Brasserie Val De Sambre - Abbaye dAulne Triple Blonde Sur Lie

The Abbaye d’Aulne is located in the Belgian province of Hainaut. Originally a Benedictine monastery founded by Saint Landelinus – a repentant robber - about 637, the Aulne Abbey was later run by secular clerics leading a common life who embraced the Rule of St. Augustine in 1144. At the time of Henry de Leyen, Bishop of Liège, it came into the hands of Cistercian monks from Clairvaux in 1147, under Franco de Morvaux as its first Cistercian abbot. It flourished as a Cistercian monastery until the French burned it to the ground during the French Revolutionary Wars it at the end of the 18th century, only a short time after it had been rebuilt on a larger scale. The library, which contained 40,000 books and 5,000 manuscripts, was also destroyed. The ruins and beautiful green surroundings remain a popular tourist site.

In the Middle Ages it is believed that the abbey produced two types of beer: a strong beer, reserved for drinking by the fathers and their guests, and a lighter brew produced for the brothers. This lighter beer was also dispensed to paupers who received beer as a charitable act by the monks. The abbey brewery also played an important function locally by providing animal feed from the residues of the brewing process. Though destroyed by fire in 1752, the monks continued their charitable works and the brewery was re-established in 1796. The years that followed were marked by a progressive decline in the number of monks at the abbey, and the brewery ceased production just before 1850. It was around 1950 that the beers of Abbey Val de Sambre became available again, produced by a number of different area breweries, and finally the 1998 development of the brewery on the actual abbey site.

The beers of the Abbaye d'Aulne have been made by the Brasserie du Val de Sambre, in the heart of the ruins in what were the former stables, since 2000. The picturesque village of Gozée in the Valley of Peace is on the banks of the River Sambre, near the Belgian-French border.

The Blonde Triple is a highly traditional, top fermented ale that uses 3 different yeasts and top quality malt and hops without chemical additives. At 9% alcohol by volume it is big and complex, yet very smooth for such a strong beer. This is exceptional ale with a warm and golden appearance characterized by a clever mixture of both strong and subtle flavors, and makes a good companion for breads, cheeses, freshwater fish and shellfish – as well as a cocktail beer or quencher on its own, but beware of the 9% kick!