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22 August 2018 / 35 Comments

Brewery in Bruges - Belgian beer at De Halve Maan

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We are now in Flanders in Belgium, where we took the opportunity to visit a brewery in Bruges. We have taken a guided tour of the brewery De Halve Maan. This brewery is located in the middle of charming Bruges, but leads all beer out of the city through a several kilometres long (!) pipeline. We also did a lot of other things, from a boat ride in the canals to a diamond museum.

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From Germany to Bruges, Belgium

After the visit to the dramatic castle. Hohenzollern Castle and an overnight stay in the Moselle Valley, we continued by motorhome to Bruges in Belgium.

Karta

In Bruges there is a really good parking space for motorhomes. The site is located on Kanaaleiland, with the address Bargeplein. There are plenty of pitches on both sides of the road and all the services you need, including electricity, are available for €25 per night. Best of all, the site is a short walk into the centre of town.

Ställplats Brygge

Brewery in Bruges - the half moon

The brewery The Crescent Moon (Crescent) was founded by the Mae family in 1856, and has since been run by the same family, generation after generation. The beer was marketed under the name of the founder, Henri Mae, and in order not to complicate the marketing, they continued to name their sons Henri, for five generations....

bryggeri Brygge
Brygger bryggeri
The black bottle on the left was used for the 100th anniversary in 1956.

Pipeline with beer under the whole city

Over time, the small brewery in the town became too small for the large production, and it was decided to run a pipeline (!) under the whole town to transport the beer to a location where it is bottled before being sold. The pipeline is 3.2 kilometres long and in some cases goes as deep as 37 metres.

Öl i pipeline
The pipes that transport the beer run under the entire city!

Guided tour at De Halve Maan

We have gone on a bunch of guided tours in a bunch of breweries, and must say that this was probably the best! During the tour we got to see the process, both how the beer is made today and how it was done in the past. Many of the old devices were still there, which was interesting to see. A guided tour costs (summer 2018) 10 euros, and that includes a beer in the restaurant at the end.

Guidad tur bryggeri
The guide shows the pipeline leading the beer out of town
belgiskt bryggeri i brygge
Peter on a machine from the brewery's former life ...

View of the city

At one point during the tour you get the opportunity to go up to the roof of the brewery, where you have a really nice view of the city. It was a bit foggy when we were here, but we could of course still see both St. Salvator's Cathedral and the Church of our Lady.

brygge Belgien

Food and Belgian beer at the brewery

We finished not only with a good Belgian beer, but also with lunch at the brewery De Halve Maan. We first ordered "some" cheese to share, which turned out to be so much that we slipped half of it into a napkin in our backpack, haha. Then shrimp croquettes with fries and salad. Really good!

Med varsin belgisk öl på bryggeri i Brygge
With one Belgian beer each at a brewery in Bruges
Räkkrokett
French fries seem to be standard on most of the menus we have seen.

Charming Bruges

We have had time to look around in Bruges, and we can say that this is an incredibly charming city filled with canals, medieval houses and chocolate shops. We've also done all sorts of interesting things, from a boat trip on the canals to a diamond and chocolate museum. Have you been to Bruges? Tell us about it!

Brygge
Svanar
Brygge kanaler
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22 August 2018 6:00
Belgium, Food and drink
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14 things to see and do in Bruges, Belgium

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33 Comments

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  1. Lena - gott för själen says:

    Nah, never been to Belgium at all. What I remember. That town looks really charming.

    Hug Lena

    22 August 2018 - 6:22

    Reply

  2. Bara brittiskt says:

    Aaah, yes, this is where we always took our guests when we lived in Brussels. The best beer place in the world is here - t'Brugs Beertje ("Bruges' little bear") with a very long Belgian beer menu and a great atmosphere.
    French fries were invented in Belgium, so yes, they are a bit of a national accessory, especially for the mussel season. There are none better either, deep-fried three times so they stay fluffy.

    22 August 2018 - 7:51

    Reply

    • Comment by post author

      Helena says:

      I understand that you brought guests here, it is really charming! 🙂 That beer place sounds super cute! Now we have had time to roll on (to Ghent), otherwise we would have gone there!!!! And yes, we have read about Belgium and french fries! 🙂

      22 August 2018 - 9:01

      Reply

    • Solan says:

      Yes...I've sat in a canal boat with an umbrella in my hand in an incredible downpour. Nice little town?

      22 August 2018 - 9:51

      Reply

  3. Liniz Travel says:

    Oh what fun there we were also in the spring. Then heavenly good beer. Hugs

    22 August 2018 - 8:00

    Reply

  4. Ann-Louise says:

    Have been to Brussels several times but never to Bruges. Would love to go there, it looks like a very cosy city. And the beer looked good! 🙂

    22 August 2018 - 8:22

    Reply

  6. Daniel | FlyingDryden says:

    Oh, Bruges! I was there last August and enjoyed it all the way! Fantastically cosy city where there was a round with rental bikes, walked a little in the footsteps of the film In Bruges and of course ate lots of good food. Although the brewery was not included. Can easily imagine going back, lovely place versus all big cities with too many people! 🙂

    Besides Bruges, there are several places around the city that are interesting, perhaps for me mostly about the First World War.

    http://www.dryden.se/2017/11/brygge-bland-lummiga-kvarter-pa-cykel/

    22 August 2018 - 9:12

    Reply

  7. Ama de casa says:

    A brewery in Bruges? Can hardly fit in better 😀

    After that pipeline of beer you would live - perfect to install a tap all the way... But not in the deepest place then, I don't want to live with a cellar again 😉.

    Looked fantastic even in that city! You will find many pearls 🙂

    22 August 2018 - 9:22

    Reply

    • Comment by post author

      Helena says:

      Wouldn't it be nice to have a tap along the way? 😉 We heard more people thinking about that, or maybe getting a direct line to their house 😉 There are many gems to discover in Europe!

      22 August 2018 - 9:44

      Reply

  8. Anonymous says:

    When we were there in July, it was hardly possible to see the city because of five-row columns of Chinese parading the streets... Luckily we have been there before when Bruges was the EU's cultural capital ? By the way, I met a woman there who told me that the old parts of Ghent are even nicer. Let's see what you think ...

    22 August 2018 - 9:25

    Reply

    • Comment by post author

      Helena says:

      Glad you're writing Anja, and glad you were here! Wow! There are a lot of tourists now too, but we didn't really experience it that way 😉 It will be fun to come to Ghent, again. I have been there once, at a conference with Liselotte actually! I liked the city then, but perhaps did not have time to see much.

      22 August 2018 - 9:47

      Reply

  9. Steve says:

    Bruges seems like a really nice city. I'd love to go on that brewery tour.

    22 August 2018 - 10:52

    Reply

  10. onTrip.dk says:

    It looks nice with all the Belgian beer that tastes really good. Bruges is as you write a really charming city with lots of beautiful houses and cosy restaurants. I would like to come back to the city again.

    /Annette

    22 August 2018 - 13:40

    Reply

  11. Daniela / Discovering The Planet says:

    Also liked Bruges a lot. Was there with Daniel and Annette :). We visited the brewery Da Koninick, which was also super.

    22 August 2018 - 15:58

    Reply

  12. BP says:

    You see, pipelines are not only used for oil;-) I have never thought of "transporting" beer via a pipeline.
    Bruges looks incredibly cosy, like most of the places you have visited during this trip. The view of the city is absolutely superb with all the rooftops.

    22 August 2018 - 18:29

    Reply

  13. Rolle o Carina says:

    What a wonderful trip you are on, you get a little jealous! 🙂

    Take care and enjoy......

    22 August 2018 - 20:19

    Reply

  14. Lennart says:

    The Belgians are good at beer!

    23 August 2018 - 6:50

    Reply

  15. Birgitta says:

    hello
    Looks really cosy, my husband and I are going to Bruges for 1 week at the end of May, already looking forward to it, it will be so different from a sun and sea holiday. Happy to receive more tips about Bruges.

    29 December 2019 - 19:45

    Reply

2 Pingbacks

  1. 13 things to see and do in Bruges, Belgium | FREEDOMtravel
  2. Belgian beer - and breweries in Belgium | FREEDOMtravel

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