The Dutch brewing group Heineken is serious about expanding the Alken brewery even further so that it can become the beating heart of its Belgian subsidiary Alken-Maes. Only recently, a new 4-million-euro bottling line was installed at the Alken brewery and now, Alken-Maes is announcing an investment of a further 3.7 million euros in what is known as a dry-hopping installation. This modification is necessary so that the company can soon start brewing India Pale Ale (IPA) style beers. 

“Right now we are in the final phase of testing to brew the beer Lagunitas India Pale Ale here in Alken for the Belgian, Dutch and French markets,” said master brewer Ellen Mertens of Alken-Maes. “This is an American IPA from California with an alcohol content of 6.2 percent that combines a refreshing citrus flavour with subtle notes of caramel.” 

Dry hopping 

Before that can become a reality, however, the special dry-hopping beer tank had to be installed. This colossus is six meters high and weighs six tonnes. This new beer tank is connected to a new centrifuge via a kilometre and a half of new pipes and tubes. “In most Belgian beers, hops are added at the beginning of the brewing process when the brewing mixture is boiled,” said Dieter Duchateau, the head of the brewing team. “The dry-hopping technique takes its name from the fact that the hops are added dry at a later stage, namely during the fermentation or maturation of the beer. During the process, the hops become wet, of course, but are not boiled. This extracts essential oils from the hops and releases even more hop aromas.” 

India Pale Ale 

So in the very near future, the company will be able to brew the American Lagunitas India Pale Ale in Alken, followed by the Dutch Brand IPA and the French Gallia. Non-alcoholic varieties will also be brewed in Alken. These new beers are all owned by Heineken. Three years ago, Alken already brought an international Heineken brand on board when it started producing Desperados. In Alken more than one year ago, the new Cristal XTRA was also produced for the very first time. 

Advance 

In addition to the ‘Limburg’ lager Cristal, which by the way is currently enjoying an upsurge in demand, the brewery in Alken also produces the lager Maes, Desperados and the speciality beers Grimbergen, Judas, Affligem and Hapkin. Alken is also the brewery where all Alken-Maes beers are bottled and where, for the most part, distribution departs. 

For the Alken brewery, all of this therefore means considerable growth. Three years ago, annual production at the site was still 1.46 million hectolitres, but today, it’s around 2 million. The Alken brewery employs just under 200 people. An increasing proportion of its production is earmarked for export.