Lowlander

Before craft ale came to London the many beers of Belgium were the standard bearers for quality brews. The trappists, triples and dubbels have as much depth as any wine and come with both delicate and robust strengths and flavours. Lowlander is a Belgian and Dutch beer hall in Covent Garden and with 15 beers on draught and over 80 different bottles in its fridges it is a bar for the connoisseur.

Spacious and smart, Lowlander is a slightly more sterile version of the beer cafes of Belgium. There are big tables that run in rows to accommodate the big groups who thrive in places like this and the attractive symmetry of seating isn’t lost on us on this visit. The wood and beige colour scheme works, letting the various beer memorabilia take most of the attention.

The food might find a more favourable review if it stuck to Belgian and Dutch classics but instead there are burgers, chicken wings, ribs and quiche. Only the continental sausage platter and the moules mariniere give a nod to the origin of the beer. But it isn’t about the food, is it? It is about the beer. And with a huge range of breweries represented we’d be fools to attempt to list them all. So we’ll mention some favourites. The Brugse Zot blonde is a light - at 6% - golden beer that could almost substitute for lager as a session beer; Straffe Hendrik, a dark blonde triple that ups the strength to 9% but retains a delicate aftertaste; and the Gulden Draak, a rich dark beer with a strength you can taste with every sip.

A visit to Lowlander isn’t a visit to your average pub. The beers are exceptional imports often with hundreds of years of history behind them They don’t come cheap here but with ABVs often around the 8% mark, you should sip slowly to appreciate them.