Six light Belgian beverages to enjoy this summer

As summer approaches and the terraces fill up, the game is on to see what the new taste of the season will be, with no- or low-alcohol drinks seemingly the name of the game. There’s never been a better time to be the designated driver.

Yell’Oh
Beer that’s designed to be drunk on the rocks? Sounds like sacrilege, but Yell’Oh is a product from Liefmans, a venerable brewery in Oudenaarde. The taste is a fruit-basket of apple, lime, basil, pineapple and elderflower, and it’s intended to be drunk as an aperitif. It may be a little too sweet and fruity for some tastes, however.

Ritchie
Ritchie is the revival of an old recipe from the family of Jan Verlinden, based on natural ingredients with no additives. The lemonade was made in the Tielemans brewery in Aarschot and sold widely in Belgium up to 1979, and now it’s back in its original 1950s-style bottle. It comes in two flavours: orange and vanilla, and grapefruit with a hint of pineapple, and it does indeed have a hint of old-style lemonades.

Psycho
You’d expect a beer calling itself Psycho to come on heavy, but this brew from the new Brussels brewery No Science weighs in at only 4% alcohol, which is less than the most popular lagers on the market. The brewery, on the Greenbizz start-up site behind Tour & Taxis, only started brewing in October, but the taste for new craft beers is such that they already have three types – the malty Noisy, the dark porter Heavy and Psycho.

Finley
Soft drinks brand Finley is a household name by now, and of course it’s a property of the Coca-Cola company, but did you know the original was developed in Anderlecht? The company has recently added three new flavours to the range: mojito (no alcohol but a hint of lime), spritz (blood orange with carrot and safflower concentrate) and royal (grape and grapefruit juice).

Simone a Soif
Based in Schaerbeek, Brussels start-up Simone a Soif makes drinks out of hydrolates, the essential oils obtained from the steam distillation of fruits, vegetables and herbs. That and water are the only ingredients – no added sugar, sweeteners, colouring or other additives. They have three recipes with flavour combinations you don’t often come across in a drink: strawberry and liquorice, in season now; cucumber and mint, available in summer; and apple and geranium, sold all year round.

Climonade
Invented by Béatrice Roucour and Yves d’Oultremont of Ath, and named in honour of Princess Clémentine de Croÿ, who came from Germany to Belgium to marry a count in 1842. The drink contains citrus as well as a secret fruit ingredient that they claim is used in no other lemonade in the world. The result is a refreshing drink with a subtle almond flavour. There are sparkling, non-sparkling and no-sugar versions. Serve chilled with ice.

This article first appeared in The Bulletin Summer 2017. Pick up a copy in newsagents now, browse the magazine here or subscribe today...