Duvel Moortgat Brewery
A Flemish family brewery known for its devilish strong pale ale.
Duvel Moortgat Brewery, also known as Brouwerij Duvel Moortgat, is a Flemish brewery controlled by the Moortgat family. It was founded in 1871 in Antwerp Province, Belgium. The brewery’s flagship beer is Duvel, a strong golden pale ale exported to over forty countries. The name comes from a Brabantian, Ghent, and Antwerp dialect word for devil (standard Dutch: duivel). Other well-known beers from the brewery include Maredsous and Vedett.
The brewery was started by Jan-Leonard Moortgat, who came from a family of brewers in Steenhuffel, Belgium. In the 1950s, the third generation of the family took over. During financial struggles in the early 1970s, Moortgat began bottling and distributing Danish Tuborg beer. That arrangement ended in the early 1980s, but it saved the brewery and helped build large distribution networks for Duvel. In June 1999, Duvel Moortgat NV went public on Euronext Brussels.
Duvel Moortgat was an early investor in Brewery Ommegang, a Belgian-influenced craft brewery founded in Cooperstown, New York, in 1997. The founders, Wendy Littlefield and Don Feinberg, had been importing Duvel products since 1982. In 2003, the Belgian company took full control of Ommegang and set up Duvel USA to handle Ommegang, Duvel Moortgat brands, and others. In 2001, Duvel bought 50% of Czech brewery Bernard. In 2006, it bought fellow Belgian brewery Brasserie d’Achouffe. In June 2008, it bought Liefmans Brewery of Oudenaarde, known for fruit beers. In 2010, Duvel Moortgat acquired all shares of De Koninck Brewery in Antwerp. In 2014, it bought Boulevard Brewing Company in Kansas City, Missouri. In July 2015, it announced the purchase of Firestone Walker Brewing Company in Paso Robles, California. In September 2015, it bought an undisclosed stake in Brouwerij ’t IJ in Amsterdam. In 2016, it bought 35% of Birrificio del Ducato near Parma, Italy, increasing that stake to 70% in 2018.
Duvel was originally called Victory Ale, named to mark the end of World War I. In the 1920s, a drinker called it “nen echten duvel” (a real devil), likely due to its 8.5% ABV, and the name changed to Duvel. It is brewed with Pilsner malt and dextrose, hopped with Saaz and Styrian Goldings, and uses yeast from a Scottish culture bought by Albert Moortgat after World War I.
Quick Facts
- Founded
- 1871
- Hq Location City
- Breendonk
- Hq Location Country
- Belgium
- Industry
- Brewing
- Products
- Beer
- Production
- 1,400,000 hl (2015)
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The brewery Moortgat was founded in 1871 by Jan-Leonard Moortgat, who was descended from a family of brewers that lived in Steenhuffel, Belgium. In the 1950s, the third generation of Moortgats took control of the brewery. In the early 1970s, when the company was struggling financially, Moortgat bottled and distributed the Danish beer Tuborg. The two companies ended this arrangement in the early 1980s, but it saved the brewery, which by then had managed to set up massive distribution channels for their flagship beer, Duvel.
To commemorate the end of World War I, the Moortgats named their main beer Victory Ale. In the 1920s, an avid drinker described the beer as 'nen echten duvel' (a real devil in Brabantian Dutch) – perhaps in reference to its formidable alcohol content (8.5% ABV) – and the name was changed to Duvel. Duvel is brewed with Pilsner malt and dextrose, hopped with Saaz hops and Styrian Goldings, and the yeast still stems from the original culture of Scottish yeast bought by Albert Moortgat during a business tour of the U.K. just after World War I.
Reader's Guide
Duvel Moortgat Brewery has grown from a family operation into a significant international brewing group through strategic acquisitions and partnerships. In 1997, it was an original investor in Brewery Ommegang in Cooperstown, New York, taking full control in 2003 and setting up Duvel USA. The brewery acquired 50% of Czech brewery Bernard in 2001, bought fellow Belgian brewery Brasserie d'Achouffe in 2006, Liefmans Brewery in 2008, and De Koninck Brewery in 2010. International expansion continued with Boulevard Brewing Company in Kansas City in 2014, Firestone Walker Brewing Company in California in 2015, a stake in Brouwerij 't IJ in Amsterdam in 2015, and a majority stake in Birrificio del Ducato in Italy by 2018. The flagship Duvel has spawned limited-edition variants like Duvel Tripel Hop, first released in 2007 with Amarillo hops, and subsequent editions using Citra, Sorachi Ace, Mosaic, Equinox, and HBC 291. In 2016, the Citra edition became a permanent addition after a public vote. The brewery also produces the Maredsous line of abbey beers under license from Maredsous Abbey, and the Vedett pilsener, relaunched in 2003 as a luxury lager.
Did You Know?
- Duvel is Brabantian, Ghent and Antwerp dialect for devil; the standard Dutch word is duivel.
- The yeast used in Duvel stems from a Scottish yeast culture bought by Albert Moortgat after World War I.
- In 2010, a second edition of Duvel Tripel Hop was brewed after a Facebook group reached 10,000 members.
- Duvel Moortgat acquired Boulevard Brewing Company in Kansas City, Missouri in 2014.
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