Brouwerij Moortgat Duvel (Belgium)

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Brouwerij Moortgat Duvel (Belgium)

Product Story

The classic Duvel Belgian Strong Golden Ale is among the world’s elite beers. Duvel gets its iconic golden color from barley germinated for five days in the malt house and slowly kilned to create the complex flavors and color. Duvel obtains its typical bitterness by adding various varieties of aromatic Slovenian and Czech hops (Saaz-Saaz & Styrian Golding). It ferments for the first time in tanks with its original yeast strain selected by Albert Moortgat himself in the 1920’s from a Scottish brewery. After maturing in storage tanks in which the beer is cooled down to -2°C, prior to bottling. With the addition of extra sugars and yeast, the beer ferments again in the bottle in warm cellars (24°C) for two weeks. The beer is then moved to cold cellars, where it continues to mature and stabilize for a further six weeks. The result is simply sublime.

Brand Story

Duvel was founded by Jan-Leonard Moortgat and his two sons Albert and Victor in 1871 — they celebrated 150 years of operation in 2021. In their first years of operation the Brewery Moortgat was one of the over 3,000 breweries operating in Belgium. The First World War brought Belgium into contact with England and specifically English ales, which were quite popular at the time. Inspired by the success of English ales, Albert decided to create a special beer based on the English model — this led to Albert obtaining a special yeast strain from a famous Scottish brewery. This yeast strain is used to this day and it is one of the signature flavors and aromatics of the great Duvel beers.

Tasting Note

Bright pale golden-yellow color with a thick, creamy white head. The aromatics are incredibly perfumed with sweet, robust malt and complex hop notes offering floral and citrus notes with subtle hints of earth and herbs. The palate echoes the nose delivering a rich and complex malt-driven entry that transitions to a fruity yet dry and refreshing bitter accent on the finish. Full-bodied with a perfect balance of malt, bitterness, and acidity.