Westmalle
About this Place
Westmalle is a quiet village in the Antwerp Campine whose name has become synonymous with Trappist beer. The abbey lies just beyond the village, surrounded by woodland, and although its gates remain closed to casual visitors, its influence on Belgian brewing is impossible to overstate.
The monks arrived here in 1794, having originally intended to travel to America after fleeing the upheaval of the French Revolution. Instead they settled at a small Campine farm appropriately named Nooit Rust — “Never Rest” — and established the community that remains here today. More than two centuries later, Westmalle is still first and foremost a working monastery rather than a visitor attraction.
Visitor notes
Don't come to Westmalle expecting a conventional brewery tour or polished visitor attraction. That's missing the point.
Instead, follow the walking route through the woodland surrounding the abbey, which introduces some of its history and monastic life, before calling at Café Trappisten opposite. The café is the public face of the Westmalle experience: Extra, Dubbel and Tripel are served alongside abbey cheese and other dishes, and you can even watch a film about the brewery while sampling the results.
There are two useful but easily confused shops. The abbey shop sells Westmalle's own Trappist cheese and other monastic products, but not its beer. Beer, gift packs and the brewery's distinctive glasses are available from the brewery shop, which has much more limited opening hours — currently Friday mornings only — so check before making a special journey.
The brewery normally remains private, but Westmalle now opens it during annual Open Brewery Days in September. Tickets are limited and the abbey itself remains closed: the monks have retained the rather reasonable distinction between sharing how their beer is made and inviting everyone into their home.
For most visitors, however, the normal Westmalle experience is the better expression of the place: a walk through the Campine woodland, a glimpse of the abbey beyond its gates, and a properly poured Westmalle at Café Trappisten. Sometimes not getting inside is part of the story.
Dogs are welcome on the walks around the abbey and have generally been welcome at Café Trappisten, making Westmalle an easy place to explore with a four-legged companion. Pets are not permitted inside the working brewery during Open Brewery Days for hygiene reasons.