Yeast

Many Belgian Beers are refermented in the bottle, for example our Augustijn, Bornem, Piraat, Gulden Draak, Flaxhead and Wooden Head. This means that the brewer adds yeast in the bottle during the bottling process. Then, the bottle is stored in a warm dark place for about 3 weeks, to allow a second fermentation of the beer. The yeast consumes all the oxygen that came in the bottle during the bottling. It seals the bottle completely and creates a stable environment. It is a unique, ancient, all natural method to conserve the beer for a long time without pasteurization or sterilization. In fact, because the beer and the yeast stay alive in the bottle, the taste of the beer evolves over time. A 10 year old bottle tastes different from a 5 year old bottle and from a 1 year old bottle. Bottle fermentation is one of the secrets why Belgian beers are so rich in taste and aroma. The home brewers try to catch the yeast and try to cultivate it to use in their own brews. Just for them to know: the yeast, used for the refermentation in the bottle, is not the same yeast, used for the primary fermentation.

The second fermentation yeast sits on the bottom of the bottle or may float around in the beer when the bottle is shaken. Brewers-yeast is very healthy. It is sold in every health-shop in plastic pots for a lot of money. Brewers-yeast is a whole complex of vitamin B. You can see the yeast in the beer but you can never feel it. It is so soft. Sometimes you see it in little chunks floating around. It always makes your beer more cloudy when you pour it in your glass. Young mothers in Belgium like to drink this strong type of refermented beers, because it gives them strength, a good mood and it keeps their nursing babies quiet.

(Newsletter January 1996)