History
In 1966, Pierre Celis starting brewing beer that gave homage to the roots of his hometown of Hoegaarden. This Belgian White style of beer had been traditionally brewed for 400 years using barley, wheat, oats, orange peel and spices. Celis’s beer today is the world-renowned beer known as Hoegaarden which is now brewed by giant AB-Inbev and is internationally available. A Belgian Wit is a very complex beer for its modest alcohol strength. A strong attribute about this style of beer is its opaque white color due the large amounts of wheat used and the yeast staying in suspension. Belgian Wit is known for being full, citrusy, earthy, complex, quaffable, and slightly acidic.
Tasting Notes
Cloudy and opaque, topped with a thick, rocky white head. Fresh aromas of orange, coriander, earth, and rising bread. Spritzy flavors of mandarin rind, spice, and meringue. Finishes with a creamy mouth feel, smooth, and effervescent.
Food Pairings
A perfect beer for salads, great with vinaigrettes and can handle almost anything that you can put on a salad such as cheeses, bacon, eggs, anchovies, and all kinds of greens from light to peppery to bitter. A great brunch beer, the orange, coriander, and acidity easily takes the place of orange juice. Goat cheese omelets, bacon, sausage, and any other breakfast meats work wonderfully. Excellent with fish and seafood including turbot, sole, lobster, shrimp, and crab.