Beers like Oerbier, Arabier, and Stille Nacht may not be quite as familiar to today’s avid beer consumer, but for decades the beers have been staples of the menus and cellars of more adventurous beer bars the world over. De Dolle Brouwers got their start in 1980, at the front of a new wave of Belgian brewers who rejected the cynical corner cutting that had come to define a significant portion of the brewing culture. Cofounder Kris Herteleer was committed to a more natural approach to brewing, using real malt, whole hops, healthy yeast, spring water, and the highly manual mechanical tools of the decades-old brewhouse they purchased in the village of Esen, just outside of Diksmuide.

Oerbier was, and still is, hard to classify. It limns the space between the overtly acid-forward oud bruin, and the the sweet and spicy Belgian dark strong ale, borrowing from both where and when it needs to. But this ambiguity fits Herteleer’s approach, as De Dolle is not concerned at all about adherence to styles—they’d much rather get you asking questions, than provide you with easy answers.

In this episode, recorded at the brewery as we sipped beers from their cellar more than 20 years old, Herteleer discusses:

switching from Rodenbach yeast in 2000 and the five year process of getting Oerbier back to its intended expression
the prevalence of coloring and backsweeting in 1970’s and 80’s Belgian beer
balancing acidity and sweetness in higher gravity beer
using a coolship, Baudelot cooler, open fermenters, Lactobacillus reactor, and finishing barrels to produce complex and flavorful beer that’s more than just “sour”
using relative high IBUs to limit Lactobacillus and Pediococcus activity in mixed culture fermentation
avoiding the crutch of spices in Belgian beer
barrel aging in wine barrels rather than spirits barrels to avoid “dead” barrels

And more.

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368: Kris Herteleer of De Dolle Brouwers Takes a Natural Approach to High Gravity Belgian Beer

Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine Podcast