One of the lesser-known – but nevertheless fascinating – areas of Northern France, Nord-Pas de Calais, is taking advantage of its beer heritage in a bid to boost tourism.
The region is already famous for its wines and cider, and the brewers of Nord-Pas-de-Calais are hopeful that now their locally-produced ales have been given the same protected status as their more glamorous grape and apple counterparts, they too will come to be regarded in the same light as the rest of the region’s alcohol A-listers.
In a bid to add to the wine tours of the Loire Valley, which have long been a favourite with tourists from all over the world, and the route du cidre through the cider country of Brittany and Normandy, entrepreneurial brewers have teamed up to form a union in order to make the most of their beverage’s newly-protected status.
Next year, a small company called L’Echappée Bière (The Beer Escape) will be expanding its current roster of brewery tours by creating clearly signposted beer routes in four northern areas, including Flanders and the old mining basin.
One of the company’s founders, Olivier Faure, said;
“Our philosophy is to restore its [the region’s] reputation for beer and show that it is part of the heritage of the area, and a real drink for samplingâ€.
While the secretary general of the Union of Brewers in northern France, Gerard Sonnet, commented;
“There is a lot of talk again of beer. People want to rediscover their heritage, and return to their roots to find local productsâ€.
Around the beginning of WWI, there were approximately 2000 independent breweries in Nord Pas de Calais; sadly numbers have since been on the decline, leaving just over 40 today. Dominique Dillies, a local brewer, understands that tourists are obviously drawn to the areas of natural beauty which make up the country’s wine regions but says that they shouldn’t discount the industrial north, part of which is now a UNESCO world heritage site.
“Beer is less spectacular than wineâ€, he said, “when you arrive in wine country, you see the vineyards. But hops are far less visually impressiveâ€.
That said, there has been much positive interest from beer enthusiasts; according to some, beer is the identity of the north, and it offers a great way to explore the region and develop local tourism.
We wish the brewers of Nord-Pas de Calais every success in their new venture, and look forward to sampling some of their fine ales next year.