Until recently, craft beer was limited to a few specialty bars and shops, and beer lovers had to search the map for the nearest breweries if they wanted to enjoy authentic local beers. But everything changed with the craft beer boom that began around 2010, which brought this product to the general public. Since then, there are numerous events and fairs that combine a wide selection of beer, an interesting gastronomic offering, recreational activities and even musical performances, creating a celebration space suitable for the whole family.

Wallonia has not been immune to this beer trend, and throughout the region you can find several festivals where you can taste a wide variety of local beers, in a festive atmosphere centered around this beverage so important to Belgian society. Below, we will review some of the most notable beer festivals held throughout the season in the Walloon region, so you can plan your beer calendar ahead of time.

Week-End Bières Specials – Sohier

Although the peak season for beer events coincides with spring and summer, you can also find options for enjoying beer in winter. The kick-off for Wallonia's beer festivals is the annual Week-End Bières Specials, which takes place in Sohier, recognized as one of the most beautiful Walloon villages. The local non-profit association Les Veschaux is responsible for organizing this festival, which celebrated its 31st edition between February 21 and 23, 2025, attracting nearly 1,500 visitors.

There were 120 specialty beers to taste (including 20 new releases), 95% of which were native beers from the area. In addition, given the growing demand for this kind of drink, 6 non-alcoholic beers of various styles were also served. Beer collectors enjoyed a beer coasters swap meet, and the cultural offering included a blind tasting, a tourist route in order to discover the village, performances by orchestras and DJs, a running and cycling race in the surrounding area, and a mijole tournament, a traditional Belgian game involving tossing chips onto a wooden tray.

As for the culinary offerings, visitors could choose from a full menu of dishes made with beer-based recipes, or from some small stands offering cervelas (lightly smoked pork sausages), abbey cheese, croque-monsieur, onion soup or pipe ardennais, a cured sausage typical of southern Belgium. These were interesting pairing options, perfect for accompanying the extensive selection of trappist and blanche beers offered at this winter event.

Summer Beer Lovers' Festival – Liège

The esplanade in front of the Gare des Guillemins, the Liège train station designed by the famous Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, hosted from June 5 to 8 the 11th edition of Summer Beer Lovers’ Festival, the beer event with which liégeoises welcome summer. More than 12,000 visitors gathered to enjoy the nearly 110 different beers offered by 18 breweries from Brussels, Namur, Luxembourg, Hainaut, and of course Liège.

During these four days, which started at noon and continued until more than midnight, beer enthusiasts could choose from fruity, strong, classic Belgian, hoppy, light, alcohol-free, and gluten-free beers. The event, with free admission and easy access by tram or bicycle, also featured a wide selection of wines, sparkling wines, cocktails and mocktails, such as the liégeois (a mix of orange soft drink and grenadine). As for the food, attendees tasted the famous local gaufres or waffles and a multicultural street food offering that included burgers, falafels and shish taouk (chicken skewers typical of Lebanese, Syrian and Turkish cuisine).

Carolo Beer Festival – Charleroi

Between two branches of the Sambre River in the province of Hainaut lies Charleroi, the most populous city in Wallonia with just over 200,000 inhabitants. The municipality has left its industrial and mining past behind, becoming an important cultural center, thanks to its numerous museums and performance venues. Its current leisure offerings also include beer, as demonstrated by the Carolo Beer Festival.

This beer event named after King Charles, who is also honored by the city that hosts it, claims to be the largest beer festival in the province of Hainaut. It took place between June 20th and 22nd, bringing together more than 20 breweries in Place Verte, one of the main spots of Charleroi. Visitors could choose from more than 100 different beers, including Walloon brands such as Dupont saisons, Du Bocq strong beers, Rochefort trappist beers, and Dubuisson Belgian classics. In addition to DJ performances and a Rolling Stones cover band, one of this event's highlights was the fricarolo-eating competition, a fried snack similar to fricadelle and highly appreciated in the Charleroi region.

Fête de la Bière – Souvret

Without leaving the province of Hainaut, and just 30 minutes away from cities like Mons, Nivelles or Namur, we will find Souvret, a small town of just 4,000 inhabitants that also has its own beer festival. The Fête de la Bière à Souvret held its 11th edition between July 3 and 5 at the town's Salle Paroissiale, in a relaxed yet fun atmosphere, ideal for enjoying a beer with friends or family.

The program of activities included children's entertainment, DJ performances, and concerts by local music groups such as the cover band Mothercover, as well as an attractive selection of food trucks. Meanwhile, most daring beer fans could participate in a team blind tasting or a Beer Tour, with a selection of more than 15 specialty beers that could be tasted freely at a fixed price. The latter activity also included a tasting of Quoicoubeh, a mystery beer that offered a great reward to anyone who could identify it by its aroma and flavor.

Bière en Fête – Mons

Practically coinciding in date and location with the previous event (both towns are just over 30 kilometers apart), between July 4 and 6 Mons hosted the 29th edition of its Bière en Fête, the largest and longest-running beer festival in the capital of Hainaut. The town's Grand-Place received the stands of 23 Belgian and international breweries during these days, which offered the public more than 80 different beers, perfectly combining craft beer options with major commercial beer brands.

This festival offered its visitors a complete immersion in beer culture, as its program included beer-themed contests and games, as well as various tribute band concerts. The program was rounded out with a great selection of fine local products, and attendees were able to take part in a guided bike tour that visited 3 breweries located around Mons.

Une Cour en Bières – Anseremme

Namurois town of Anseremme is known for its water sports, as it sits at the meeting point of the Lesse and Meuse rivers, but that does not mean it is turned its back on beer. On July 27, the grounds of the former municipal primary school hosted Une Cour en Bières, a true festival centered around namurois beers.

Around 30 different beers brewed in the province of Namur were presented there, along with a very full and attractive program of activities. The day began at noon with an aperitif accompanied by games and pastimes: quilles or skittles, mijole, fléchettes or darts and cornhole, a popular pastime in many North American breweries which consists of throwing small sacks filled with seeds towards a sloping wooden board, trying to get the sack into a hole. In the afternoon, the 21st tarte aux concombres eaters contest took place (a traditional tart made with cucumber and cheese). The fun continued with a blind tasting accompanied by a musical performance, and the wide selection of beers could be accompanied throughout the day with pains crochon, small rustic breads filled with brie cheese and ham.

Bièrez-vous? – Ciney

Ciney is a town in the province of Namur where beer has always been a staple. In fact, there is a beer brand that features the town's name and symbols on its bottles. It is no surprise then that a major beer-themed event takes place there in midsummer. Bièrez-vous? held its tenth edition from August 1st to 3rd, bringing together a total of 25 breweries offering more than 100 beers of various styles.

The festival took place in the town's Parc Saint-Roch and featured family-friendly attractions such as children's entertainment, a bouncy castle and bowling games. Folk and rock concerts, DJs and local band bands livened up the festivities, and the program also included beer-related activities, including the 10-kilometer La D'houblonée fest race with beer refreshments, a flea market for swapping coasters, labels, beer caps and promotional items, beer-making demonstrations by homebrewers associations, and an attractive pop-up restaurant offering beer pairings and dishes packed with malty flavors and hoppy aromas.

Tripel Beer Fest – Vresse-sur-Semois

That same weekend, another interesting beer festival took place in Vresse-sur-Semois, a picturesque village in the province of Namur surrounded by stunning landscapes, forests and valleys that invite you to follow one of its many hiking trails. The Tripel Beer Fest is dedicated to the Ardennes region's flagship beer style, the belgian tripel, and in its previous edition it already managed to bring together more than 4,500 fans of this type of golden, intense beer with complex flavors.

This third edition of the fair featured 12 guest breweries, and while tripel is the star of the three-day festival, more than 80 beers of other styles brewed in different corners of Belgium and France were also served. In addition, there were free concerts and 12 bands took the stage, playing everything from classic guitar rock to electronic music. Children could enjoy games and family activities, and the food offering included fried and grilled dishes, cheeses, salted meats, ice cream and various desserts and sweets.

La Grande Choufferie – Wibrin

There is no doubt that La Chouffe is one of the most popular beers brewed in Wallonia, as its successful history of over 40 years proves. Fans of this beer can not miss a date on August 8th and 9th at the Achouffe brewery to celebrate La Grande Choufferie, the event with which the Ardennes elves commemorate the birth of their favorite beer brand.

It is a great opportunity to visit Marcel's home and the rest of the Chouffe elves, who during those days offer visitors beer and cheese tasting workshops, beer crate climbing competitions (currently the record is 12 crates stacked!), bouncy castles, face painting, snacks, free concerts and, above all, lots of Chouffe beer. This festive, family-friendly event features a unique setting to emulate total immersion in the Ardennes forest, and among the attendees abound the striking red elf hats that are a symbol of the brewery.

Arch'en Bières – Archennes

With the end of August, summer vacation is practically over, and there is no better way to bid it farewell until next year than with a glass of beer in hand. That is what the organizers of Arch'en Bières must have thought, a beer festival that will celebrate its 20th edition on August 30 and 31 in the village of Archennes, not far from the town of Wavre.

This festival stands out for offering its attendees non-commercial or almost non-commercial beers, thus showcasing local Walloon Brabant beers that are rarely consumed by the general public. The program of activities is rounded out with concerts, offering, for example, a romantic Saturday afternoon with music from the 1970s to the 2000s, or a Sunday with an atmosphere reminiscent of a music festival.

Belgian Beer Weekend – Brussels

Although it is not held in Wallonia but in Brussels, the Belgian Beer Weekend is a must-attend festival for getting to know the Belgian beer industry firsthand. It is a highly significant event nationwide, attracting a large crowd of visitors from all over Belgium and abroad, and featuring several breweries from the Walloon region.

Between September 5th and 7th, Brussels' photogenic Grand Place will host the 25th edition of a beer festival beloved by Brussels residents and beer enthusiasts from around the world. During these 3 days, one of Europe's most beautiful squares becomes a giant, free-entry bar, bringing together 50 breweries from all over Belgium, musical performances, and a large number of visitors, giving this festival a special atmosphere. From family recipes to trappist beers, there you will find excellent examples of the great Belgian beer styles.

Oberbayern Fêtes de la Bière – Ormeignies

After the spring and summer festivals, another peak time for beer events is the beginning of autumn. At the end of September Oktoberfest, the world's largest beer festival, kicks off in Munich, and many cities around the globe celebrate their own Bavarian festivals. A good example of that is Oberbayern Fêtes de la Bière, which has been held on the first weekend of October since 1963 in Ormeignies, a town very close to Ath.

This festival is organized by the Royale Fanfare Saint-Ursmer d’Ormeignies, so the celebration features local and regional music bands, along with groups playing Tyrolean music. This Bavarian-inspired festival is full of people wearing traditional German costumes and also offers great beers, including a total of 15 regional varieties, which can be accompanied by dishes such as sauerkraut, boulettes or tartiflettes (a Savoyard potato cake made with Reblochon cheese and bacon). Because even though you are almost 800 kilometers from Munich, nothing is stopping you from celebrating Oktoberfest like a true Bavarian.

Brassigaume – Marbehan

An unmissable event for lovers of the most modern and innovative craft beer will take place on October 18th and 19th in Marbehan, a town located between the Ardennes and the historic region of Gaume. There will be held the 24th edition of Brassigaume, a festival that boasts a two-day gathering of the best representatives of the Belgian craft beer sector and several quality foreign breweries.

In a covered and heated space in case the October weather is bad, 27 breweries from 8 countries will bring together (30% of them are new to the festival), with Brasserie de Rulles as the local best representative. This event not only allows you to enjoy authentic craft beers for just over 2 € a glass, purchase bottles to take home from their Bottle Shop, or taste a genuine and freshly roasted cochon à la broche (a whole pig cooked over an open fire). It is also an excellent place to meet and chat with the brewers themselves, an opportunity that the more than 2,500 attendees at the previous edition surely took advantage of.

Namur Capitale de la Bière – Namur

Namur is no longer just the capital of Wallonia. For several years now, some beer events have been taking place there, reminding us that it is also the Capitale de la Bière. These festivals are unique in that they are held at different times throughout the year, each one dedicated to a different theme or beer style.

On March 21 and 22 Fest' IPA took place, a festival dedicated exclusively to IPAs, the flagship style of the craft beer movement, where more than 50 hoppy beers of different varieties could be tasted. And on November 14 and 15, it will be the turn of Stout sûre Meuse, where you can find the best dark and sour beers on the European and local scene. Porters, stouts, black IPAs, lambics and pastry sours will meet in a cultural space located in a former 18th-century church, where Walloon representatives such as Gueuzerie Tilquin or Brasserie des Légendes will not be missing.

This beer cycle is completed in December with Bière d'Hiver, a day dedicated to modern winter and seasonal beers, which deviate from the traditional Belgian concept of a heavily spiced Christmas beers.

La Bière: Culture et Traditions – Boussu

It is not a typical beer festival, but the exhibition "La Bière: Culture et Traditions" is sure to be of interest to true beer lovers. This temporary demonstration, organized by the non-profit association Gy Seray Boussu, is being held for the second time from March 6 to October 31 at the Boussu Castle, a space recognized as an exceptional heritage site in Wallonia whose origins date back to the 16th century.

Visitors can immerse themselves in the history of beer and discover the traditions, beliefs and practices that have been associated with it for centuries till nowadays. Alongside the exhibition, various events related to beer and its culture take place each month in and around the Castle, including tastings, ingredients workshops, literary sessions, shows, competitions, and open days at the local breweries Brasserie Deseveaux and Brasserie du Borinage.

As you can see, beer-related activities are plentiful throughout Wallonia, and you can attend beer events in different locations and at different times of the year. Check your calendar now, plan your trips, and get ready to discover everything that beers brewed in the Walloon region have to offer. Santé!