Discover Benelux | Culture | Top Experience in Antwerp
DE KONINCK EXPERIENCE The beating heart of the De Koninck complex is, of course, its brewery. Almost 80 per cent of the building is still used to brew their three marvellous beers. “Besides our classic ‘bolleke’ De Koninck, we also brew Tripel d’Anvers and Wild Jo,” says brewmaster Sven Dekleermaeker. “Tripel d’Anvers is our popular triple: a typically Belgian strong blond. Wild Jo is the result of an experiment of ours. Although it isn’t very strong, it provides an explosion of flavour. And, as it keeps yeasting in the bottle, its flavour changes over time.” To allow beer lovers a glimpse behind the scenes of the brewery, De Koninck created a modern and interactive experience centre amidst its walls. The tour takes you from one room to the next, where interactive screens and fun activities tell you how De Koninck became a synonym for Antwerp, why every beer needs its proper glass and what the road from the hop fields to your ‘bolleke’ looks like. As a magnum opus, you enter a bridge above the brewery from where you can gaze at the beer in the making. “You can even pour your proper draught beer here, just to experience how hard it is.”
Photo: De Koninck
84 | Issue 68 | August 2019
In the De Koninck Bar downstairs, you can try all beers De Koninck and Duvel Moortgat brew and pick the brains of the beer sommeliers. When craving for something special, you can exclusively taste some experimental brews, which De Koninck bottles on a minuscule scale. “Yet, most exclusive is our unfiltered ‘bolleke’ De Koninck. Only here, we serve this ‘unfinished’ beer straight from the brewing tank. At this stage, the beer has yet to pass the final stages of the brewing process and is still cloudy.” And you can even take it home with you. In the De Koninck Shop, you can purchase yourself plenty of nice merchandise, including a crowler: an empty can, available from one litre upwards. At the bar, they fill it up with the beer of your preference and seal it. This way, you can take these exclusive brews back home, to share them with friends (or to enjoy them all by yourself).
Web: www.dekoninck.be
Photo: De Koninck
Photo: De Koninck
Photo: De Koninck