De Klep: hop in Venlo

Where innovation meets tradition.

In Venlo, tradition and innovation come together in De Klep brewery's beers. This suits us perfectly and is one of the many reasons why we love working with De Klep, because innovation and tradition also go hand in hand at Hollands Hophuis.

At our hop growers, hops are anchored in their DNA, which has been the case for generations. In the regions where our hop farms are located, hops are a tradition that is reflected in buildings, for example. It makes Europe the cradle of hop growing.

Hops in the stucco - Germany

We are also constantly innovating together with our growers. From developing new hop varieties or working on sustainable cultivation to processing a high-quality end product, we never stop developing.

Brewery De Klep brews with both our traditional hop varieties and the very latest: this is where tradition and innovation come together. We supply hops for several beers, but tradition and innovation are best seen in De Klep's Altbier and NEIPA.

De Klep’s Brewery

Altbier

The love for Alt is well established at Hollands Hophuis. We even recently went on a study trip to the city that is always mentioned in one breath with this style of beer: Düsseldorf. We visited the city breweries of Schumacher, Füchschen, Uerige and Schlüssel and enjoyed fresh Alt. Beer in which traditional hops -with their slightly spicy, floral aromas and bitterness- are complementary in the interaction with malt.

Tradition: De Klep 'Ôzze' Alt

At brewery De Klep, we discover that Alt is not only tradition in Düsseldorf. "Most drunk beer in Venlo for centuries was alt-type beer. This type of beer is still found today mainly in the geographical triangle Düsseldorf-Münster-Venlo. Mainly in the Lower Rhine region, in other words. However in Venlo, Altbier appears in numerous documents in the archives and is also invariably listed among the various types of beer on advertisements from earlier times." We read on De Klep's website.

When it came to the 'Ôzze' Alt, De Klep did not take any chances. Given the roots of this beer type in Venlo, it should be a traditional Alt, true to the beer style. Head brewer and co-founder Roy fully agrees, whereby he also has a strong view on how to make such a beer distinctive. Not entirely surprisingly, that's in the hops: "In our Alt, we build up the hop bitterness in layers. We start with Merkur, which is high in its alpha and gives a clean bitterness without being harsh. We complement that with Perle, a nice traditional German hop. Later we add Hallertau Mittelfrüh and Tradition, partially for bitterness, but also for aroma. Finally, in the whirlpool, we add Saaz for aroma."

The result is as Roy imagined. Truly an Altbier, in which the malt has the lead role, but that layering is in there beautifully. The two Hallertau hops give a nice spicy layer and the Saaz makes it almost floral. Truly an Alt in which the hops subtly make the difference.

Innovation: De Klep 'Don't mention the Germans' NEIPA

In a New England IPA, the water, grains and yeast play an important role. All of this is in service of letting the hops shine to their full potential. De Klep chooses our fruitiest German hops for this beer, and you can taste it! Roy: "I had been wandering around for a long time with the idea of brewing a NEIPA using only German hops. Given the focus on European hops, the link with Hollands Hophuis was quickly made. With our NEIPA, we show that we don't just brew traditional beer styles. With 1 foot in history -the tradition-, and with 1 foot in the present."

The beer pours hazy and the first thing you notice is the tropical aroma, which is complemented by citrus and a slightly spicy touch. Juicy and flavourful, exactly how you expect a NEIPA to be. "For our NEIPA, we use Tango, Ariana and Hüll Melon in the dry hop. These also go into the whirlpool, along with Hallertau Blanc. During the brewing itself, no hops go in." Despite this, there is definitely some bitterness in the finish. Roy continues: "The bitterness does make it really taste like beer. We aim for a fruity flavour bomb, in which the beer-like character is retained." The result is a NEIPA, not a copy-paste version, but more importantly one with a unique character.

Experience brewery De Klep yourself?

Venlo, with its monumental buildings from Roman times, cosy city centre and various museums, has a lot to offer. Brewery De Klep is located in Foodhal MOUT in the Julianapark. The brewery-affiliated café De Klep is less than a 5-minute walk away. And both a stone's throw from Venlo train station. Ideal for an original city trip!

All info on brewery De Klep, the beers and their availability can be found on their website.