ABI's latest venture, the Belgian Beer Café

Belgian Beer Café® Offers Truly Unique Experience Along with Ambitious Plans for 60 U.S. Locations Hasselt, Belgium (September 2011) - It has been said about Belgian beers that there is a “beer for everyone.” If the popularity it has already found around the world is any indication, Belgian Beer Café is soon going to discover that everyone will be there for a beer when the unique Belgian bar / restaurant concept arrives on American shores. Created in 1998, Belgian Beer Café is truly fresh and exciting and sure to be a welcome addition to the U.S. casual dining landscape. The recipe is simple: Offer an extensive selection of world-renown and local-brewed Belgian beers; classic Belgian cuisine; an attentive, knowledgeable, white-jacketed wait staff and an atmosphere that evokes the comfortable surroundings of a classic Brussels brasserie café.
 The first Belgian Beer Café is tentatively scheduled to open at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey in late 2011 / early 2012. Franchise / licensing projections call for the opening of approximately 60 Belgian Beer Cafés in the U.S. within three to four years. In addition to the Newark airport location – licensed to HMSHost – a tentative development agreement is expected to bring 10 Belgian Beer Cafés to the New York City and Boston metropolitan areas within the next five years.
 Each Belgian Beer Café will typically feature 20 to 40 Belgian beers, both bottled and draught, representing a full range of flavors. Only authentic Belgian beers are available in eight different styles: Abbey, Amber, Fruit, Gueuze, Lager, Specialty, Trappist and Wheat. Each is served in the proper glassware at the proper temperature, with a specific pouring ritual (see sidebar) for draught beers. Patrons are also sure to appreciate the delectable cuisine found in every Belgian Beer Café. Each will feature a wide array of Belgian and Belgian-inspired dishes such as Mussels, Vol au Vent (a light pastry shell filled with meat), Flemish Beef Stew, Cheese and Shrimp Croquettes and much more. For the less adventurous, the menu will feature such American staples as burgers and chicken wings as well as regional favorites.  belgianbeercafe

Canadian Breakfast Stout

Canadian Breakfast Stout (CBS) will be the second release in the company’s 750mL “Backstage Series”. It will be released to the market October 3, 2011 with a taproom release party on October 1.
 The taproom release at 235 Grandville Ave SE in downtown Grand Rapids will begin at 11 a.m. on October 1. There will be about 1700 bottles available for purchase at $18 each. A strict limit of two (2) bottles per person will apply, and all bottles will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. Because a line is expected to form before 11 a.m., numbers will be handed out so that the line can remain intact once the taproom doors open. CBS will be featured on draft, and CBS merchandise will be available in the Founders company store, which is on the north end of the taproom. As with all Founders specialty products, growler fills will not be available for CBS.
 Canadian Breakfast Stout is an Imperial Stout brewed with a blend of coffees and imported chocolates, then aged in spent bourbon barrels that have most recently been aging pure Michigan maple syrup. The final product has had stellar reviews and is currently the fifth highest rated beer in the world on www.BeerAdvocate.com.