The Oranjeboom Brewery () was founded in
Rotterdam
Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...
in 1671. The brewery there closed in 1990, with production shifted to
Breda
Breda () is a city and municipality in the southern part of the Netherlands, located in the province of North Brabant. The name derived from ''brede Aa'' ('wide Aa' or 'broad Aa') and refers to the confluence of the rivers Mark and Aa. Breda has ...
. That brewery was sold to
Interbrew
Interbrew is subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV is based in Breda, Netherlands. It has one subsidiary, Ambev S.A. of São Paulo, Brazil.
Brands
Interbrew brands have historically included Budweiser, Stella Artois, Boddingtons, Beck's, Star ...
in 1995 and was closed in 2004 by
InBev
InBev () is a brewing company that resulted from the merger between Belgium-based company Interbrew and Brazilian brewer AmBev which took place in 2004. It existed independently until the acquisition of Anheuser-Busch in 2008, which formed Anheu ...
, Interbrew's successor. Production of the brand Oranjeboom was moved to the
Dommelsch
Dommelsch Brewery is a brewery founded in 1744 in the village of Dommelen, Netherlands. It is part of the Anheuser-Busch InBev group, and brews ''Dommelsch Pilsener'' for the Dutch market.
History
Dommelsch was founded in 1744 in the village ...
brewery. In October 2013, Oranjeboom was relaunched as a "quirky" new European style lager.
History
The brewery dates from 1671, and started with the merger of two Rotterdam breweries, De Dissel and van den Oranjeboom; it was originally housed on the
Coolvest, in the center of town.
Late 19th-century developments in the Dutch brewing industry all involved the then-new process of brewing
lager
Lager () is beer which has been brewed and conditioned at low temperature. Lagers can be pale, amber, or dark. Pale lager is the most widely consumed and commercially available style of beer. The term "lager" comes from the German for "storage" ...
, which used a
yeast
Yeasts are eukaryotic, single-celled microorganisms classified as members of the fungus kingdom. The first yeast originated hundreds of millions of years ago, and at least 1,500 species are currently recognized. They are estimated to constitut ...
with the capability of
cool fermenting
Brewing is the production of beer by steeping a starch source (commonly cereal grains, the most popular of which is barley) in water and fermenting the resulting sweet liquid with yeast. It may be done in a brewery by a commercial brewer, ...
; this allowed for production year-round, but required significant investments in modern technology and cold storage. In 1872, the brewery was owned by Willem Baartz, who was looking to get into the lager market. Baartz approached
Gerard Adriaan Heineken
Heineken Lager Beer ( nl, Heineken Pilsener), or simply Heineken () is a pale lager beer with 5% alcohol by volume produced by the Dutch brewing company Heineken N.V. Heineken beer is sold in a green bottle with a red star.
History
On 15 Febr ...
but instead got involved in a new venture that led to the founding of
Heineken's Bierbrouwerij Maatschappij. By 1882, Oranjeboom had been sold on to the (Protestant) brewing company ''De Gekroonde Valk'', one of the first breweries in the Netherlands to brew
lager
Lager () is beer which has been brewed and conditioned at low temperature. Lagers can be pale, amber, or dark. Pale lager is the most widely consumed and commercially available style of beer. The term "lager" comes from the German for "storage" ...
. In 1885, a brand-new brewery was opened on Oranjeboomstraat in the
Feijenoord district
Feijenoord (), not to be confused with the Feijenoord neighbourhood (which is located in the Feijenoord district), is a district in Rotterdam and is located south of the Nieuwe Maas. As of 1 January 2004 there were 72,320 inhabitants. The area is ...
, then a new development south of the city. The city named the street for the brewery, which, around the turn of the century, was an important employer providing over 200 jobs, and one of the largest breweries in the country.
After
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, several other breweries were bought to meet demand and stay competitive:
[ De Wereld (]Raamsdonk
Raamsdonk is a village in the province of North Brabant, Netherlands. It is located in the municipality of Geertruidenberg, about 15 km northeast of Breda.
Toponymy
Raamsdonk (as "Dunc") is mentioned for the first time in 1253 as ''Ramesdu ...
, 1948), Wertha (Weert
Weert (; li, Wieërt ) is a municipality and city in the southeastern Netherlands located in the western part of the province of Limburg. It lies on the Eindhoven–Maastricht railway line, and is also astride the Zuid-Willemsvaart canal.
Popu ...
, 1960), Zuidhollandse Bierbrouwerij (The Hague
The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...
, 1960), Phoenix (Amersfoort
Amersfoort () is a city and municipality in the province of Utrecht, Netherlands, about 20 km from the city of Utrecht and 40 km south east of Amsterdam. As of 1 December 2021, the municipality had a population of 158,531, making it the second- ...
, 1961), and Barbarossa (Groningen
Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...
, 1964). None of these breweries remain.
In 1967, Oranjeboom was taken over by UK company Allied Breweries
Allied Breweries was the result of a 1961 merger between Ind Coope (of Burton), Ansells (of Birmingham), and Tetley Walker (of Leeds).
In 1978, Allied Breweries merged with the food and catering group J. Lyons and Co to form Allied Lyons. The bre ...
, which made an important acquisition in 1968 when it bought the brewery De Drie Hoefijzers in Breda
Breda () is a city and municipality in the southern part of the Netherlands, located in the province of North Brabant. The name derived from ''brede Aa'' ('wide Aa' or 'broad Aa') and refers to the confluence of the rivers Mark and Aa. Breda has ...
, a town with a long history of beer brewing. The Breda brewery took on the name Oranjeboom. In 1973, the brand Oranjeboom was replaced by Skol
Skol Lager was developed originally by Ind Coope breweries in Alloa, Central Scotland. In 1958, Graham's Continental was launched (based upon a local brew called Graham's Golden) and quickly changed to Graham's Skol to give a Scandinavian impre ...
, which was deemed to be a more attractive name for the European market, but it was a failure, and the brand name Oranjeboom was reintroduced in 1982. The plant in Rotterdam was closed in 1990, and in 1995, the Breda brewery was sold to Belgian beer giant Interbrew
Interbrew is subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV is based in Breda, Netherlands. It has one subsidiary, Ambev S.A. of São Paulo, Brazil.
Brands
Interbrew brands have historically included Budweiser, Stella Artois, Boddingtons, Beck's, Star ...
, which modernized the plant, but poor results in 2001 led to the plant's closure in 2004, (at a loss of 335 jobs), with production moved to Belgium and to the (Dutch) Dommelsch Brewery
Dommelsch Brewery is a brewery founded in 1744 in the village of Dommelen, Netherlands. It is part of the Anheuser-Busch InBev group, and brews ''Dommelsch Pilsener'' for the Dutch market.
History
Dommelsch was founded in 1744 in the village ...
.
Ownership
With the exception of the Benelux
The Benelux Union ( nl, Benelux Unie; french: Union Benelux; lb, Benelux-Unioun), also known as simply Benelux, is a politico-economic union and formal international intergovernmental cooperation of three neighboring states in western Europe: B ...
area, the tradename Oranjeboom is owned by United Dutch Breweries. It was previously owned by Allied Breweries of the UK.
Beers
The Oranjeboom brewery mainly produced Oranjeboom pils and other lagers, and also Trio Stout. Oranjeboom Breweries were also the manufacturers of the popular Dutch Gold
Dutch Gold is a low-cost, imported, pilsner lager beer sold only in Ireland. It was launched there in 1995.
The beer
The beer is distributed in Ireland by ''Comans Beverages'', an importer and distributor of beers wines and spirits located in ...
beer, which is one of the best-selling lager beers in retail around the Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...
.
The main beer produced under the brand name is Oranjeboom Premium Pilsner - a 5% ABV
Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as ABV, abv, or alc/vol) is a standard measure of how much alcohol (ethanol) is contained in a given volume of an alcoholic beverage (expressed as a volume percent). It is defined as the number of millilitres (mL) o ...
lager. There is also an Extra Strong 8.5% ABV version, a Super Strong 12.0% ABV version as well as lower strength and alcohol-free versions and a bokbier
Bock is a strong beer in Germany, usually a dark lager. Several substyles exist, including:
*Doppelbock (''Double Bock''), a stronger and maltier version
*Eisbock (''Ice Bock''), a much stronger version made by partially freezing the beer and ...
sold under the brand name.
International versions
* The lager was brewed in Faversham, UK under license by Shepherd Neame
Shepherd Neame is an English independent brewery which has been based in the market town of Faversham, Kent, for over 300 years. While 1698 is the brewery's official established date, town records show that commercial brewing has occurred on the ...
at a strength of 3.9%.
* Oranjeboom pilsener brewed in Germany is labeled for US sales and exported to the US.
* A high percentage Oranjeboom has been imported to the UK, in 500 ml cans at 8.5% ABV
Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as ABV, abv, or alc/vol) is a standard measure of how much alcohol (ethanol) is contained in a given volume of an alcoholic beverage (expressed as a volume percent). It is defined as the number of millilitres (mL) o ...
* In New Zealand, Oranjeboom has been brewed under license by Lion Nathan
Lion is an alcoholic beverage company that operates in Australia and New Zealand, and a subsidiary of Japanese beverage conglomerate Kirin. It produces and markets a range of beer and cider in Australia, and wine in New Zealand and the Unite ...
since 2005.''"...Oranjeboom, brewed and distributed by Lion Nathan..."''
21 June 2005, Press Release: Lion Nathan
* A variant known as "Premium Strong Beer" is brewed in France for export. It has a high alcohol content of 16%
ABV
Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as ABV, abv, or alc/vol) is a standard measure of how much alcohol (ethanol) is contained in a given volume of an alcoholic beverage (expressed as a volume percent). It is defined as the number of millilitres (mL) o ...
and is labelled "imported mega strong".
References
External links
RateBeerOranjeboom: Add Some Dutch to Your LifeD'Oranjeboom Luxury Dutch Heritage Beers
{{Use dmy dates, date=March 2017
Breweries in the Netherlands
Defunct breweries
Defunct food and drink companies of the Netherlands
Companies established in 1671
1671 establishments in the Dutch Republic
Breweries in North Brabant
Buildings and structures in Breda
History of Rotterdam
Manufacturing companies based in Rotterdam