“Blanche of Namur was the daughter of John, Count of Namur. It is told that Magnus IV Eriksson, King of Sweden and Norway, was attracted by the young princess’s beauty, when he was travelling to France in search of a prestigious wife. The princess embarked for Scandinavia in August 1335 and was never to see the banks of the Meuse again. She would become Queen of Norway, Sweden and Scania. In memory of her beauty, her sweetness and her delicacy, the Brasserie Du Bocq dedicated a wheatbeer to her: The “Blanche de Namur”.
Served in a weizen glass. The heavily clouded, milky yellow pour does a good job of arousing this fizzy, sparkling white crown which stands at about 3 fingers in height. Excellent head retention on show as the foam reduced but held at about 1cm. Plenty of healthy lace trails clinging to our glass. On the nose we detect some interesting scents. There is certainly something unique here, maybe lemon meringue? We also get firm wafts of fresh coriander, funk and orange rind with yeasty hints of banana lolly, clove and spicy aniseed. Very interesting aroma. In the mouth it’s soft and quite light on with a chalky texture. The carbonation levels are mild and the body is mild-medium. The palate has an extremely similar flavour to Hoegaarden with flavours of minerals, vanilla, coriander, wheat malts and a slight mustiness on entry. A suggestion of orange peel develops through the mid leading to a light, fruity/herbal finish with reasonable duration on the tongue. Weighing in at a mild 4.5% ABV. It states on the bottle that this is the best wheat beer in the world. As far as classic witbiers go this is pretty damn good but we wouldn’t go as far to say this is the best we’ve ever tried. Nevertheless, a good drop.