Brasserie de Blaugies - Blonde de Blaugies

Rare Beer Club members, for this Special Offer, we’ve put together an awesome selection of four incredible beers from the Netherlands and Belgium. This collection includes two beers exclusive to the Rare Beer Club from one of our favorite breweries, Jopen, located in Haarlem, the Netherlands and two new beers, introduced in 2023, by Brasserie de Blaugies, located in Dour, Belgium. The Blaugies beers are the first new beers produced by them in over ten years and less than 40 cases of each have hit our shores since their introduction. We highly encourage everyone to grab as many as possible as these will go fast!

Our tasting adventure starts off with Blonde de Blaugies (BDB), an outstanding Belgian strong golden ale that offers everything you want from the style. This artisanal tripel-style ale is one of two new beers introduced by the brewery in 2023, the other – Blidegarian Imperial Stout – is also featured in this Special Offer. It had been ten years since they introduced a new beer, 2013’s La Vermontoise, a collaboration with Hill Farmstead, so we were excited to get our hands on what turned out to be a delicious and rare find.

The Blonde de Blaugies pours a slightly hazy gold with a pale amber rim. It’s topped by dense bright white foam which leaves delicate lacing behind with every sip. The aromas coming from the glass are of clean cereal grain malts, floral hops, and fruity yeast. Lots of citrus notes and honey aromas are supported by wafts of apricot, peach, and flecks of white pepper. Further notes of bosc pear and golden apple sprinkled with coriander and clove enticed our olfactory senses and we couldn’t wait to take a sip.

On the palate the Blonde de Blaugies carries itself with elegance but shows some rustic vibes as well. The first sip brings in bitter tangerine peel and fleshy stone fruit such as apricot and yellow plums seasoned with a sprinkling of white pepper. Lightly toasted malts make up the mid-palate complemented by fruity and floral yeast esters, then a second wave of fruit notes comes in towards the finish, reminiscent of pear and apple with hints of spicy phenols. This medium to full bodied blonde has a slightly prickly mousse at first but develops into round and creamy expressions with every sip. The finish shows a bit of the “farmhouse” as it were, which confirms the initial rustic vibe.

This is Belgian Blonde Ale at its finest. Blaugies used their decades of brewing experience and poured it literally into this amazing brew. Bravo!

The Blonde de Blaugies can be consumed fresh but will age gracefully for a few years. This will pair well with roasted pork tenderloin and mustard greens or smoked Cornish game hens with roasted herbed potatoes and edam cheese. Cheers!