An oversight

Affligem is, if not quite ubiquitous in the Low Countries, at least commonplace. It's an abbey brand owned by Heineken and benefits from the distribution clout which comes with that. Finding it is not difficult, which may be why it has barely featured in this blog. Affligem Dubbel, in this post from 2007, is the sole appearance of the brand. As it happened, on my recent trip to the Netherlands, I had an opportunity to begin putting things right.

A short hop west from our base in Haarlem brought us to Zandvoort-aan-Zee, which serves as a beach resort town for Amsterdam and surrounds. On the beach itself are a string of terraced bar/restaurants, and on our Tuesday afternoon, PlaZand was open. The beer list is far from extensive but, oh, Affligem Blond: I'll give that a go.

What would one expect from The Big H, other than a straightforward interpretation of the style? It's 6.7% ABV so maybe a little on the strong side. Notes of banana and clove show that we've come a long way from the pilsners from which blonde ales like this evolved. The weissbier similarities continue with hints of celery and butane on the finish. It's unchallenging, sure, but it's not dull. I can see this being a safe bet when options are limited.

Downhill from the coast (Netherlands!), Zandvoort town centre has a string of bars and cafés, all poised and ready for peak holiday season or when the Grand Prix rolls noisily into town. For a last beer before the train back to Haarlem, we picked one, where I ordered Affligem Tripel.

Again, there was no surprise with what I got. The basics are all there, at a standard 9% ABV. You get more of that clove from the Blonde, plus more savoury and bitter herbs, and a sticky candy base. The higher-end tripels of Belgium tend to be cooler and cleaner, with maybe more of the hop and spice and less of the candy. Nevertheless, the Affligem is a viable alternative when required.

Thus ends your formal introduction to the House of Affligem. Normal meanderings in the Netherlands will resume, next.