ORVAL ABBEY
Whether you are religious or not, as soon as you drive into the Orval valley you feel that this is no ordinary place. The hills, the water, the trees. Everything seems a little more heavenly than elsewhere in the Ardennes. Once inside the abbey gate, it only becomes more beautiful: on the right the sleek buildings of the modern monastery, on the left the ruins of the original Orval Abbey, which was destroyed during the French Revolution.
It is wonderful to walk among the remains of the church and cloister from the 11th century. Wander past pillars, gravestones, a stone bench, the contours of a Gothic window. Although this setting is the result of violence, there is an intensely peaceful atmosphere today. There's something soothing about that. Just find a quiet place, sit down and let the peace settle in.
It really is a val d'or here, a golden valley
Golden Valley
According to legend, the monastery is located on this spot because Mathilde of Tuscany, Countess of Chiny and aunt of crusader Godfrey of Bouillon, dropped her wedding ring into a well here. Her plea to Our Lady was heard and a trout is said to have appeared with the lost ring in its mouth... After which the countess exclaimed: 'It really is a val d'or here, a golden valley.'
The Abbey of Orval enjoyed a modest form of prosperity after its construction in the 11th and 12th centuries. Like most Cistercian orders, the monks lived a simple and self-sufficient existence. After the plunder by the French revolutionaries and 130 years of vacancy, Orval started a second life in 1926. Successfully. Thanks in part to the Trappist beer and artisanal cheese, famous in Belgium and beyond.
Orval is one of only fourteen monasteries where official Trappist beer is brewed. A beer can only be called Trappist if it is made in a Cistercian abbey under the auspices of the monks. An abbey beer is a much broader concept because this beer only needs to be connected to a monastic order such as Maredsous, Val Dieu or Floreffe. Sometimes this involves beer based on an old monastery recipe, but usually it is new beers.
In the Abraham building, the only building of the medieval monastery still standing, a contemporary museum about Orval's Trappist beer has been set up. But you can also discover the abbey with a guide who will certainly discuss the products of the monastery. In addition to beer, cheese and bread from Orval - for sale in the shop on the complex - also have a good reputation in the region.
