• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Advertise
  • About Craft Brewing Business

Craft Brewing Business

Professional Insight, Unfiltered

Craft Brewing Business Craft Brewing Business
  • News
  • Business & Marketing
  • Packaging & Distribution
  • Equipment & Systems
  • Ingredients & Supplies
  • Webinars & White Papers
  • News
  • Business & Marketing
  • Ingredients & Supplies
  • Packaging & Distribution
  • Equipment
  • Webinars & White Papers
  • COVID-19

New Belgium plans to double the size of its foeder forest, wood-aged beer

November 22, 2013Keith Gribbins

New Belgium Wood Beer Program
The craft brewing word of the day is “foeder.” It’s a Dutch word roughly translated as “giant oak barrel.” The folks at New Belgium Brewing use foeder to describe its giant wooden aging vessels (pictured).

New Belgium Brewing Co. is about to double down on its wood beer capacity with the addition of 32 new French Oak foeders (large wooden casks for conditioning sour beer) that will bring its total foeder count to 64. Space has been allocated, reinforced concrete flooring has been poured and the first 12 foeders will be put in place this week. The expansion will allow New Belgium to effectively double its wood beer production in coming years. New Belgium first began making wood-aged sour beers in the form of the award-winning La Folie in 1998 when Brewmaster Peter Bouckaert joined the brewery. Bouckaert formerly brewed at Rodenbach in Belgium, home of the Flanders style, Rodenbach Red.

“With this expansion, we’ll get so close to that feeling I had the first time I walked through the forest of foeders at Rodenbach,” said New Belgium’s Wood Cellar Manager/Blender Lauren Salazar. “Just knowing they’re all full of souring beer — all of them — is exciting. It’s a destination. Something you have to experience first-hand.”

New Belgium has been experimenting with lighter and blended sour beers through its Lips of Faith program since 2003. The brewery will use this expansion to bring Lips of Faith offerings like Tart Lychee and Eric’s Ale into year round production by 2015. The newest set of oak foeders are 130 hectoliters each and come from Sterling vineyards in California. After the initial installation of 12 in November, 20 more foeders will be placed in December. Once rehydration is complete, sour beer from the current wood cellar will be used to inoculate the barrels with resident souring bacteria and wild yeasts. The beer will then age up to two years before it is blended.

On Feb. 1, 2014, New Belgium will hold its second annual Lost in the Woods party where guests can mingle and experience the wonders of wood beer first hand. Check back in mid-December for details at www.newbelgium.com.

GEA LAUTERSTAR New Belgium
Watch Dick Cantwell brew his first post-Elysian beer with New Belgium (for Ales for ALS)
New Belgium logo
New Belgium Brewing re-releasing Lips of Faith favorite
New Belgium Pumpkick Ale
New Belgium Brewing ramps up for fall with Pumpkick Ale
Yuzu_22oz_Bottle_Product_Shot
New Belgium’s newest Lips of Faith and Hop Kitchen releases available

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Nathan Stano says

    November 22, 2013 at 11:29 pm

    Nathan Stano liked this on Facebook.

    Log in to Reply
  2. EricForsch says

    November 22, 2013 at 5:16 pm

    Hooray more Sour Beer from New Belgium http://t.co/v2mibD4K9W

    Log in to Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Primary Sidebar

Latest News

  • Shot and a beer: Bulleit Frontier Whiskey and Stone Brewing announce partnership
  • Lone Tree Brewing is a brewery that gives back
  • Local Time Brewing is set to open in Holly Springs, NC, in 2023
  • Olde Mecklenburg Brewery has a newe look

Sign up for our newsletter

unsubscribe from list

Most Popular Today

Recent Features

  • madtree-HangerCheers to 10 Years: MadTree Brewing keeps growing and giving a f#ck
    February 7, 2023
  • Michigan’s Short’s Brewing down 10% overall vs. 2021, but its Local’s Light lager is up 10%+
    February 6, 2023
  • Arizona Wilderness BrewingCheers to 10 Years: We should all strive to be Arizona Wilderness Brewing Co.
    February 2, 2023
  • Watch famed gonzo illustrator Ralph Steadman discuss his Flying Dog beer labels
    February 2, 2023
  • Michigan’s Dog Star Hops wins Chinook Cup for second year in a row
    February 1, 2023
  • fort point both-ciders-3Fort Point Beer debuts cider line, explains why ciders instead of seltzers
    January 31, 2023

Footer

  • Email Newsletter Sign Up
  • About Craft Brewing Business
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise on Craft Brewing Business
  • Media Kit Download
  • Privacy and Terms

© 2023 · CBB Media LLC