My flight from Detroit to Amsterdam was packed. And, a late departure gave me a three hour layover in AMS. A surprise U.S. Customs team were selectively "interviewing" some passengers heading down the tunnel to the plane. I've never seen this before. The looked at my U.S. passport and waived me through without blinking an eye. Then, I made it to Brussels in 1/2 hour with a short flight. Claimed my bag and I was on a train to Leuven, only about 10 km away. Found my hotel and did a little walking tour of the town. My first beer here was a Corsendank Agnus Tripel I picked up at the corner grocery store...a nice welcome to beer paradise. I'm running on empty, though, despite tyring to sleep on the plane a little. Leuven is home to the gigantic corporate beer Stella Artois, now owned by AB Inbev. At least that's what they are calling it at press time. Tomorrow, by virtue of its location, I will venture into the belly of the beast and tour this mammoth purveyor of uneventful pilsner. I'll let you know how it goes. Now, I'm heading to dinner at Domus. According to the Good Beer Guide Belgium, it is the longest surviving brewpub in Belgium. Great to be back in beer paradise!
