HOEGAARDEN

Blanche de Hoegaarden, Hoegaarden Rosé, Hoegaarden citron (See also AB InBev.) In the 18th century in Hoegaarden in the Flemish Brabant, there were over thirty breweries making white beer. The last one of these, Tomsin, closed in 1957. In 1965, a local milkman called Pierre Celis decided to revive the Hoegaarden white-beer tradition. He had regularly helped out at the Tomsin brewery and this expertise proved crucial as he moved quickly from producing the first batch of his "new" Blanche de Hoegaarden in a 600-litre oak wine vat to investing in new brewing equipment. His decision to serve his beer in distinctive glasses that look more like jam jars also proved important. The brewery and beer proved a great success. The friendly, genial Pierre Celis became a living legend.By 1985, Celis was already producing 75,000 hectolitres and looking forward to realising his dream of exporting to the United States when a fire destroyed the brewery. This marked the end of his control over his business. Stella Artois came to the rescue and from then on, Hoegaarden White was part of the InBev group.In 1992 and with the help of his daughter, Celis opened a brewery in Austin (Texas) where he began to brew Celis White, a beer based on his Belgian recipe. This, too, proved a success.He sold his brewery to the American group, Miller, in 1995 and subsequently spent his life moving between the United States and Belgium, where he developed and brewed his Grottenbier at the Sint Bernardus brewery. Pierre Celis died in Hoegaarden in April 2011. He was 86.Hoegaarden is now the most famous of all Belgian white beers, both in Belgium itself and internationally. AB InBev has invested heavily in the brewery and in marketing the beer. This marketing is not restricted to traditional advertising alone. Hoegaarden's famous hexagonal beer mats (the same shape as the glasses) have done much to promote the brand and have become collectors' items.Hoegaarden remains the most popular of all white beers quite simply because it has the most "consumer-friendly" taste and is the easiest one to drink. It is neither too sweet, nor too bitter and contains a hint of spice and orange that is just enough to make it a "modern" white beer and one of the stars in the Belgian firmament.As well as traditional Hoegaarden, there are several other versions: Hoegaarden Grand Cru, Hoegaarden Speciale, Hoegaarden Citron and Hoegaarden Rosé. There is even a Hoegaarden 0.0 which is alcohol-free, based on barley malt and wheat and described as a "natural refreshment inspired by Hoegaarden".One more beer in the Hoegaarden range is worth a mention here: Verboden Frucht (Forbidden Fruit). This was also launched by Pierre Celis and is a strong reddish-brown beer. Its label showing Adam and Eve naked has caused controversy in some quarters.