When you arrive at B&B De Notelaar, we like to offer you something local, such as an Ename Blond. Then we explain how the package works and can adapt it to your wishes if needed. Over the weekend we normally visit two breweries, an industrial one and a craft one, depending on availability. Usually we plan a brewery visit in the morning and let you walk back in the afternoon — but it can of course be the other way round, as walking back after the tasting is usually harder. ;-).
Ename Blond is a lovely mild beer from the Roman brewery in Oudenaarde, where the whole family of Ename abbey beers is brewed, as well as Romy pils, Adriaan Brouwer (the beer of Oudenaarde) and Black Velvet. You can visit this large industrial brewery; we are happy to arrange it as part of the package. Roman recently launched Ename Pater too, another blond beer with a slightly more refined touch. And do you know what we recently discovered? This brewery also makes Gents Stropke and its younger brother Rebelse Strop. Just how rebellious it is, you will notice from how carefully you have to pour it, because this beer has a mind of its own when it wants out of the bottle...
My favourite beer is an IPA, an "India Pale Ale". Why India? Originally the name indicated that the beer was suitable for export to distant countries: besides alcohol as a preservative, extra hops were added for the same purpose. That makes the taste a little more bitter, but during the long journeys of the time the pronounced hop flavour faded. In Belgium today that extra hoppy taste is hugely appreciated. Valeir Extra, an IPA from the Contreras brewery, is my personal favourite. We collect it from the brewery just a few kilometres from our door, in Gavere. A crate of Valeir never lasts long here, because the beer lovers among our guests enjoy it so much. Contreras also brews Valeir Divers, an internationally award-winning beer with particularly fine bubbles. When I want to sip and savour a little more, I often fetch a Divers from the cellar. Contreras now exports a lot and has a wide range. To scale up, the owner recently invested in brand-new transport and brewing equipment, saving time instead of hauling sacks through the picturesque buildings... You can still feel the history in the buildings — a great combination of old and new. We can also arrange a visit to Contreras for you as part of our beer package.
Do you offer local beer(s) at your accommodation?
Yes, we normally have these in stock: Ename Blond, Ename Tripel, Ename Bruin, Ename Cuvee Rouge Steenuilke, Boembeke Luiwerk Buffalo Bitter Contreras: Valeir Extra (IPA), Valeir Divers Rebelse Strop Zwalmse Tripel Jupiler, Jupiler 0,0
Do you cook with local beer(s)?
Yes, we make small snacks with hops. We also make beef stew with Liefmans kriek from Oudenaarde (that is for our own use; we only offer table d'hôte to guests who book our herb package). Now and then we also offer guests a refreshing glass of table beer.
Do you have special forms of accommodation linked to beer?
Yes, Els comes from a brewing family. We have glass beer bottles with her name cast in relief, and an old filling machine to fill those bottles from a wooden cask. Various old beer adverts and enamel signs hang in our house. On those occasions we also decorate the rooms with old wooden beer crates bearing Els' family name. A small detail, but alongside the designer corkscrews we also use the very old, typical crown-cap openers with a wooden handle that used to be so common. We know them as "aftrekkers"
Is the accommodation within walking distance of a brewery?
Yes, Contreras in Gavere is exactly 5 km from us on foot. We send people along quiet lanes and the traffic-free towpath beside the old Scheldt meanders, via the Christina springs in Dikkelvenne, to the Contreras brewery. By appointment we can meet them there to visit the brewery together, and possibly give them a lift back to our B&B.
The Smisje brewery in Mater is actually 5.4 km away. Most people cycle there, or drive if they plan to buy after the tasting (which is usually the case).
The other breweries we visit are within a 10 km radius.
Are there other beer-related things?
After a tasting with us, we sometimes accompany or direct our guests to the Schepens beer hall in Paulatem, 2.4 km from us, where they can still buy all the local beers, independently of the brewery visits. We also give people who book the beer package a curated beer pack, waiting for them in their room. So far we have personally accompanied every brewery visit, which is greatly appreciated. In the long run this may be hard to keep up, but for now it still works. In the evening I give advice myself on the many types of beer our region is rich in. We also have a mini beer-brewing set here, with the intention of eventually making our own brew in our workshop room. The workshop room with a lab table is planned for 2020, when the sauna that is currently in the workshop room moves elsewhere. Our area also has some very pleasant little beer cafés.
We regularly hold receptions or small parties for an event or a walk, for example. Then we always serve Ename Blond (accessible, well known), Valeir Extra (blond, but extra hopped) and Zwalmse Tripel.