Traditional card games
Belote
Win tricks in teams of two to reach the game's target score before the opponents, relying on a trump suit that turns the value of the cards upside down.
- players
- 4
- minutes
- 30-60
- variants
- 6
You’ll need: 32-card deck. Marquoir gives you all the rules and keeps score.
Setup
- Four players, in two teams of two, seated crosswise: partners sit opposite each other.
- A 32-card deck, from 7 to ace. The dealer shuffles, has the player on their right cut, and deals clockwise.
- In classic belote: three cards, then two, to each player. The 21st card is turned face up in the middle: it is the proposed trump.
- In coinche and contrée: all 32 cards are dealt straight away, five then three, and trump is decided by bidding.
How to play
- First round of bidding: each player may take the face-up card as trump, or pass.
- If everyone passes, second round: a player may take by naming another suit as trump.
- If nobody takes, the cards are gathered and the next player deals again.
- The player to the dealer's left leads. You must follow the suit led.
- In trumps, you must play higher than the trumps already in the trick if you can. Without the suit led, you must trump unless your partner is already winning the trick.
- The trick goes to the highest trump played, otherwise to the highest card of the suit led.
Scoring
- In trumps: jack 20, nine 14, ace 11, ten 10, king 4, queen 3, eight and seven 0.
- Outside trumps: ace 11, ten 10, king 4, queen 3, jack 2, nine, eight and seven 0.
- The last trick, called dix de der, is worth 10 extra points: a deal therefore holds 162 points.
- Belote-Rebelote: holding the king and queen of trumps in the same hand is worth 20 points, provided you announce them as you play them. Those 20 points stay with the team that announces them, even if it goes down.
- Capot: winning all eight tricks brings the deal to 252 points instead of 162, the dix de der going from 10 to 100.
- Classic belote: the taking team must gather 82 points, belote included. If it succeeds, each team scores its points; if it goes down, the taker scores only its belote, if any, and the defence takes all 162.
- Coinche and contrée: if it succeeds, the taker scores its points plus its contract (it must also score more than the defence); if it goes down, the defence scores 160 plus the contract. Doubled (coinché or contré), the winning team scores (160 + contract) × 2; redoubled, × 4.
- Unannounced capot in coinche: 250 plus the contract. Announced capot: 500, doubled or quadrupled if coinché; if it fails, the points go to the defence and the taker loses its belote.
End of the game
- The game is played to 501, 1,000 or 2,000 points depending on the table. The first team to pass the target wins.
- If both teams are tied when passing the target, one more deal is played.
House rules and pitfalls
- In contrée, the defence can double (contrer) a bid it thinks cannot be made: the contract is then worth double. The taker can redouble (surcontrer), which quadruples it.
- Sequence announcements (tierce, fifty, hundred) are mostly played in classic belote and are often dropped in coinche.
- Classic pitfall: forgetting that the obligation to play higher in trumps does not apply when your partner is already winning the trick.
Variants
Variant
Classic belote
A card is turned up; take or pass. The taker must score 82 of 162 points.
Coinche
Bids from 80 to 160, then Capot. Made: points scored + contract. Down: 160 + contract to the defence. Doubled × 2, redoubled × 4.
Contrée
Like coinche: bids from 80 to 160, then Capot; the defence can double (× 2) and the taker redouble (× 4).
Game to
501 points
1,000 points
2,000 points
chosen when starting, the scorer follows
Frequently asked questions
How many points does it take to make a deal in belote?
The taking team must gather at least 82 of the 162 points in play. In coinche, it must reach the amount it bid during the auction, from 80 to 160, or make capot.
What is the difference between coinche and contrée?
Both are played with bidding and all cards dealt. In contrée, the defence can also double a bid, which doubles the points at stake, and the taker can redouble to quadruple them.
What is Belote-Rebelote worth?
Twenty points, for the player holding the king and queen of trumps. They must say "Belote" when playing the first of the two, and "Rebelote" when playing the second, otherwise the bonus is lost.
The box
- Age
- Ages 8+
- Origin
- Traditional game, with no specific designer or publisher
- Mechanics
- En équipesPlis
Rules on video
Videos in French, hosted on YouTube.