Regional products

Oudenaarde is a real beer city and that beer tradition is centuries old. The history of beer brewing in Oudenaarde goes back to the distant Middle Ages. At one point, Oudenaarde and its surroundings boasted up to 17 breweries. Oudenaarde brown beer owes its reputation to the quality of the groundwater, which is rich in iron and calcium. Brewery Roman, the oldest and largest of the Oudenaarde breweries, continues the tradition of Oudenaarde brown beer with the Adriaen Brouwer beers. Brewery Cnudde in Eine also still brews their Cnudde Oudenaards brown beer the traditional way. The craftsmanship that is required in creating the brown beers is shown to visitors by means of brewery visits. In addition, the local hospitality industry likes to serve creative dishes that go well with brown beer.

In addition to brown beer, this region also has a rich tradition of distilling genever. The Braeckman genever distillery, founded in 1918, is still a family business to this day, with respect for tradition and quality. Braeckman grain genever is produced in the Flemish Ardennes from local cereals such as rye and malted barley.

Oudenaarde not only has a beer that bears the name of Adriaen Brouwer, the artist also lends his name to the equally tasty Adriaen Brouwer pie and Adriaen Brouwer cheese. Adriaen Brouwer pie is an almond pie with a layer of pineapple at the bottom and almond flakes with a fine layer of icing sugar on top. Indulge in this lovely pie during a coffee break on a terrace!

More delicious sandwich spreads include a slice of Ename abbey ham, a very lightly salted and top-quality ham that has been cured for a long period of time. Typical is its splendid aroma, slightly related to the Ename abbey beer, which makes these two perfect to enjoy together.