The Bowsing Ken

804 : La Chouffe

    The village of Achouffe is so small that it has all but gone unnoticed in most history books or tour guides of Belgium. It did exist as a village at least as far back as the late 1700s, and most likely much farther back than that. In a Belgian government publication titled "Statistique de la Belgique - Population" written back in October 1846, Achouffe is listed as a village in the Commune of Wibrin, which itself is in the Arrondissement of Bastogne, in the Belgian Province of Luxembourg. Some 64 people lived in 10 houses.

   The actual name "Achouffe" is of indeterminate, but presumably very old origin, and maybe an indication of the village's main industry, at least back in the olden days. According to the "Annales de l'Institut Archeologique du Luxemboug" (the province of Luxembourg, Belgium, that is) - written in 1891, the word "achouffe" could also be written as "achoue" or "achoux," which are variants of the ancient Teuton word "schoh," which means "shoe." Therefore, before the village even had a name, back when it was perhaps just a collection of a few houses situated in close proximity, the people were known as shoemakers, with the village eventually being called Achouffe - meaning "houses of families making shoes." This same publication makes note of the village of Achouffe existing as far back as 1793. So, Achouffe has been around awhile.
    There is another, more interesting, twist to the story of the village of Achouffe, Belgium, one with a little bit more playful gist. The village of Achouffe is located in the Province of Luxembourg, down in the southern part of Belgium, deep within the Ardennes Forest. This is also generally known as the French-speaking area of Belgium called Wallonia, as opposed to the Flemish-speaking northern part of Belgium known as Flanders. There is a distinct dialect that is spoken down there called, appropriately enough, Wallonian - although many Wallonians consider their language - also known as "liegeois-francais" - to be completely separate from the French. Apparently, in the Wallonian dialect the word "achouffe," or just simply "chouffe," can be loosely translated as gnome, or imp, or fairy, or elf. (Actually the word "gnome" in French is gnome.) I have done some digging on this claim and have yet to confirm this supposition.
   The ancient folklore of the Ardennes Forest is full of strange little beings, including rock dwelling demons called Nutons, and cave-dwelling gold hungry treasure fiends called the gatte d'or. Then there was a group of goblins called the Sotays, one of whom could be heard many nights working in a local blacksmith's shop. Not a bad goblin, this particular Sotay would pay for the use of the blacksmith's tools by leaving behind a full pitcher of decent wine for the smithy. This particular Sotay obtained this wine from a nearby bishop's wine cellar, which did noting to endear this Sotay to this bishop. So, the supposition that gnomes call chouffes were running around the area cannot be discounted.

   While doing this digging around I did find a couple of interesting clues. First, just north of the village of Achouffe there is what is called the "Bois d'Achouffe, which means "Achouffe Woods." It is a generally accepted fact that back in the olden days most gnomes tended to live in the woods. Second, in the book: "L'Ardenne - Guide du Touriste et du Cycliste," written by Jean Dardenne in 1903, the village of Achouffe is mentioned a couple of times, but mostly as a checkpoint to ensure the traveler was on the correct road running from Mont to Wibran. The author does mention, however, that on the northeastern edge of the village there runs a small stream called the Ruisseau de Cheval, which runs down a ravine called La Vallee des Fees - the Valley of the Fairies. Hmmm...? So there may be a gnome connection after all?
     This brings us to an interesting piece of folklore. As the story goes, a long time ago, in the hills around the present day village of Achouffe - in the Bois d'Archoufe, perhaps - there was a bunch of gnomes - also known as the Dwarves of Achouffe - running around who were apparently quite skilled in the brewing of beer. They made so much beer that the humans in the area could stay tipsy all the time. There was a natural spring in the Bois de Cedrogne, which is right next to the Bois d'Achouffe, where instead a water, there was an unending stream of gnome-made beer. So, does this spring still exist, can I go there today, is it still flowing with beer? Unfortunately, the answers are yes, yes and no, because as the tale goes, long ago a plague swept through the area and all but a few of the gnomes perished, along with their magical brewery. Today the spring still exists, you can go there, but only water now flows. Pity.

   Besides the fact that this area of Belgium is nothing but beautiful, and it is steeped in history - and folklore - from many eras, there is still a reason to visit the village of Achouffe. Clearly, today Achouffe is not all that well known the world over for its shoemaking industry, but rather for its beer, a relatively new industry, that is if you don't count the beer-making gnomes of yesteryear. Back in 1982, the Brasserie d'Achouffe was founded by Christian Bauweraerts and Pierre Gobron - actually brothers-in-law - in an old cow shed in the village of Achouffe. The two had for years been experimenting around with brewing, using their mother-in-law's garage as a base, until finally, she had had enough of the numerous kettles and pots cluttering up her place. She told her woes to a local farmer by the name of Albert Masson, who took pity on her and offered the two brothers-in-law the use of the abovementioned cow shed, for a cut of any profits, of course. So, with a stake of just 5,000 Euro, the Brasseries d'Achouffe was born, the first batch being turned out in August 1982. At first the beers they brewed were for sale only from the brewery, but as the quality of their beers became known, demand grew and so did the brewery.
   Instead of yet another Belgian monk, abbot or priest, appearing on the label of a bottle of beer, the two decided on a gnome for their brand ambassador. A nod, perhaps, to the legions of spirit people who used to - and maybe still - inhabit the Adrennes. Actually, there is a quaint story that in 1978, when the bothers-in-law were still just experimenting around with brewing beer, a gnome, apparently one of the last in existence, paid the two a fortuitous visit. This old gnome gave them his ancient recipe for what became La Chouffe blond. Hey, who am I to disagree?
  In 2006, the brothers-in-law took a buy out from the Duvel-Moortgat brewing concern. While production of Brasserie d'Achouffe beers essentially remains in the village of Achouffe, the association with Duvel-Moortgat meant the beers now enjoyed a well-oiled, international distribution system.

I am really disappointed in myself. For as many years as I worked in Belgium, I never made the trip down to the Brasserie d'Achouffe. Although we worked mainly out of Liege and Brussels, we spent our weekends off in the town of Maastricht, in The Netherlands, or in Brussels. In any case, the Brasserie d'Achouffe was only a few kilometers down to the south, just a ways past Liege, a little farther than Spa, so I don't know why I never made the trip. I actually did to some running around in the area, down to Spa and the environs, but never made it to the brewery. If I ever go back to work in Belgium I will not make that mistake again. Although I haven't made the run down to the brasserie I have enjoyed my share of Brasserie d'Chouffe beers, and I have pretty much enjoyed every one. Happily, one can find at least the La Chouffe variety here in North America.

Update: July 2021. Gladly, it appears that other varieties of Brasserie d’Chouffe beers are making it across the pond, and into my area. I just picked up a four-pack of Chouffe Cherry - a tart, refreshing cherry beer. Very tastely, and worth the search to find a few. Cheers!