Beau's Vrienden - collaboration with De Koningshoeven

Brews Phillips · Post by **Brews Phillips** » Tue May 18, 2010 8:02 am

From the Beau's website:

"To commemmorate the 65th anniversary of liberation of The Netherlands by Canadian troops, this special beer was commissioned by the Dutch embassy. A collaborative effort with De Koningshoeven brewery, this cloudy wheat beer uses organic juniper berries and maple syrup as a way to feature traditional ingredients from both countries."

"Vrienden is exclusively available at The House of Orange, 56 Byward Market Square, Ottawa"

Bytowner · Post by **Bytowner** » Tue May 18, 2010 9:23 am

Yeah, talk of it has been hidden in a couple of the other threads. Good stuff, my review's up on the Reviews forum. Had a run at it yet BP?

Brews Phillips · Post by **Brews Phillips** » Tue May 18, 2010 10:09 pm

Bytowner wrote:Yeah, talk of it has been hidden in a couple of the other threads. Good stuff, my review's up on the Reviews forum. Had a run at it yet BP?

No, and I walked right by there the other day without even knowing about it. Is the Beaus served only during the events or can I go anytime? I've never been to the Mercury Loung so I'm not too sure what it's all about.

Bytowner · Post by **Bytowner** » Wed May 19, 2010 9:08 am

Brews Phillips wrote:
Bytowner wrote:Yeah, talk of it has been hidden in a couple of the other threads. Good stuff, my review's up on the Reviews forum. Had a run at it yet BP?
No, and I walked right by there the other day without even knowing about it. Is the Beaus served only during the events or can I go anytime? I've never been to the Mercury Loung so I'm not too sure what it's all about.

As far as I could tell anytime. Mercury Lounge is a pretty casual place. I got there at around 7:30 for a concert that started at 8, there were a few people in booths who didn't go to the concert and they were all drinking Vrienden. It's cool. Little dark though.

cfrancis · Post by **cfrancis** » Fri May 21, 2010 12:18 am

Picked up two bottles from the brewery yesterday. Not readily available but if you "ask nicely" you might be able to get some.

I love visiting Beau's Brewery.

Queef · Post by **Queef** » Fri May 21, 2010 11:17 am

cfrancis wrote:Picked up two bottles from the brewery yesterday. Not readily available but if you "ask nicely" you might be able to get some.

I love visiting Beau's Brewery.

good too know! sounds like it'll be a great trip this afternoon!

Cass · Post by **Cass** » Fri May 21, 2010 11:57 am

Have a bottle on my desk and looking forward to trying it.

Anyone who has bothered to listen to me yak on at beer festivals over the past couple of years has known that I've long been an advocate of Ontario brewers doing collaborations with foreign brewers.

Not only can a brewer leverage the cachet of someone else, it's a way to get a foreign brewer's "beer" into the province without all the hoops of the LCBO and other red tape. And it builds an international reputation for our brewers and does a little bit to loosen the insularity in the province.

I've been hoping for this for a long time and am very happy to see it come to reality. Well done Beau's.

Bytowner · Post by **Bytowner** » Fri May 21, 2010 12:18 pm

Cass wrote: I've been hoping for this for a long time and am very happy to see it come to reality. Well done Beau's.

Funny though, that it was actually the initiative of the Dutch Embassy that got this thing brewed. Maybe we should let them run the LCBO.

Brews Phillips · Post by **Brews Phillips** » Sun May 23, 2010 10:57 pm

Bytowner wrote: Funny though, that it was actually the initiative of the Dutch Embassy that got this thing brewed. Maybe we should let them run the LCBO.

And the Belgian Embassy could take over TBS!

Actually, that's pretty cool. Wonder who the Dutch beer fan is who dreamed up this idea.

I finally made it to the Mercury Lounge on Saturday and got to try both the Vrienden and the Quad. Chatted a bit with the manager who said she had quite a few requests to keep the Quadruple on tap after Dutch friendship week. Here's hoping.

And the Beau's website says that they may bottle the Vrienden as a limited release in the future.

Bytowner · Post by **Bytowner** » Mon May 24, 2010 10:15 am

How'd you like the Vrienden BP?