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| Brewery 3 fountains to stop brewing. | ||
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Moderators: Andy, Ken, Hayduke, eManu
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| eManu |
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Central Europe and Belgium Moderator   Registered Member #93 Joined: Sun Jan 04 2009, 10:57AMCity & State: Brussels Posts: 1535 Thanked 226 times in 188 posts | Sad news, 3 Fonteinen to Stop Brewing, Keep Blending, Start Distilling. -Website Link-   Armand Debelder, is sleeping better these days, thanks in part to a difficult decision: "I'm not brewing anymore. That's definite." Thus the master brewer as concluded a decade of making his own lambic at 3 Fonteinen. The Debelders have been blending the region's lambics to make fine geuzes in Beersel since 1953. Armand started brewing his own lambic in 1999, adding it to the blends that also included Boon, Girardin and Lindeman's. He put his own artful stamp on the beers but also added substantial workload. Then the events of May 16, 2009 — which Armand simply calls "the Catastrophe" — played the role of fate. That's when about 100,000 bottles of Drie Fonteinen geuze and other lambics perished thanks to a busted thermostat. It was a severe blow to the business and one that had Armand thinking of quitting more than once. Things looked bleak, but various friends offered support and Armand had a few ideas up his sleeve. One of them, to distill the ruined geuze into an eau de vie, came to fruition. Made at a distillery in Hainaut, the Spirit'Armand is 40% strength, clear as water, and dangerously smooth. The drink launched in October and by mid-December Armand and wife Lydie had already sold 3,000 bottles — half the stock. The liquor has helped the business pay its debts. The decision to stop brewing came down to age and economics. Armand is 58 years old and brewing meant long, exerting days. To continue he also would have needed a new brewing kit. However, "the cost of the Catastrophe was the cost of a new brewery," he said. So Drie Fonteinen was a blendery before Debelder started brewing his own lambic in 1999, and it remains a blendery after 2009. It may also become a distillery soon. And there is every reason for lambic lovers to continue associating that name with quality. | ||
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| Andy |
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Founder and President  Registered Member #1 Joined: Mon Mar 10 2008, 08:14AMCity & State: New Orleans, Louisiana Posts: 5857 Thanked 424 times in 397 posts | That is really sad news eManu, thanks for the story. | ||
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| Beer-Pedia |
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Southern Europe Moderator & Beer News Specialist Registered Member #145 Joined: Sat Sep 19 2009, 02:48AMCity & State: Thessaloniki, Greece Posts: 3247 Thanked 578 times in 460 posts | So, no more brewing from 3 fontainen? | ||
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| Ken |
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Vice President & European Beer Consultant - Never forget, never forgive! (Oslo and Utøya 22/7-2011)  Registered Member #2 Joined: Mon Mar 10 2008, 10:10AMCity & State: Copenhagen, Denmark Posts: 4909 Thanked 298 times in 288 posts | Sad news..  -Ken | ||
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