Martens

Commercial Brewery in Bocholt, Limburg, Belgium 🇧🇪

Established in 1758

Contact
Reppelerweg 1, Bocholt, 3950, Belgium
Subsidiaries
Description
Brewery Martens has been in business for 260 years. Throughout our rich history, which remains embedded in our native town of Bocholt to this very day, the brewery has always remained in hands of the Martens family. Yet, while we put great store by our family history, all eight generations of the Martens family have also continuously been driven by innovation and state-of-the-art processes, which is what has made us into one of the most modern and innovative breweries in the country today.

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2.8/10 Appearance 6 Aroma 2.5 Flavor 1 Texture 3 Overall 3
Euro strong lager brewed for 'Fun Beer' which, despite its intentions perhaps, does not sound very promising; clearly coming from the Martens conveyor belt of supermarket brands, and frankly I do not give a damn for which company it was originally conceived - in 2018 apparently - as this is going to be tough ride anyway. Comes from an ominous half liter can bought at the Carrefour supermarket in Sint-Denijs-Westrem. Thick and foamy, fizzing (for much longer than I was anticipating), egg-white, membrane-lacing head gradually opening over a crystal clear, 'metallic', deep old-golden robe with some thin strings of sparkling in the middle. Aroma of industrial white sugar, factory-made apple juice, a vague hint of caramel sauce even, cheap brandy, cooked rice, sugar corn from a can, nail polish remover, methylated spirits, illegally distilled corn whiskey, iron plates, eraser. Fizzy onset, more so than anticipated even - but the consolation brought by this artificially added yet finetuned, fine-bubbled and fine-targeted carbonation is short-lived, as a 'dead' kind of corn-like sweetishness ensues, with metallic edges and something annoyingly sugary on top, in a straightforward, 'white' kind of way. Slender, sleek body, remarkably thin in fact for this ABV - in reality the alcohol has thinned whatever thin body of a minimal proportion of pale malts 'enriched' with corn and syrup could ever provide. The sweetness remains, even turns a bit caramelly in the end, but does not go over the top as with many other malt liquors and the like; equally persistent though are the corn flavour and the iron effects on the sides. In the finish - and in fact long before that - the alcohol unsurprisingly becomes apparent, but somehow it behaves less brutally than I was expecting, in spite of being very, very present, even literally 'aggravating' the mouthfeel and heating the throat. Like some very cheap, budget supermarket brandy, it lingers at the back more than anything else, but the people who buy this kind of products cannot be bothered by this utterly boozy, harsh and unpleasant ending, I guess... Putting things into perspective, this Haka somehow manages to shock me less than I had been preparing for, it is less sickly sweet and less harshly boozy than many other examples of its category. I hasten to add, however, that this category as a whole has no reason to exist other than to provide a quick and cheap buzz to alcoholics, which makes it - by definition - the most depressing genre of beer ever made, in stark contrast with all those wonderful beer styles we got. I feel just a bit relieved that this is not the very worst in its genre - take note of this, Gordon - but I am still physically unable to drink half a liter of this poison so most of it ended up as drain pour, obviously. Terrible as expected, just a little bit less terrible than other terrible strong lagers, perhaps.
Tried on 23 May 2026 at 01:01

4.8/10 Appearance 6 Aroma 4.5 Flavor 4.5 Texture 4 Overall 5
Can in Costa Rica.
Pours clear light golden with a medium sized white head, good lacing. Wet grains, straw, mild metallic.
Ok
Tried from Can on 14 May 2026 at 20:58

5.1/10 Appearance 6 Aroma 5 Flavor 5 Texture 5 Overall 5
Can in Costa Rica.
Pours clear light golden with a medium sized white head that dissipates quickly, good lacing. Pils malts, doughy, herbal, citrus peel.
Ok
Tried from Can on 13 May 2026 at 19:16

5/10
500ml can in our apartment in Malta.
Tried from Can on 06 May 2026 at 19:30

5.5/10
500ml can, Malta.
Tried from Can on 05 May 2026 at 10:10

6/10 Appearance 7 Aroma 7 Flavor 5 Texture 5 Overall 6
Re-rate. 4 May 2026. 500ml can. Pours opaque gold-orange with a tall white head. Aroma is coriander, lemon, orange zest, wheat. Taste is light sweet, a bit watery. Light bitter finish.

19 August 2017. 330ml bottle from Bliznetsy in Moscow. Pours cloudy yellow with a medium-sized white head. Aroma is coriander, lemon, skunkiness. Taste is sweet and sugary, wheat, light spiciness, corn. Light bodied. Overpriced. 6/4/5/4/5 – 4.8
Tried from Can on 04 May 2026 at 16:54

6.1/10 Appearance 8 Aroma 6.5 Flavor 6 Texture 4 Overall 6
500ml can. Pours opaque dark brown with a tall beige head. Aroma is dried fruit, caramel, yeast. Taste is light to medium sweet. Light bitter finish. Seems watered down. Ok for an industrial Belgian beer.
Tried from Can on 04 May 2026 at 15:49

6/10 Appearance 8 Aroma 6.5 Flavor 5 Texture 5 Overall 6
500ml can. Pours clear gold with a tall white head. Aroma is coriander, ginger, pear, Belgian yeast. Taste is light to medium sweet, watery. Light bitter finish. A bit empty.
Tried from Can on 04 May 2026 at 15:17

5.1/10 Appearance 7 Aroma 4 Flavor 5 Texture 6 Overall 5
Color dorado, espuma blanca, espesa y duradera con bastante encaje. Aroma neutro, sin notas desagradables. Ligera y refrescante en boca, dulzor y amargor medio, yo diría que incluso aceptable. Mucho mejor que la versión de Font Salem de la misma cerveza.
Tried from Can on 16 Apr 2026 at 14:18

3.1/10 Appearance 4 Aroma 3 Flavor 2.5 Texture 4 Overall 3
(can 0,5l from cheap grocery)
* Too alcoholic and tasteless. No... *
Clear golden. Quickly done, white head. Strong alcohol, spirit-like, very light malt, light sweet. Medium body. Hot alcohol finish.
Tried from Can on 09 Apr 2026 at 19:04