have banana and clove, which is nice. Similar, but not trappist, is Samuel Smith's Nut Brown, if you can find it, I think you'll find it to your tastes.
St. Bernadus, Orval, Westmalle, Gulden Draak...
Rochefort 10 and 8 if you've never had.
10 is absolutely amazing.
If you like Chimay blue then you will really enjoy St. Benardus Abt 12.
Thanks for all the feedback guys. I have an expensive BevMo/Trader Joe's run to do this afternoon. :)
Definitely try Orval. Look for one that's over 9 months old. It is bottle conditioned with a yeast strain known as "Brett" for short that activates after approximately 9 months in the bottle. Once activated, the Brett creates an entirely different flavor character. Ashley Routson has a great video on her blog of an Orval vertical tasting.
Check it out at http://drinkwiththewench.com/?p=1861
Anything by Unibroue- La Fin du Monde and Trois Pistoles are their best.
It took me a couple of years to notice Ommegang, so I know how you feel. You'd might as well try all the Trappist monk-brewed beers. Besides Chimay there's Westmalle, Orval, Koningshoeven, Rochefort, Achel, and Westvleteren. The latter you won't find unless you're looking really hard and have a lot of cash on hand.
[Delirium Tremens](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delirium_Tremens_(beer%29)! Possibly my most favourite ever.
EDIT: I've tried about 4 different ways of fixing that link but none seem to work :( Help?!
EDIT 2: I fixed it. phew
you could also escape the close paren with a back slash to get the link to "look right"
[Delirium Tremens](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delirium_Tremens_(beer\)) is this code:
[Delirium Tremens](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delirium_Tremens_\(beer\\\)\)