Bières de Chimay
Encyclopedia
Chimay Brewery is a beer brewery
in Chimay
, southern Hainaut, Belgium
. The brewery is located in the Scourmont Abbey
, a Trappist
monastery, and is one of the seven breweries worldwide that produce Trappist beer
. They make three widely distributed ale
s: Chimay Rouge, Chimay Bleue, and Chimay Blanche; and they make one patersbier exclusively for the monks. The monastery also makes four varieties of cheese.
, in the Belgian municipality of Chimay
in 1862.
The brewery produces three widely distributed ales and a patersbier exclusively for the monks; they are known as Trappist beer
s because they are made in a Trappist
monastery. It was the first brewery to use the Trappist Ale designation on its labels.
As with all other Trappist breweries, the beer is sold only for financial support of the monastery and good causes. The brewery business pays rent for use of the property within the abbey, which is used to support the monastic community. The majority of the profit from the sale of the beer is distributed to charities and for community development around the region. As of 2007, sales figures for Chimay products exceeded $50 million per year.
The water for the beers is drawn from a well located inside the monastery walls. The filtered solids from the beer mash are recycled into livestock feed which is given to the same cows that produce the milk for Chimay cheeses.
The beer is transported from the monastery to the bottling plant 12 km away, which can fill 40,000 bottles per hour, of which many are returns
. The beer is then refermented
in the bottle for three weeks before being shipped around the world. Fifty percent of Chimay beer production is sold on the export markets.
The brewing plant was updated in 1988, and as of 2005 produced 12 megalitres annually.
Like many strong Belgian beers, those produced at Chimay age well and can be cellared for at least five years whilst maintaining quality. The Chimay Bleue variety can be aged for upwards of fifteen years.
The cheeses are:
Brewery
A brewery is a dedicated building for the making of beer, though beer can be made at home, and has been for much of beer's history. A company which makes beer is called either a brewery or a brewing company....
in Chimay
Chimay
Chimay a Walloon municipality located in the Belgian province of Hainaut. On January 1, 2006, Chimay had a total population of 9,774. The total area is 197.10 km² which gives a population density of 50 inhabitants per km²...
, southern Hainaut, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. The brewery is located in the Scourmont Abbey
Scourmont Abbey
Scourmont Abbey is a Trappist monastery on the Scourmont plateau, in the village of Forges which is part of Chimay in the province of Hainaut, Belgium)...
, a Trappist
TRAPPIST
TRAPPIST is Belgian robotic telescope in Chile which came online in 2010, and is an acronym for TRAnsiting Planets and PlanetesImals Small Telescope, so named in homage to Trappist beer produced in the Belgian region. Situated high in the Chilean mountains at La Silla Observatory, it is actually...
monastery, and is one of the seven breweries worldwide that produce Trappist beer
Trappist beer
A Trappist beer is a beer brewed by or under control of Trappist monks. There are a total of 174 Trappist monasteries worldwide ; only seven produce Trappist beer and are authorized to label their beers with the Authentic Trappist Product logo that indicates a compliance to the various rules of...
. They make three widely distributed ale
Ale
Ale is a type of beer brewed from malted barley using a warm fermentation with a strain of brewers' yeast. The yeast will ferment the beer quickly, giving it a sweet, full bodied and fruity taste...
s: Chimay Rouge, Chimay Bleue, and Chimay Blanche; and they make one patersbier exclusively for the monks. The monastery also makes four varieties of cheese.
Brewery
The brewery was founded inside Scourmont AbbeyScourmont Abbey
Scourmont Abbey is a Trappist monastery on the Scourmont plateau, in the village of Forges which is part of Chimay in the province of Hainaut, Belgium)...
, in the Belgian municipality of Chimay
Chimay
Chimay a Walloon municipality located in the Belgian province of Hainaut. On January 1, 2006, Chimay had a total population of 9,774. The total area is 197.10 km² which gives a population density of 50 inhabitants per km²...
in 1862.
The brewery produces three widely distributed ales and a patersbier exclusively for the monks; they are known as Trappist beer
Trappist beer
A Trappist beer is a beer brewed by or under control of Trappist monks. There are a total of 174 Trappist monasteries worldwide ; only seven produce Trappist beer and are authorized to label their beers with the Authentic Trappist Product logo that indicates a compliance to the various rules of...
s because they are made in a Trappist
TRAPPIST
TRAPPIST is Belgian robotic telescope in Chile which came online in 2010, and is an acronym for TRAnsiting Planets and PlanetesImals Small Telescope, so named in homage to Trappist beer produced in the Belgian region. Situated high in the Chilean mountains at La Silla Observatory, it is actually...
monastery. It was the first brewery to use the Trappist Ale designation on its labels.
As with all other Trappist breweries, the beer is sold only for financial support of the monastery and good causes. The brewery business pays rent for use of the property within the abbey, which is used to support the monastic community. The majority of the profit from the sale of the beer is distributed to charities and for community development around the region. As of 2007, sales figures for Chimay products exceeded $50 million per year.
The water for the beers is drawn from a well located inside the monastery walls. The filtered solids from the beer mash are recycled into livestock feed which is given to the same cows that produce the milk for Chimay cheeses.
The beer is transported from the monastery to the bottling plant 12 km away, which can fill 40,000 bottles per hour, of which many are returns
Container deposit legislation
Container-deposit legislation is any law that requires collection of a monetary deposit on soft-drink, juice, milk, water, alcoholic-beverage, and/or other containers at the point of sale...
. The beer is then refermented
Bottle conditioning
Bottle conditioned beers are either unfiltered so the final conditioning of the beer takes place in the bottle, or filtered and then reseeded with yeast so that an additional fermentation may take place.-Priming:...
in the bottle for three weeks before being shipped around the world. Fifty percent of Chimay beer production is sold on the export markets.
The brewing plant was updated in 1988, and as of 2005 produced 12 megalitres annually.
Beers
The ingredients have been the subject of interest: all the beers are made from water, malted barley, wheat starch, sugar, hop extract and yeast; malt extract is used in Rouge and Bleue for colouring.- Chimay Rouge (Red), 7% abvAlcohol by volumeAlcohol by volume is a standard measure of how much alcohol is contained in an alcoholic beverage .The ABV standard is used worldwide....
. In the 75 cl bottle, it is known as Première. It is a dark brown colour and has a sweet, fruity aroma. - Chimay Bleue (Blue), 9% abv darker ale. In the 75 cl bottle, it is known as Grande Réserve. This copper-brown beer has a light creamy head and a slightly bitter taste. Considered to be the "classic" Chimay ale, it exhibits a considerable depth of fruity, peppery character.
- Chimay Blanche (White), or Chimay Triple, 8% abv golden tripelTripelTripel is a term used by brewers mainly in the Low Countries, some other European countries, and the USA to describe a strong pale ale, loosely in the style of Westmalle Tripel. The origin of the term is unknown, though the main theory is that it indicates strength in some way...
. In the 75 cl bottle, it is known as Cinq Cents. This crisp beer bears a light orange colour, and is the most hopped and driest of the three. - Chimay Dorée (Golden), 4.8% abv ale, brewed from very similar ingredients as the Red, but paler and spiced differently. It is a patersbier, intended only to be drunk at the abbey or at the nearby inn Auberge de Poteaupré, which is associated with the abbey. The monks themselves drink this variety rather than the stronger three. The Dorée is not sold commercially and the rare bottles which make their way out are through unofficial sources. Even the brewery's own web site makes no mention of this variety.
Like many strong Belgian beers, those produced at Chimay age well and can be cellared for at least five years whilst maintaining quality. The Chimay Bleue variety can be aged for upwards of fifteen years.
Cheeses
Since 1876 the monastery has also made cheese, and currently offers four cheeses.The cheeses are:
- Chimay with Beer, whose rind is soaked in Chimay beer.
- Chimay Grand Classic, a semi-hard pressed cheese.
- Chimay Grand Cru, made from pasteurised milk and matured for six weeks.
- Old Chimay, a hard cheese matured for at least six months.