We’ve just returned from France & Belgium where we met with some of the brewers and vendors for our upcoming October 27th –November 3rd Bon Beer Voyage beer tour: “Grand Crus to Farmhouse Brews- A Beercation Cruise through Belgium & France”.
During this beer trip we visited 3 fabulous breweries on the French side of the border, 5 on the Belgian side as well as one French genièvre distillery. In France, we visited Brasserie St Germain, Brasserie Thiriez & Brasserie Bailleux (where we had lunch in their magnificent restaurant Au Baron). In Belgium, wevisited Brouwerij Rodenbach, Brouwerij St Bernardus (where we stayed at the Brouwershuis), Brouwerij Van Eecke, Huisbrouwerij Sint Canarus & Chimay(where we stayed at l’Auberge de Poteaupré).
Over the next few days we will be highlighting each of the breweries on our tour as well as sharing some beery cool information on the beer scene in Lille. For those who want a quick look at the amazing Day by Day Itinerary of the Grand Crus to Farmhouse Brews- A Beercation Cruise click here.
Today’s Brewery of the Day:
Brasserie Bailleux / Restaurant Au Baron
2 rue du Piemont Gussignies, France
Au Baron was started as a small tavern in the petite French town of Gussignies by Alain Bailleux and his wife Danielle Baron Bailleux in 1973. By 1981 they turned this tavern into a wonderfully quaint restaurant with a grill made from a copper brew kettle! In 1989 Alain, a brewer, with the help of his father (who also happens to be a brewer, as was his grandfather) built Brasserie Bailleux in the back of the restaurant. This multi-generation family of brewers has now passed this brewing art onto Alain’s son Xavier.
Brasserie Bailleux is run by only 4 employees and make 3 year round brews and a Christmas beer. We are excited that this year’s batch of Christmas beer will be finished brewing when we return in November on our “Grand Crus to Farmhouse Brews- A Beercation Cruise through Belgium & France”.
The 3 year-round beers are:
Cuvée des Jonquilles 7% abv. A Bière de Garde brewed with dandelions. Cuvée des Jonquilles has a marvelous looking head with a fantastic nose. Also look at that nice thick lacing left on the glass!
Saison Saint Médard Ambrée & Saison Saint Médard Brune both are 7% abv Saisons / Farmhouse Ales named after the patron saint of the parish of Gussignies. Pictured here is the Saison Saint Médard Ambrée
The restaurant was packed with locals enjoying the great food and beer at Au Baron.
For lunch Ruth had the Salade du Berger, which is a salad with tomatoes, walnuts and toast topped with warm fresh goat cheese. I had the plat de jour, which was a beef carbonnade made using the Saison Saint Médard Ambrée… Yummy!!
Inside the Restaurant is a shop to buy local delicacies and of course their delicious beer!
Here are a few photos inside the brewery:
Currently, Cuvee de Jonquilles is the only beer imported to the USA (12% Imports) and not so easy to find-so we hope you’ll join us for our awesome upcoming beer trip– “Grand Crus to Farmhouse Brews- A Beercation Cruise through Belgium & France” so you can enjoy the wonderful ambiance at Au Baron and try some of these fabulous beers and delicious food for yourself!
Cheers from Mike, Ruth & Alain!
