Hainaut is the Western province of Wallonia. A province is comparable, not in size but as a governing body, with a US-county. All 26 breweries of the Hainaut province were invited to enter some of their beers in a blind tasting-competition. 71 top-fermented Belgian beers were judged by 90 judges. Wow, what a party that must have been. Sorry for the judges, but they were only permitted to taste 9 beers, and there was no deliberation allowed among the judges.

Silly Scotch wins prize in Belgian Beer-competition.The first prize went to the Abbey D'Aulnes Triple, the second prize was for the Chimay Bleue, and the Silly Scotch won the third prize. Brasserie de Silly was very pleased with the honor. The Silly Scotch is one of the most traditional products of the brewery, brewed since very long. All beer tasting competitions are not exact science, and they only reflect the taste of a group of judges at a certain time and place. But, anyway, it gives a fair idea and appreciation about the quality of a beer, in comparison with it peers. Winning a prize is always a honor.

After the competition, an interesting story came up. A lady came forward and told the brewer, that she had hidden several cases of Silly Scotch before WW II, and that she had only opened the bottles when her brother in law was freed from the German prison-camps and came back home after the war. She claimed that the 6 year old beer had improved over time, and that long after the war they still thought back on these wonderful cases of Silly Scotch.

For you and me, Belgian Beer Lovers, it is not a surprise that Belgian beer improves over time. After all, it's a living product. So, enjoy a Silly Scotch and hide some cases for after the next war. You never know who might show up.

A special and long lasting link exists between Flanders, the Northern State of Belgium, and Scotland, the Northern "almost"-state of the UK. To understand this link, we have to go back for almost thousand years. William the Conqueror, the Norman who successfully invaded England in 1066 to win the English Throne, was married to Mathilda, the daughter of the Count of Flanders. Half of his invading army consisted of Flemings. A lot of them ended up in high positions in and around the English Court. Years later, when they had become too successful and too powerful, the Flemings were chased from the Court out of London towards Wales and Scotland.

One of the results is that 30 % of the Scottish nobility is of Flemish origin. There is even a clan with the name "Fleming", and in earlier times these clansmen were weavers, no surprise since Flanders was then world-famous for its woven textiles. Many castles in Scotland are build by Flemings. The boarded floor was introduced by them. This special link between the two nations is commemorated in a special exhibition on display this month in Edinburgh, Scotland. Last summer the exhibition was on display in Brugge, Flanders.

The Flemings, with their long tradition and know-how of brewing hearty ales, merged this art with the local traditions and the local ingredients. The result is a powerful beverage, of at least 7 % alcohol by volume, commonly called a "Scotch Ale". This style of beer offers a rich and malty feeling in the mouth, with a lot of sophistication in taste and aroma. Plenty of dark roasted malts are used to create a syrupy sweetness, that contrasts with the hops. Special yeasts are given free play in this rich environment during the fermentation process. This results in a complex taste with a typical light licorice undertone. The balance between the sweetness of the rich malt, the complex tastes of the yeasts and the bitterness of the hops, is what makes the Scotch ale so attractive but also a "wolf disguised as a lamb". The differences between a Belgian Triple, like our BORNEM TRIPLE or PIRAAT, and a true Scotch Ale, like our SILLY SCOTCH, lays in the type of roasted malts and the typical yeasts used to referment the wort.

The trade between Scotland and Flanders continued for centuries, and beer, brewed in Flanders was one of the products shipped to Scotland. At the beginning of the French revolution at the end of the 18th century, when France invaded its Northern neighbors, a short lived counter guerilla war emerged in Flanders. France invented the general conscription of all young men in its army, and that was too much. If you had to go fight in somebody's else army, you could as well defend your own country and culture. These young fighters received English & Scottish arms which were smuggled into Flanders. In return, as a payment, whole ship loads of beer were smuggled over the Northsea.

Our SCOTCH DE SILLY (commonly known as SILLY SCOTCH) is probably the best example of the Belgian tradition to brew Scotch Ales. The village of Silly, where our Scotch is brewed by Brasserie de Silly, is situated just a few miles South of the actual Flemish border, in Wallonia, the Southern State of Belgium. The tradition was kept for a long time in the habit to brew rich brown brews to drink during the darkest days of the year, around Christmas. Modern marketing kneaded this to "Christmas beers". The so called modern Scotch Ales got a real revival after WW II, when British soldiers, who stayed for a couple of years on Belgian territory, showed a rich appetite for this type of beer. The American new marketing techniques, who came also after WW II to Belgium, did the rest: a couple of new brand-names of Scotch Ale were created around existing beers.

Typical for our SILLY SCOTCH is the red-brown color, less dark than the other Scotch Ales. It packs a 8 % alcohol punch, as said before, disguised in a spicy sweetness. The smooth velvety taste, well balanced with a bitterness from the hops, is unique. We recommend the SILLY SCOTCH with hearty dishes like soups, stews and game, prepare in rich sauces. Some drink it with bittersweet chocolate as dessert. Others believe that the SILLY SCOTCH is ideal with very hot spicy dishes, the hotter, the better. Try it. Experiment and write us about your discoveries.