Need help with Belgian Beers

New Belgium makes quality, inexpensive Belgians - Trippel and Abbey ale should be $10 per six-pack or so. Can't beat the combination of price and quality! Ommegang is also a good option if you want to take a step up in price. Four-packs of Abbey Ale (~$10) and Three Philosophers (~$16) are great examples of American-made Belgians.

 

Saisons may be the way to go or some Golden or Pale ales
Tank 7
Saison Dupont
Piraat($$) but good
Chimay

 

I find Duvel has pretty broad appeal.

 

If that's all the info you get, I'd go with Hoegaarden, Leffe, and throw in one or two big bottles of a tripel.

 

My favorite Tank 7 has been mentioned, but I'll throw North Coast Pranqster out there. Pretty damn good American brewed Belgian Golden Ale.

 

Outside of the Belgian breweries (Rochefort, Achouffe Rodenbach, Duvel, St. Bernardus, Dupont, Orval are all solid choices) you can't go wrong with Allagash, Ommegang and Unibroue in terms of quality and price.

 

Good call forgot about Pranqster, nice 4-pk delicious and affordable.

 

Westmalle Dubbel and Tripel usually aren't that expensive. Probably similar to Chimay. Leffe, Corsendonk, and Grimbergen could cover similar bases for a little less $.
Kasteel Rouge and Brown are cheaper than Lindemans and aren't quite as juiced up.
Duvel is still a nice beer and shouldn't break the bank.

 

Allagash, Ommegang, Spencer

 

Can't go wrong with Chimay (Blue), Rochefort, Leffe. If you have any Unibroue, go with that.

Cheers!

 

This is really such a blanket statement that if you say Belgian it could mean (other than the obvious) just about anything...

The only other question I would ask is... were the beers dark or light... and then just take it from there...

 

He asked for advice on real Belgian beers, not American versions of them. Everything you listed are not Belgian beers.

 

I can't believe you included Leffe with the trappist beers. Leffe is crap(for Belgium). It's like recommeding several great prime rib steak restaurants and then including McDonald's.

 

She could very well be referring to New Belgium actually. Many times have I heard people call New Belgium Belgian beer. I.e. my girlfriend's dad asked what my favorite kind of beer was and I answered Belgian beer. He said "Fat Tire is alright I guess"....

 

Try Rochefort, Orval, Westmalle, Achel, St. Bernardus, Duvel, Chimay, etc

 

True Belgian beers can get very pricey, especially for a large party. I would get some domestic choices, with only a couple of true Belgian bombers. My favorite Belgian-inspired domestic brewery is Ommegang. Their beers are fantastic and well distributed, plus they are related to Duvel. I recommend the beers Hennepin and Three Philosophers from them. For the bombers, go with a Duvel and a Chimay Blue. This hopefully won't break the bank too much!

 

I would personally grab these three. You cannot go wrong here. The Chimay Red is the mildest of the Trappist beers, the Saison Dupont is lighter in colour and drier, and the Rodenbach is a great conversation piece for noobs, and also great for long time Belgian fans.

1. Chimay Red
2. Rodenbach Grand Cru
3. Saison Dupont

 

Is there somebody else you can pose this question to? There is a world of difference between Stella Artois and Belgian Ales like Trappist/Abbey Ales. You really need to get more details here or otherwise this could be a 'bust'.

Cheers!

 

This is obviously for someone that does not know what they are consuming and likely doesn't even realize how ridiculously broad of a statement "Belgian beers" is.

OP can do one of three things:

1. Get good Belgian abbey-style, saisons, or wit beers like St. Bernardus, Rochefort, Chimay, DuPont, etc. and educate her
   
2. Get American versions of those and save a little money since it likely won't matter like Allagash White, Ommegang, and New Belgium and educate her a little
   
3. Prank her and buy them Rodenbach Grand Cru, Lindemans Cuvee Rene, Hanssens Oude Gueuze, and Boon Vat 77 to emphasize just how short-sighted such a statement is

I vote for a combination of all three.