Every St-Feuillien beer is the fruit of a rigorous process which has been perfected over the generations. From the selection of the raw materials to fermentation in the bottle, nothing is left to chance. Both traditional and exacting, this know-how involves 12 key stages, each carefully designed to bring out all the aromatic richness and finesse of our brews. This is how the unique signature style of St-Feuillien beers is created, day after day.
Brewing the St-Feuillien way: 12 steps to create an exceptional Belgian beer
1 – Selecting and crushing the grain
It all starts with the malt, a product of barley, which is carefully selected for its quality. It is crushed before use to produce a fine “grist”, which will help to extract all the sugars and flavour during the following steps.
2 – Mashing: infusion and conversion
The grist is then mixed with water preheated to 63°C in a mash tun. This mixture, known as mash, is heated to different temperatures to allow the natural enzymes in the malt to convert the starch into fermentable sugars. This process, known as saccharification, is essential for obtaining the sugars needed for fermentation.
3 – Filtering and rinsing
Once the sugars have been extracted, the mash is filtered to separate the solid parts (spent grain) from the sweet liquid, now known as wort.
The spent grain is then rinsed with hot water to extract as much residual sugar as possible. This nutrient-rich spent grain never goes to waste at St-Feuillien: it is all used for cattle feed.
4 – Boiling and adding hops
The filtered wort is brought to the boil. During this step, the hops are added, giving the beer its characteristic bitterness and unique aromas that enrich its flavour profile. Depending on the recipe, spices can be added at the end of the boiling process to further enrich the flavour profile.
5 – Clarifying and cooling
When the wort has been boiled, it is transferred to a special tank, the whirlpool, where the solid hop residue and coagulated proteins (known as trub) in suspension are removed by decanting. The liquid is then rapidly cooled using a heat exchanger, a crucial process for preserving its qualities.
6 – Fermenting
A specific strain of yeast, used by the brewery for many generations, is added to the cooled wort. This converts sugars into alcohol and carbon dioxide and also has a significant influence on the beer’s sensory characteristics. The fermentation process takes between 4 and 5 days at a temperature of between 22°C and 25°C.
7 – Tanking
Once fermentation is complete, the beer is cooled and centrifuged to remove excess yeast. Yeast residue is recovered and used as a feed supplement for livestock.
8 – Ageing
The beer then enters the ageing phase, maturing slowly at 0°C to develop all its finesse. During this period, it reaches the perfect level of bitterness, forms a stable head and is clarified through sedimentation. At this stage, we may also add hop flowers so they can release their aromas in a cold extraction process. This technique, known as “dry hopping”, accentuates the beer’s fresh, fruity and floral character.
9 – Clarifying
At the end of the ageing process, the beer is clarified in a centrifuge to obtain the desired clarity as dictated by the recipe. The last remaining yeast cells are removed during this stage.
10 – Tank storage
Before the beer is packaged, it is stored in filtered beer tanks to enable the laboratory to validate its quality through analysis and tasting.
11 – Bottling
After ageing, the filtered beer is bottled. A small amount of sugar and fresh yeast is added before the bottles are sealed, triggering a second fermentation.
12 – Secondary fermentation in the bottle
The beer is then left to rest in warm cellars for two weeks. This allows the yeast to ferment the added sugar, producing the carbon dioxide that gives the beer its fizz. It’s then ready to be enjoyed.
