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Smallest beer shop in the Netherlands

We also search the digital world for interesting stories in the wonderful world of beer. On social media we came across the following description “The smallest beer shop in the Netherlands”, our interest was raised! One phone call with Fred Buddingh, owner of ‘Driemeterbier’, was enough. ”An article about my store? Nice, there is enough to tell, come by.” So here we are at ‘Little Beershop’ – an interview with Fred.

First of all, Fred, the name ‘Driemeterbier’, tell us the story!

We are now in the store called Little Beershop, which is the result of the ‘Driemeterbier’ store (translation: ‘Threemeterbeer’). In the time that I was still working as an editor for television, it always interested me to start my own beer shop. My brother-in-law has a delicacy shop in town and we came up with the concept 3 years ago to create a kind of shop in shop by placing a rack of ‘Driemeterbier’ with very nice beers in his shop. And so the smallest beer shop in the Netherlands was born with literally three meters of beer.

‘Driemeterbier’ at ‘Wijnhuis Alexander’ in Hoogland. (Source: https://www.littlebeershop.nl/)

Every week I adjust the product range with 15 new beers. A good working concept, now there are also two locations of Driemeterbier in Hilversum and Amersfoort. Because the concept ran so smoothly, I started thinking about my own store and so I began looking for a suitable place. This area used to be a prostitution area and redevelopment turned this into retail property. After a successful crowdfunding campaign in which I even sold beer in one of the (vacant) red-light district rooms, this store started. The new name of the store was Little Beershop, to fit the theme of Driemeterbier.

How did you gather the knowledge to put together the right assortment?

Well, I kind of grew into it. I have been interested in specialty beer for a long time and have visited many beer festivals. I also had a lot of practice in the time when I only had Driemeterbier at the ‘Amsterdamsestraatweg’ (street name). We were just a small beer shop at the time. I learned a lot during that time by trial and error.

The mini-cannery from Fred. (Source: https://www.littlebeershop.nl/)

We see a special device and beer taps in the store, you don’t see that often, please explain!

At the time when we only had Driemeterbier, we also filled bottles with beer ourselves, so that people could take home fresh beer. Then I started searching for a way to also can beer and I came across this mini-cannery – a machine that could seal cans filled with beer. I wanted to create the atmosphere of a bar, but a bar where people can’t drink. You can drink it everywhere except inside the store, that is the underlying idea. It is quite new, nobody is familiar with this concept. ‘Frontaal’ Brewery also has one, but that’s the only other store to my knowledge.

Is there another thought behind the beers that you can can yourself?

9 out of 10 times I’ll try to find beer that you can hardly get in bottles or cans. For example, I currently have 3 beers from a German brewer with very good IPAs that can only be purchased on kegs. We immediately build a theme around it named ‘Deutsches Wochenende’, including German schlager music.

Three custom made designs, specially made for the mini-cannery.

How do you determine what to include in your assortment?

I am in contact with both the ‘middlemen’ and directly with the brewer himself. You get so much offered as well and I’ll just make a selection from that. The Netherlands has so many brewers that I have chosen to support the local community. For example, I have a rack here with all the beers from the area, think of ‘Kromme Haring’ and ‘Van de Streek’. I prefer to sell more local beer and support local friends than, for example, to offer beer from Enkhuizen (a town further away). The funny thing is that people really appreciate the local beer, but also want to try beer from all over the world.

What trends do you see in 2020?

You always see that people specify a certain beer style here, for example “this is the year of alcohol-free and of sour or NEIPA”. I also think this will be the year of NEIPA, but I think this will also be the year in which a very large group of people will finally discover specialty beer. I notice more and more that people who used to drink standard ‘LaChouffe’ at home now come to the store and say: “I recently had something with tropical fruit” after which I point them to a beer and they say “I’ll take 6 of them!”. This large group of people is starting to discover the possibilities of specialty beer.

Who are your customers?

Pretty diverse, but generally young people. Few elderly people … some, but few? This is probably due to my assortment. For example, I have little Belgian beer, those beers aren’t runners either in my store. 98% comes from modern breweries.

What do customers indicate as the main reason why they keep coming back?

I really try to create an atmosphere in the store. For me it is fun to make it a ‘Deutsches wochenende’ now. For my store in Hoogland I had also canned beers with the label of the village, and the Brexit was also a theme in the store.

In addition, the constantly innovative range is of course also something that is appreciated. That is perhaps what I focus on the most, I just want to be the store for the new beer. I just want to have the coolest beers available.

How would you describe the atmosphere?

It must be a kind of bar where you like to stay and have a chat, and yes it is a shame that you can’t have a beer with it, but that’s the way the law works. It would be my ideal store if you can just order a beer while shopping here. Until then we are a store where you can buy fantastic beer in a bar environment that you can drink anywhere except here, haha!

Proost Jochie! (which translates closest to: Cheers buddy!) The slogan of the Little Beershop.

And your future plans?

Future plans? I still have so many things that I want to do in this store, I still have to put finishing touches on a lot of things. My to-do list is still huge haha. For now I am busy with that, and with a feeling that I just want to be here and practice my passion.

The collector and his beer #3

A source of beer knowledge, special beers and warm hospitality. That’s how a visit to Huub van Dijk can be summarized. Huub is the brewer of multiple prize winner ‘saison Wittekop’, a phenomenal beer with which he won the Brussels Beer Challenge and the Dutch Beer Challenge. He is also an award-winning zythologist and collector of just about anything that has to do with beer. To combine the useful with the pleasant, we went to visit Huub with the BeerNDX team.

Time for the interview!

“Sorry for the mess men, but we have just returned from 2 days in Antwerp and have not had much time to clean up.” Once we started talking about Antwerp and its bars, the conversation really takes off. “Do you know where you should go? Café Mombasa in Borgerhout; very nice beers that you can’t drink anywhere else. Also very hospitable, highly recommended. ” While we are being served a ‘Wittekop’, he picks up a number of folders. In these folders – described in detail – are the places in the Netherlands and Belgium which true beerlovers must visit. Quite an undertaking, while browsing through the scriptures.

Team BeerNDX listens carefully to the stories of Huub.

While we talk about the visit to Antwerp and the collection of beers, related beer items are discussed as well. Clearly it is not only beer that he collects, we notice that when he shows us the rooms upstairs. “I think I have about 80 beer neon signs and they all still work.” he hasn’t exaggerated one bit, especially by showing us the neon sign of Sint Sixtus (!). There are even 2 rooms and cupboards in the corridor that are filled with enamel signs from breweries that no longer exist or at least have adopted a clearly different house style.

Pretty impressive Huub, I am very curious about the beers in your collection, how many bottles do you think you have?

There was a long pause, after which he answered: “I don’t dare to estimate, I think somewhere between 500 and 600.” A very modest estimate, I can tell you.

The La Trappe oak aged collection is also complete!

When did you start collecting beer?

The real collection must have started somewhere in 2009. At least, most of my beers are from that time. I certainly have older beers in my collection, but I often bought them later. How do I get them? I have been in the beer world for quite some time now, and after a while you will get to know a lot of people in there. As a result, I have nice beers that sometimes even the brewer himself no longer has.

Can you name such a showpiece?

For example, I still have a closed box with 12 ‘Cuvée van de Keizer Blauw’ from 1999. The beer will be over its top by now, but it is really special to have. I don’t believe there are many of them around in this condition.

Another showpiece of Huub: Ter Dolen Limited Edition.

Where do you purchase your beer?

I particularly like the traditional beer culture and that is why I like to visit Belgian stores a lot. You will almost always find special items, especially at smaller stores in unknown places. I can recommend it to anyone who visits Belgian. Oh wait, on second thought, rather not. Otherwise the specials are gone before I can get there, haha.

And when you have found a nice beer, with whom do you prefer to taste it?

That’s easy, with Mieke Desplenter from Ter Dolen and Hildegard van Ostaden from the Leyerth. These ladies have meant a lot to the beer world and they are also very knowledgeable.

Any tips for the starting collector?

Make sure you have a good environment to store the beer. Beer should not have too much light and it should not be too hot. But the most important tip: “Don’t forget to drink!”

Women’s beer guild, more popular than ever!

You cannot get our reporter stressed out easily. He has spoken to many beer connoisseurs, and performing a speech to groups is no problem. But tonight is different. He stays in the bathroom just a little longer and at dinner he didn’t get a bite down his throat. Tonight a really tough job awaits him. He is the only man present with 40 (!) ladies of the women’s beer guild; For the love of beer!

Once arrived at bar d’r Neffe in Roosendaal we are welcomed by the ladies who organized this theme evening. “Welcome, do you want a beer?” With this greeting, the reporter calmed down. Time for the interview.

Why a women’s beer guild?

There are plenty of men’s beer guilds and of course ladies are very welcome there. “Together with Linda van Hooijdonk and Birgit Danen we had the idea that having a beer guild for women would be even more fun than joining an existing one,” says Maaike. “We have only just started tasting beers and the existing beer guild was much further in terms of knowledge and tasting experience. We wanted to do it at our own pace and get more knowledge of beer ourselves. With our beer guild we want to be a group where it’s a pleasure to be among other beerlovers. However, it does have a serious note, we want to increase our knowledge of and interest in beer. Once we started and picked the name of our guild we had to go out and find us some members.

Linda: “What happened then was really crazy, in no time we had 30 members and it didn’t stop there. Registrations kept coming in. We are on 43 members including the board for now, but there are also 36 ladies on the waiting list. Why stop at 43? That is very practical. We want to go on a bus every year as an outing and that means a limit due to the capacity of a bus. And of course we need to be able to hear each other during the tastings.”

Time to taste

Then we are urged to silence. The serious work can begin and a powerpoint presentation is even started with the theme: Sweet and Sour. Lucie van Oers takes us into the world of geuze and tells the group everything about the first beer, the Faro Boon. While the ladies are seriously tasting, I ask Lucie who decides which theme and which beers are on the program. “At the annual members’ meeting, all ideas are collected and asked who wants to take on what. We are often with 3 people who organize it. In order to prepare we did some tasting in advance, somebody has to do it haha. ”

The Powerpoint presentation is being showed to the ladies.

The difference with a men’s beer guild

In the meantime, the chairwoman is pouring me the Duchesse de Bourgogne, a classic that will look great on this evening. “I don’t like this beer myself, but it fits well with the theme.” While enjoying the beer, I ask Linda what the biggest difference is with a men’s beer guild. “Actually there are 2 things. An important difference is that members sometimes take 9 months off because they are not allowed to drink, if you know what I mean. This will not happen so quickly in a men’s beer guild. We can also be a bit more exuberant with regard to the themes. I am reminded of the theme of white beer. That in itself is not very exciting you would think. There is not much difference between different white beers. But in this case everyone was dressed in white, there was a DJ and Maaike even came in a wedding dress with wedding bouquet and all.

The future

As a final question, I asked the chairwoman what her wish is for the women’s beer guild: “We want a long-term right to exist and, despite the creative outbursts, we want to be a serious beer guild and also radiate this. Going out more by, for example, also organizing events in Roosendaal such as a beerfestival or whatever comes to mind. ”

The sediment we know as commercial

A tv ad can linger in your head. Until the very moment that you are in the supermarket or in your local pub. Make a choice. Did it actual stay in your head? Is it not just the price and your own taste that made you decide? Is the tv ad that influential?

Hello, he’s here again! On our television screen. With a beer in his hand: Bond. James Bond. With a significant difference: actor Daniel Craig is playing himself. But all of this still because of the cooperation between the film producers and the brewery. The former is preparing us for a cinematic experience in April. The latter is trying to get us to be as adventurous as the hero/actor: choose this brand. And this is just one of the many examples of beer ads on tv, past and present.

Something different than a Martini (source. Youtube)

Best friends

According to men blog guys.nl a beer ad for tv can be summarised into a one minute workshop. To make a commercial like that turns out very easily: ,,You need beer and men. Those men should not be too handsome, otherwise the viewer cannot identify with them. The main characters are holding the beer in their right hand: like that, most viewers can imagine they would use the product. In beer ads for tv the men always come in three. So, no single man all alone being pathetic.” The clip also explains that when one of the men wants to do something, the rest follows automatically. It’s the reason why you see the group drinking beer above a toilet bowl. The same toilet bowl, that is. ,,Although a toilet is not a good place to sell your product. So, just safe on the couch with three men.” And from here we can continue with a selection from the range of beer ads on tv, because evidently guys.nl saw the Amstel ads, the ones with the three best friends.

Very successful (‘they’ were talking about it near the coffee machine) were the commercials of Amstel. They were full of humour and the experiences of the three guys were more or less recognizable. In addition, it was a series, causing people not to switch channels whenever a new spot was aired. The viewers were curious ‘of what they would do now’. Moreover, the three actors who played the Amstelbuddies, took ‘revenge’ when they were put aside in favour of a new campaign. Something unexpected was heard after that by the three men: ,,Right. First a Bavaria.”

‘Not done’

You are going to wonder which tv ads from the past could be shown nowadays. Better formulated: which ones should better not be shown. In case of the friends, one clip stands out. Due to social developments and the event of pushing back the boundaries of political correctness, it would be ‘not done’ right now. It is the clip where the three men are asking themselves something. The ‘brave’ guy takes his chances and asks a blond woman a question about soccer using two glasses of beer and a wine glass. ,,Look, if the attacker gets the ball. Between the goalkeeper and the last player. How do you call this situation?” The blonde responds with a hoarse voice: ,,That’s offside.” The man says thanks and returns to his friends smiling with the anouncement: ,,It’s a man.”

There is another category of beer ads on tv which cannot always stand the test of time: commercials with stars in them. Famous people who, for a nice fee, are promoting a beer brand. Okay, at this moment Daniel Craig is still famous. But what about the ‘golden oldies’? When Lee van Cleef appeared on the television screen for Bavaria, some cries of wonder were to be heard at home. ,,Wow, that they got him to do this!” The movie cowboy shot a cap from a beer bottle to show his preference. How would that work today? It won’t have the same impact like then, because the current generation didn’t grow up with the used celebrities. Show it an audience now and it will only ring a bell to a few quiz show candidates. Mickey Rourke, Hugh Hefner and Diego Maradona could share the same fate. Morgan Freeman not. Probably.

Style, humour and a message

Many ads stand out because of the use of a certain style, humour or the message they want to carry out. The music plays a major role in one (old hits in a new jacket), the punchline of a joke in the other ( the walk-in fridge; apologies for the spoiler). And a change of mentality with just another one, like ‘when you drive you, never drink.’ Also, there are commercials with the purpose of profiling the brand as a sponsor of a music or sports event. That’s how they pay attention to a day or period on a calendar as well. Think about the football championships.

And what about the beer brands which are taking a different path? Not just a warning for drunk driving. No, it’s something… different. You see beer, you know the brand, but still… Charlie Sheen is leaving rehab after an alcohol abuse problem, but on the road homewards he thinks he is seeing everyone drinking beer. A cab driver, a pregnant woman, police officers, even his friends welcoming him back home. But then it’s revealed it’s a different kind of beer: Bavaria 0.0%. Alcohol free beer. The question arises: did I just watch a beer ad on tv? Or not?

Below the threshold of consciousness

With beer ads, one of the purposes is to get you thirsty. And that what you just saw sinks below the threshold of consciousness. That you will choose a certain brand at a certain time. A beer can have sediment at the bottom. It is possible. It can have a purpose. Is it the purpose to drink it? It’s an additional effect of brewing, like contracting ad agencies to get an audience to drink beer.

So? Are tv ads influential? It depends, with such a transfer of information, on the degree of exposure of the message to the recipient. However, the actual effect can never be measured extremely well. But if your brand won’t be named or it won’t be seen, it won’t be bought. Another question: which commercial can you remember? If you can name the brand as well, then you can state the brewery contracted the right ad agency. Moreover, the Trappist Westvleteren won’t be needing an ad on tv; word of mouth advertising has done enough.

It all comes down to the same thing: a beer, anyone?

Which beer commercials on tv are the most memorable to you?

Beauty is in the eye of the (be)holder

Drinking of beer is a matter of taste and preferences.The accompanying glass is usually dictated by the brewery. It is the reason that beside vases, flutes and pint glasses the most different creations are on the market and in the pub. We will focus on the glasses with holder for you.

Beer glasses without a foot; glasses that make you drink in an uptempo. And when there is a holder, you have to make room for it. Pub owners are dealing with this and the fans are dealing with it. But that makes the fan a fan.

The coachman’s glass

With a whole building surrounding the glass, it seems an unnecessary complicated plan to conquer the beer market. And yet, the story of the coachman’s glass is interesting and authentic enough to be told. Pauwel Kwak was in Napoleon’s time an innkeeper in Belgian Dendermonde and his customers were mainly coachmen. Because they didn’t have a lot of time the fine man invented a matching glass. One that enabled the coachmen to drink and to stay at their stand. The glass with a ball underneath (comparable with a Cambridge yard glass) was attached with a wooden holder on the coach. The beer came from brewery Bosteels from Buggenhout.

The principle of the coachman’s glass is the one like that of the boot glass. When there is air in the ball (or in the pointing piece of the boot), and the drinker underestimates the final gulps, the complete content will come out of the glass like a tsunami. A real challenge.

Expensive glasses

Nowadays the holder of the coachman’s glass will be delivered with a foot to let the drinker to be able to put the construction down. A nice object for home then. And that’s why the glasses became a popular collector’s items. As they experienced it at inn De Dulle Griet in Gent. The glasses disappeared by the dozens. If one ordered a Max from the House (not to confused with the beer from Pauwel Kwak), then one should hand in a collateral: a shoe. After ordering a beer a shoe is tossed in a basket and then the thing is hoist up from behind the counter. After a toilet visit the question remains: how come my one sock is that wet?

‘La corne du bois des pendus’

Brewery D’Ebly was taken to court in 2012 by aforementioned brewery Bosteels. The glass associated with the beer ‘La corne du bois des pendus’ would resemble too much with the coachman’s glass of Pauwel Kwak. Both glasses have a wooden holder, so they can stand straight. And there ends the comparison. Pauwel Kwak is to be drank out of a straight glass with a ball underneath, ‘La corne’ is horn-shaped. That’s why the court ruled in favour of D’Ebly.

Laafse Lurk

And then you had the glasses of the Laafse Lurk. The Double beer was inspired bij The People of Laaf from the amusement park The Efteling where it was served. It was brewed by Arcener Steam Beerbrewery in Arcen, now known as the Hertog Jan Steam Beerbrewery. The reasons the beer no longer exists: the relative high percentage of alcohol, the glasses that invited the drinker to drink in an uptempo, and the surroundings of the park consisting of attractions for children.

Out of what exceptional glass did you drink?

Beer in movies

Beer has been in famous and less famous movies for years. Some movies are all about beer and some cameos have a more commercial intention. More about it in this article.

When someone drinks a beer in a movie or in a television show, it doesn’t always come from ascript writer. An agressive campaign from a brewery could be the source. And when a deal canbe made with a producer then it is a good deal. An audience of millions that could be teased and leaving the theatre with your brand in mind. But will it stick? It remains a gamble of course, but in a lot of cases a commercial is one too. It can not always be proved that a consumer is going to buy the product simply because it is shown to him or her.

Recently an episode of the American show E.R. was on television again.

What may I bring you?
Spring water would be fine.

And you, ma’am?
What kind of beers do you have?

Heineken, Grolsch or Amstel Light.
Just make that another spring water.

Watching this scene you can tell the named brands weren’t involved in creating it.

Of course, for decades product placement is an essential supporting act in movies and the studios extend their not too small budget wit hit. Naturally, the risk of adding beer to a scene could look forced. But they will try it anyway. Although we associate James Bond with wodka-martini, he’s on beer for a while now. Heineken beer, to be precise. But, when Tomorrow NeverDies premiered in 1997 the audience saw the secret agent only hitting a few barrels with his motorbike. When there is Heineken in a Bond movie then there was a huge deal being closed, scaling up to 50 million dollars. The brand is visible and the star is to be seen in a few commercials. The brewing company benefits from showing a known face with his beer: everybody knows James Bond.

In films komt natuurlijk al decennialang product placement voor en de filmstudio’s breiden hiermee hun al niet te klein budget mee uit. Het risico is natuurlijk dat de toevoeging van bier in een scéne geforceerd overkomt. En toch blijft men het proberen. Hoewel we James Bond doorgaans associëren met wodka-martini, is hij al een lange tijd aan het bier. Heineken bier om precies te zijn. Echter, toen Tomorrow Never Dies in 1997 in première ging zag het publiek de geheim agent enkel tegen een paar vaten van het merk rijden. Als in een James Bondfilm Heineken wordt gedronken, dan is daar een enorme deal aan voorafgegaan, te denken valt aan bedragen tussen de 50 en 60 miljoen euro per film. Het merk is te zien en de hoofdrolspeler is in een aantal commercials te zien. De brouwer is erbij gebaat een bekend gezicht bij zijn bier te laten zien: iedereen kent James Bond.

Only just in 2012 we saw 007 downing a Heineken, but the world was in a stir when it was announced. ,,Do not touch James Bond and he shouldn’t be doing such things,” was the overall response. It was a storm in a teacup. In the mentioned movie, Skyfall, the spy isn’t ordering in smoking a beer at the bar. No, he sips from a bottle at a moment when he has hadit. Fine then. Nobody complained after that.

There are movies with the plot all about drinking beer. Not a few special ones in beautiful glasses, like in In Bruges. It’s about student parties, games or alcoholic orgies. Strange Brew, Old School, Beerfest, Animal House and Drinking Buddies come to mind. The happiness marches towards you and you want to run to the fridge. It didn’t take an ad campaign from one particular brand to make you do that. ?

Which movies are you thinking of reading this article

Featured beer store #1

The very first featured beer store is Beer Lokaal. This atmospheric store in the center of Breda is a mecca for the true beer lover.

Name: Bier Lokaal Breda
Owner: Hans Vermeulen
Founded: June 1st, 2018
Address: Boschstraat 150, Breda
Website: www.bier-lokaal.nl

Where does the name Bier Lokaal come from?

The name is two-folded. In Dutch, lokaal means both local as space or room. This space is in fact a room full of beer. Another part of the concept is me trying to sell as much (local) beers from Breda beer as possible.

Why a beer store?

Very simple. The craft beer product has been my passion for at least 15/16 years. There are so many differences in flavor, experience and design. Though there are not many different styles, every beer is just a little bit different. You keep tasting new things and that still brings a lot of pleasure. With this store I can convey my passion very well.

Who are your customers?

In terms of customers you can say that there is a divide. On the one hand it’s people who are looking for local beer. These customers often give it away as a regular or promotional gift. On the other hand, it’s the enthusiasts who are looking for the special things. The craft scene, beer geeks, whatever you want to call it. The sometimes come to me like: “Hans, beer X will be on the market next month. Can we buy it from you?”. That of course, is very cool. Because of my ever growing network of suppliers en importers I can get the craziest beers sometimes. If necessary, I will collect it myself or have it brought here by a transporter.

Many of the beers that do well for the beer geeks are the IPAs, imperial souls, barrel aged, limited editions and collaborations. As long as it’s unique, special or intense, there’s market. With this I’m fairly well in a niche market. It sometimes costs a little more but it’s really worth it. These are really top-notch products.

Where are your customers from?

Mostly locals from Breda. But I notice that more and more Belgians come to Bier Lokaal and keep coming back. They do indicate that the range in beer shops differs a lot between Belgium and the Netherlands. Belgians are increasingly open to extreme and unusual beers that are easier to find here than in Belgium. In Belgium, they are more likely to sell doubles and triples.

Bier Lokaal also sells billboards, besides beers.

What trends do you see in beer sales?

More and more cans. Canning is solid growing and I expect this to continue for a while. Of course this also has its advantages. There is hardly any air and light, which are the natural enemies of beer. Tin-plate is directly suitable for all styles of beer. It sometimes feels a bit strange to serve a barrel aged or imperial stout from a can. I’m curious to see what aging in a can will do in relation to a bottle.

Another nice trend that I see is that the more acidic beers are becoming increasingly popular. Not only the sturdy and dry old gueuses but also the more accessible ones such as Beriner Weissner. I think this wil further continue in 2020.

What does your product range look like?

As diverse as possible. I want to be able to sell anything that is interesting and delicious. I am not committed to one supplier or importer. I look out for anything that’s interesting for my customers. Listening very well to your customers is very important. If you do so, you always know what to buy. Just after I started I had 280 different beers and I slowly grew to 500 beers. Later, I brought this number down again because more does not always mean better.

I’m changing products really fast and my customers appreciate this a lot. Of course I also change products within different seasons.

What’s your personal favorite?

Would it be silly if I name my own brewery Witte Anker? I am really fan of Frau Gruber at the moment. These are genuinely good IPAs. Wylam from Newcastle is also one of the outside category. If you would ask about my favorite style, it would certainly be the saison. A bit of a stranger in our midst that people sometimes find difficult to place. In particular, you should definitely try the Witte Anker saison!

Hans with the beer of his own brewery: Witte Anker.

Extraordinary beers #2

The following beer is very rare. Mainly due to the fact that the beer was never officially released. We are talking about the Kapittel Wood Experience. Read on to find out more about this special stuff.

Name beer: Kapittel Wood Experience
Brewery: Het Sas te Boezinge en Kapittel
Year: 2017
Percentage: 6%
Style: Blend van Oud-Bruin en Dubbel
Country of origin: België

A bottle of Kapittel Wood Experience without label.

What makes this beer special?

Only 1000 bottles (75cl) are produced. The beer was given to various festival visitors. They were very curious for the responses. We found this bottle at beer collector Huub van Dijk. Back then, he managed to gather 3 bottles at a beer festival. However, the beer has never been officially released.

What does it taste like?

This we can explain best by describing how it was made. It’s a mixture of Paulus Oud Bruin and Kapittel Pater. This mixture of beers was distributed in 5 different barrels, namely Sherry, Porto, Armagnac, Cognac and Bourbon. After the barrel-aging process, the barrels were mixed again. Perhaps the extensive process is also the reason it was never released.

Where was the beer sold?

As mentioned before, this beer was never released. Therefore, the labels are missing on the bottles that you can find. The beer is very well suited for long storage. And if you know how to find one, you can still drink it. Unfortunately, the chances of finding one are very small.

What is the actual value?

Honestly, we have absolutely no clue. This is mainly because there is no available data from recent sales. In the this case it will most likely be what it’s worth for someone.

Duvel fun fact

In many cases, beer and humor go hand in hand. Therefore, the label is used by many breweries as a creative way to show that they also have a sense of humor in addition to brewing a nice beer.

To spot the difference you have to pay close attention as the difference is minimal. At the top of the label is the coat of arms shown of Brouwerij Moortgat. On the special version of the label, the coat of arms has been replaced by a devil and an angel.

The deviant Duvel label works very well with fans and collectors. They wonder every time when ordering a bottle of Duvel; will I get a special one?

As editors we are always curious about other stories about special beer labels. Do you have a tip for us? Please email us at editor@beerndx.com. Of course, good tips are rewarded!

The collector and his beer #1

The very first collector we visit is Jaap Mulders (35) from Wouw, The Netherlands. Besides being a beer enthusiast, Jaap also been collecting extraordinary beers for a few years. He takes us into his personal beer cellar.

Jaap Mulders (35) from Wouw, The Netherlands.

Collection size:
80 bottles of 75 cl
72 bottles of 30 cl

Hi Jaap, when did you start collecting beer?

As a present for my 30th birthday, my friend gave me a bottle of Gouden Carolus Cuvee van de Keizer blue. He told me I had to store this beer for at least 10 years to be at its best. I figured storing only one bottle would make no sense, so I started buying more.

*The Gouden Carolus Cuvee van de Keizer*

Which style you think is best suited for storing?

Quadrupels and barleywines for sure, these beer become a lot smoother in time. Recently I started drinking and storing gueuze beers. This still offers a whole new world to explore.

What do you prefer to add to your collection?

I like to go to specialized liquor stores to look at the big bottles to see if there’s something that appeals to me. I’m always looking out for bottles I think that will increase in value in time. However, a Duvel Barrel Aged for 25 euros per bottle is a little too expensive for me. At this moment, a big bottle of La Trappe Quadrupel from 2015 is also worth 25 euros and I’d rather drink this.

Which bottle in your collection are you most proud of? Why this one?

Not particularly one bottle. Every volumes of Cuvee van de Keizer blue since 2013. Since 2017 I have been buying a box for every volume. This way I also have something to drink in the meantime while my beers are increasing in value.

Which beer is on your wishlist?

The St. Bernardus Oak Aged is definitely on top of my list. At the time I thought it was expensive at 9 euros. Now I can really punch myself in the face for this.