PubsandBeer
De Molen (Brewery Tap)
Stephen Harris
Visits Details
22 Sep 2018 (Stephen Harris)
A rather belated addition of my beer list from this year’s Borefts beer festival. My eighth consecutive year at this festival (I see that I did not get around to writing up last years). It continues to go from strength to strength and is now a large and sold-out event. A bit blighted by rain this year. As in the past, I have merged two days of visits into one entry.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| AF Brew - Eat the Dust! DDH Mosaic | 8.00 |  | This St Petersburg brewery were the hit of this year’s festival and I only managed to get on beer before it all ran out. This is a murky golden hop-fest of the highest order. |
| Monyo - Two Headed Giant | 9.50 | | A wonderful, barrel-aged Imperial Stout with blackberry |
| De Molen - Hel & Verdoemenis | 12.20 |  | A barrel-aged and cherry-infused Imperial Stout. Slightly sour cherry. A very big beer indeed. |
| De Molen - Ali & Baba | 12.70 | | A barrel-aged Imperial Stout with sesame seed. Prominent red wine flavours. |
| De Molen - Batch #3000 Burgundy BA | 14.60 | | A Barley Wine aged in Burgundy barrels to celebrate de Molen’s 3,000th brew. |
| Basquery - Bederatzi +1 | 9.50 | | A dark beer flavoured with tonka beans; I particularly enjoyed this one. |
| Beerbliotek - Last Day Before Retirement | 7.50 | | An excellent IPA. |
| Beerbliotek - Shakes Fist Angrily | 9.50 | | Yum, a Black IPA. |
| Dogma (Sao Paulo) - Cafusa | 9.20 | | A very fine, strong Black IPA. |
| Urbana Cervejaria - Chocolate Hop | 7.00 | | Brazilian Black IPA. |
| Urbana Cervejaria - Feira da Fruta | 9.00 | | A very fruity Double IPA |
| de Natte Gijt - Oranje Stout | 7.30 | | Poured from a bottle. A flavoursome Stout with orange. |
| Brouwerij Kees! - Hazy Morning | 5.00 | | Dutch entry into the murky world of NEIPA. |
| Klostergården Håndbryggeri - IPA | 7.00 | | |
| Monyo - Afterparty | 5.60 | | My first beer of the festival and a great start. A Saison from Budapest, with cucumber and kaffir leaves. |
| North - Hit the North 2.0 Brut IPA | 7.50 | | Golden and very dry. |
| Poch’s Cervesa Artesana - Carquinyoli Imperial Stout | 10.20 | | A big, black, buiscuity Stout. |
| Põhjala Öö - Jõuluöö | 8.00 | | An Imperial Porter with chocolate, vanilla, oak and brandy flavours. |
| Sori Brewing - Ensemble Four: DDH Amarillo & Citra | 8.20 | | Murky NEIPA with some of the best hops around. |
| Sori Brewing - Ensemble Five: DDH Citra, Mosaic & Galaxy | 8.30 | | Another cracking NEIPA. |
| Sori Brewing - From Tallinn to Bodegraven | 10.50 | | Another whopping Imperial Stout. |
| Trilha Cervejaria - Faça Amor, Não Mande Audio | 8.00 | | An interesting beer name to put into Google Translate. It is a juicy DIPA. |
| Het Uiltje - Crybaby Blackberry | 2.60 | | A mouth-puckering blackberry Berliner Weisse. |
| Het Uiltje - City Zebra | 6.00 | | A NEIPA – everybody brews at least one these days. |
| Zagavar - Juicy Patrol | 8.00 | | This Moscow brewery’s obligatory NEIPA. |
| Beerbliotek - Mankini | 3.50 |  | Fruity and sour. |
| Borg Brugghus - Ulfur Nr. 3 | 5.90 | | An IPA. |
| Klostergården Håndbryggeri - Herbie | 5.00 | | A hop-free beer flavoured with a pot-pourri of Nordic herbs. |
| Reketye - 99 Hop Cones | 5.50 | | A relatively straightforward (for this festival) Blonde beer. |
24 Sep 2016 (Stephen Harris)
My annual visit to the Borefts Bier Festival. In the six years I have been coming here, this festival has grown from a small gathering of beer enthusiasts in a windmill and adjoining car park to a very large, all-ticket, sold out festival spreading throughout the adjoining industrial estate – matching the growth of the de Molen Brewery itself. It’s still great fun but not the same as it was at the start. As before, I have lumped two days visits together. It is again tempting just to rate everything as ‘exceptional’ but I have avoided that. I tried beer from all the breweries present with the exception of Cigar City whose beers sold out almost immediately.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alvinne - Mano Negra Cognac Barrel-aged | 10.00 | | Sublime. |
| Brouwerij Kees! - Barrel Project #8 | 12.50 | | Superb. Full of brandy tastes. A dark brown Barley Wine. |
| Närke Kulturbryggeri - Kaggen Stormaktsporter Borb’n & Hallon | 9.90 | | A black Stout/Porter, oak-aged and flavoured with raspberries. Fantastic. My friend declared it the best beer he had ever drunk. |
| Birra del Borgo - Hoppy Cat | 5.80 | | Dark and full of hops. A Black IPA I guess. |
| De Molen - A strong, German-style Kellerbier. | 8.50 | | A strong, German-style Kellerbier. |
| Bakunin - Ghost Town | 10.50 | | A fabulous, black, barrel-aged and slightly sour Imperial Stout from St Petersburg. |
| Bakunin - Salty Dog | 5.00 | | A dark, salty beer in the Leipzig tradition. |
| Bevog - Ond | 6.30 | | A smoked Porter. |
| BrewDog - Chili Hammer | 7.20 | | Mucho chili in this. |
| Cascade Brewing - Cranberry | 7.00 | | A refreshing, sour, fruit beer. |
| Dry & Bitter - Citra Pale Ale | 4.60 | | Great Citra tastes. |
| Brouwerij Kees! - Magic Rock Barrel-aged (Brew with Friends #1) | 13.00 | | A dark brown ‘Belgian Quadruple’ aged in calvados barrels. |
| La Pirata - Viakrucis | 6.00 | | An IPA from Spain. |
| La Pirata - Ay Carmela! | 9.20 | | A strong IPA. |
| Labietis - Lentenu Kāvējs (Tapeworm Slayer) | 7.20 | | A thick Black IPA. |
| Lervig - Norwegian Mauler | 7.90 | | A dry Stout flavoured with Earl Grey tea. |
| Oedipus - Kinderyoga B.A. | 11.00 | | A barrel-aged Imperial Stout. |
| Sahtipaja - Almost Same But More | 7.20 | | A hefty, strong IPA. |
| Esquelbecq - Etoile du Nord | 5.50 | | A very good, hoppy Saison. |
| Alvinne - Potpils | 5.50 | | A slightly odd beer, German in style but with a spicy Belgian yeast taste. |
| Birra del Borgo - Castagnale | 7.10 | | A chestnut-coloured Bock beer. Malty and sweetish. |
| Gänstaller - Zwickelpils | 5.10 | | A golden beer that tasted very sweet in comparison to everything else. |
| Omnipollo - Perikles | 4.30 | | A Pilsner-style beer. Drunk for light relief and tasting a bit ordinary alongside the strong beers. |
26 Sep 2015 (Stephen Harris)
My annual visit to the brilliant Borefts Bier Festival. Both the de Molen Brewery and Borefts just keep getting bigger and bigger, and this is now a huge event. This year the festival features more than 200 beers from 24 breweries representing ten countries. Tasting notes cover Friday and Saturday sessions – as usual here it would not be unreasonable to rate almost everything as ‘exceptional’ but I have resisted the temptation.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hair of the Dog (Portland, USA) - Blue Dot | 7.00 | | A golden, cloudy, Double IPA. Incredibly bitter and ferocious, with strong hop smells and flavours. |
| Labietis - Pelašķu Velns | 8.80 | | A near-black Latvian beer with a brown, foamy head. It is hopped with Citra and flavoured with Yarrow. A luscious Stout with a sweet edge. |
| Cascade Brewing - Diesel | 8.80 | | An enormous, thick, black, heavy, Imperial Stout. |
| De Molen - Hemel & Arde B.A. | 11.30 | | There are loads of strong barrel aged beers here this year, although I drank just this one. It is a pitch black, silly strong, Imperial Stout |
| Austmann Bryggeri - La Shaman Aztek Stout | 7.80 | | A black Stout with strong chilli and chocolate flavours. |
| BrewDog - Pilot Brew 09 – Spiced Cherry Sour | 6.10 | | Deep cherry red in colour and flavour. A very nice sour. |
| Brewski - Mango Feber DIPA | 8.00 | | Golden and hazy. Dry and bitter. Huge hops and mango flavours. |
| Brouwerij Kees! - Pale Ale Citra Extra | 4.60 | | A golden, hazy ale that is full of Citra hop flavours. |
| Burning Sky - Easy Answers IPA | 6.00 | | A particularly lovely IPA. |
| Lervig - Galaxy Single Hop | 6.50 | | I’m always a sucker for the Galaxy hop and it is shown off well in the golden Pale Ale. |
| Magic Rock - Festival Saison | 6.50 | | A rhubarb and ginger-flavoured Saison brewed as a festival special. |
| Malmö Brewing Co. - Canned Wheat IPA | 7.00 | | Golden/orange in colour. Has a soft, wheat background and big hop flavours from Citra, Amarillo and Mosaic. Not served from a can. |
| Naparbier - Sunset | 4.20 | | A first class, golden hophead. |
| Närke Kulturbryggeri - Svarte-küngen | 8.20 | | A thick, heavy, Black IPA. |
| Omnipollo - Magic #21 Double Raspberry & Vanilla Smoothy IPA | 5.20 | | The description is in the name. More raspberry than vanilla. |
| Oppigårds Bryggeri - Amarillo | 5.90 | | American Pale Ale-style beer. |
| Redchurch - Borefts Saison | 5.10 | | Redchurch are certainly getting stuck in to their sour beers and this one is great. Fermented with wine lees and flavoured with hogweed. |
| Burnside Brewing Co. (USA) - The 5th Element | 5.50 | | IPA-style, brewed with Australian hops. |
| Gänstaller - Kellerbier Mandarina | 5.30 | | A golden Lager, well-flavoured with mandarina hops. Perhaps a little ordinary for this festival. |
| Upright Brewing - Six | 6.70 | | A very spicy, Red Rye beer. |
27 Sep 2014 (Stephen Harris)
The sixth edition of the great Borefts Bier Festival, here at the brewery. The festival grows from strength to strength and was crowded throughout. This year, 175 beers were available from 19 breweries, representing 8 different countries. This report covers the Friday afternoon session and Saturday evening – the breweries I didn’t get around to trying this year were Alvinne, Cantillon and Evil Twin.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emelisse - Imperial Russian Stout | 11.00 | | Magnificent Imperial Stout, this version barrel-aged in a rum cask. |
| De Molen - 21 Grams Anniversary Ale 10 Years de Molen | 10.00 | | A very powerful concoction – a Double IPA. |
| Magic Rock - Bearded Lady | 10.50 | | A special version of Magic Rock’s Imperial Stout that had been barrel-aged in Pedro Ximinez Sherry casks. |
| Brekeriet - Cassis | 5.20 | | A very nice sour beer with blackcurrant, in a Belgian fruit Lambic-style. |
| Brewfist - 2 Late | 9.50 | | Strong US-style IPA |
| Burning Sky - Saison l’Anniversaire | 6.20 | | A special Chardonnay barrel-aged version of this tasty Saison. |
| Kernel (The Kernel) - London Sour Raspberry | 3.00 | | After a couple of hefty Imperial Stouts, this was a wonderfully refreshing cleanser. |
| Mont Salève - Barbe Rouge Mademoiselle | 6.00 | | Very good Pale Ale. |
| Rocket Brewing - Monks on Mars | 9.00 | | An excellent beer in the Belgian tripel style, with the addition of lots of orange peel. |
| Tilquin - Stout Rulquin | 7.00 | | I really liked this uncategorisable, bottled beer. Described as a sour stout, it tasted like a dark Gueuze. |
| Birrificio Toccalmatto - Hops Tripper | 7.00 | | A reddish-brown, fruity, hoppy beer. |
| Ramsgate Brewery (Gadds') - Green Hop Ale (2014) | 4.80 | | My first Kentish Green Hop Beer of the year, sampled on gravity dispense in faraway Netherlands. |
| Del Ducato - Machete | 7.60 | | A strong IPA that was a bit too frothy in the glass, but still pretty good. |
| Laugar - Fibonatxi O | 6.00 | | A cloudy rye Saison with ginger and citrus. Plenty of burn in the back of the throat. |
| Närke - Camarillo | 4.80 | | A hoppy Pale Ale, although suffering a little from over-carbonation issues. |
| Het Uiltje - Nothing Left of a Lager | 5.00 |  | A very odd beer indeed. This is a standard lager beer that has been aged (for some time I suspect) in a wooden Caol Ila cask. The end result is something that tastes nothing like a beer at all, having lost all its beery flavours, but entirely like a weak whisky and water. A never-to-be-repeated experiment I suspect. |
27 Sep 2013 (Stephen Harris)
Here for the fifth edition of Borefts Bier Festival (my third time here). I didn’t write it up last year, but have decided to this year. A bit naughty for this site I know, but my report covers visits over two days, 27 and 28 September. The format of the festival is to invite ‘the world’s best brewers’ to set up stands and sell their own beer. The attendance is international, and there were many familiar faces here from the London beer scene. It would be tempting just to rate everything as ‘exceptional’, but I have tried to have some perspective. I didn’t drink as much as it might appear, the standard beer measure here is a small one. Only those I drank are listed – around 140 beers were available, from 18 breweries, representing nine countries.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| De Molen - Moord & Brand High Ester Rhum | 9.80 | | On keg dispense. Smoked imperial stout, this version barrel-aged in wooden rum barrels. |
| Emelisse - Imperial Russian Stout | 11.00 | | On keg dispense. This version barrel-aged in wooden Wild Turkey barrels. Sweetish and smooth with Bourneville chocolate and whisky tastes. |
| Laugar - Aupa Tovarisch (Oporto Edition) | 11.00 | | On keg dispense. Fabulous, chocolatey, strong stout, matured in port casks for a great winey taste. |
| To Øl - By Udder Means | 7.00 | | On keg dispense. Luscious, lactose-sweet, milk stout. This version with added winey sweetness from barrel-aging in a Muscatel barrel. |
| Birrificio Toccalmatto - Russian Imperial Stout (Wild) | 12.00 | | Served from a bottle. Hugely powerful imperial stout with a slight sour, brett touch. This version has been barrel-aged in wooden wine casks to give an all-round hugely complex flavour. |
| Fyne - Superior IPA | 7.10 | | Amber-coloured. Fist class, strong, fruity IPA. |
| Alvinne - Folkbier | 6.20 | | On keg dispense. Orange in colour and with a bitter orange taste. Intense hops. |
| Alvinne - Land van Mortagne | 13.90 | | On keg dispense. A strong, amber-coloured beer that tastes of prunes and grapes. |
| Amager - Envy | 6.50 | | On keg dispense. Intense, golden IPA. |
| Fyne - Fladda Rock | 5.50 | | Pale golden, strong, well-hopped IPA. |
| Fyne - Fladda Rock ‘n’ Roll | 5.50 | | The same beer as Fladda Rock, but brewed usuing Belgian yeast. This gives a very different and more spicy taste. |
| Jopen - Grateful Deaf IPA | 6.50 | | On keg dispense. A fruity IPA with a bitter finish. |
| Kernel (The Kernel) - Borefts Festival Special | 4.30 | | From key-keg. This is a bright pink, sour ‘lambic’ beer, with honey and raspberries, and no hops. |
| Mont Salève - Oyster Stout | 5.00 | | On keg dispense. Warming, black stout. |
| Naparbier - Back in Black IPA | 8.50 | | On keg dispense. Full-blown black IPA from Spain. |
| Naparbier - 5 Titius Anniversary IPA | 7.30 | | On keg dispense. An amber-coloured, highly-hopped IPA. |
| Rooie Dop - Double Oatmeal Stout | 9.60 | | On keg dispense. This version barrel-aged in bourbon barrels to give a smooth, woody/vanilla character. |
| Rooie Dop - What a Wonderful White IPA | 7.20 | | On keg dispense. A citrus-hoppy, cloudy, yellow, wheat beer. |
| Struise Brouwers - Elliot | 9.00 | | On keg dispense. Amber-coloured, strong IPA. |
| Thornbridge / Thornbridge Hall - Kacho | 6.00 | | A black, chocolaty, porter-style beer with added rum. |
| Birrificio Toccalmatto - Hops Crime | 5.60 | | On keg dispense. A collaboration beer with Buxton Brewery. Amber-coloured and very hoppy. |
| Birrificio Toccalmatto - Surfing Hop Imperial IPA | 8.50 | | Nice to see a couple of the Italian beers in cask-conditioned format and served via handpumps. This was a lovely strong IPA with Amarillo hops to the fore. |
| Birrificio Toccalmatto - Zona Cesarini Pacifica IPA | 6.50 | | Another first-class Italian cask beer. Yellowish in colour and cloudy. Lovely hop flavours. |
| De Molen - Dutch Fresh Hopped | 6.00 | | On keg dispense. A green hop beer using locally-grown Dutch hops. Amber in colour. |
| Brewfist - Terminal Pale Ale | 3.70 | | On keg dispense. Light golden and a bit cloudy. Very tart, grapefruity tastes. |
| Mikkeller - Spontanpeach | 7.70 | | On keg dispense. The only beer I darnk at the whole festival that had issues with over-carbonation. Another in Mikkeller’s fruit lambic series. |
| Närke - Viking IPA | 7.60 | | On keg dispense. Amber-coloured, smoked, sweetish beer. Too smoky really. |
About the De Molen
Summary of Beer Scores
| Total | |
|---|---|
| 16 |
| 80 |
| 18 |
| 1 |
 | - |
The pub is found in Bodegraven, Netherlands, 2411 BT.
De Molen is a wonderful brewery, restaurant, bar and off-licence, situated in a large, historic, canal-side windmill in the small Dutch town of Bodegraven. The beer has an excellent reputation and the brewery itself has outgrown the windmill site, now occupying a large industrial unit across the road. The brewery is famous as the venue for the annual Borefts Bier Festival. Bodegraven is easily reached by rail from Utrecht or Leiden and the pub is just five minutes’ walk from the railway station.
We have visited this pub 5 times, seen 114 different beers and tried them all.
Postcode: 2411 BT