Brouwerij Kestemont enters the American Market
Below is an article written by Belgian Beer expert, Chuck Cook. In this post, he breaks the news that Brouwerij Kestemont had entered into the lambic world and is now available in the United States. This story is close to my heart for several reasons: 1) I love lambic beers and their history. I love them so much that I made a documentary on the subject 2) I am quoted in the article, as I am the one who arranged for their importing into the United States. Wim and everybody at Kestemont are lovely people and the beer is great. I look forward to seeing their company and beer mature, and wish them the best of luck.
Below is a snippet of the article:
Belgian’s beer world has yet another new lambic producer, and this one is located on a very historic and beautiful lambic brewing heritage site. Brouwerij Kestemont opened on the same grounds as the old Brouwerij Goossens in the village of Sint Gertrudis-Pede (Schepdaal) which is part of Dilbeek, in 2019. Kestemont started as a lambic blendery, and a brewery was added in 2021, and they began brewing in March of that year. The beers are so new, in lambic terms, that Kestemont just released their first brews to the public in September 2022.
The site was purchased by the Kestemont family in 2016, hence the name of the new brewery. The lambic brewing, barrel aging, and blending is done inside an old barn that dates to the 18th century. It is adjacent to the main house, and an old cobbled courtyard.
The Goossens site was designated as a protected monument in May 2017, and then as an established architectural heritage site in August 2021. The Goossens breweries had already had a protected status since September 2009. The site is actually listed as “Farm brewery with Goossens malthouse” by the Flemish government.
Co-owner and Business Manager Wim Krieckemans had this to say: “Our 2019 and 2020 batches were brewed at Brouwerij Den Herberg in Buizingen. The wort sat in their coolship overnight, and the next day, it was transferred to our site and pumped into oak barrels for aging.”
If you would like to read more about Brouwerij Kestemont, follow this link to Chuck Cook’s article.
– KB