These Belgian monks are bringing back a fabled 12th-century beer recipe
Belgian monks are bringing back a fabled medieval beer after rediscovering the original recipe in the archives at Grimbergen Abbey, a monastery founded in central Belgium in 1128.
Father Karel Stautemas, subprior at Grimbergen Abbey, who is studying to be a brewer to join the microbrewery team with Father Ton Smits. Image by Grimbergen Abbey
The book of recipes – which had been in possession of the monks at Grimbergen Abbey – had once belonged to the Norbertine monastery, which was burned down and ransacked during the French Revolution in 1798 (the area was under French rule at the time). Just before the monastery burned down, however, quick-thinking abbey clerics managed to ferry the manuscripts to safety. Now some 220 years later, the monks at Grimbergen Abbey have announced they’re brewing again after discovering the texts in their archives.
Grimbergen will build a new microbrewery inside the walls of Grimbergen Abbey.
Image by Grimbergen Abbey
The Grimbergen name is probably familiar to international beer-lovers since Danish giant Carlsberg has a licensing deal to produce a beer known as Grimbergen outside of Belgium. But now the monks of the abbey want to brew the original beer themselves, combining medieval traditions detailed in the texts the Norbertine monks had used up until 1798, alongside modern techniques to craft limited edition batches.
Father Karel Stautemas. Image by Grimbergen Abbey
The original recipes had been written in Latin and Old Dutch that were difficult to decipher but with the help of volunteers, the monks have been able to translate the texts. “We’ve spent hours leafing through the books and have discovered ingredient lists for beers brewed in previous centuries, the hops used, the types of barrels and bottles, and even a list of the actual beers produced centuries ago,” Karel Stautemas, the abbey’s subprior, said in a statement.
Father Karel Stautemas, subprior at Grimbergen Abbey is studying to be a brewer to join the microbrewery team Image by Grimbergen Abbey
After plans to build a new Carlsberg-funded brewery were approved on Monday, the monks hope to produce their first batch of 10.8% ales by late 2020, with locally-produced crops, including hops planted in the abbey’s garden. The new brewery will sit inside the abbey’s walls, and it will include a bar and restaurant for visitors.
https://www.lonelyplanet.com/news/2019/05/27/grimbergen-monks-resurrect-medieval-beer-recipe/?utm_campaign=Travel%20News%20Daily&utm_source=sfmc&utm_medium=email&stuid=8fc949fe4df4e33529c756aa8868ebfc&utm_content=105727&utm_term=
verder een krat Jever want ik las hier dat ik die moest proberen, dat gaan we dan maar eens doen. Gisteren de laatste Vedett opgedronken dus het word ook wel tijd.
