== Overview ==
Het Senne Eylenbosch and Vincent Alluin founded Boerenerf is a working organic farm and lambic blendery located in Huizingen2020. It is a revival The company was built on the foundations of the former renowned [[Eylenbosch_(Huizingen)|Eylenbosch (Huizingen)Brewery,]] which closed it's doors in Huizingen in 1965. The Dutch word "Boerenerf" translates to "Farmstead," a nod to the old family farm where the original brewery (located down began, which has been in the street) under founder and blender Senne Eylenbosch after having started family for generations. Today, the traditions continue in the project on his grandparents' farm old stables, where lambic and gueuze beers mature in 2019barrels. The name Boerenerf uniquely combines the traditional craft of the blendery is lambic blending with winemaking, skillfully merging tradition with innovation. This results in a Flemish translation diverse range of surprising blends of 'The Farmstead'lambic, gueuze, cider, fruit beers, wines, and mead, all made with grapes from our own winery. At Boerenerf, three core values are central: Quality, Tradition, and Innovation. Year after year, Senne strives to blend authentic traditions with innovative and refreshing flavors. The farm also serves its own ice cream In this pursuit, centuries-old fermentation techniques are honored and grows its own fruits preserved, resulting in surprising and grainsunforgettable tastes.
[[File:Boerenerf Eylenbosch.JPG|thumb|left|Het Boerenerf]]
== History==
The history of [[Eylenbosch_(Huizingen)|Eylenbosch in Huizingen]] extends dates back to 1864 when it began as a brewery named the CammaertBrewery was founded. Anna Maria, which existed from 1864-1895. Cammaert's great-granddaughter Anna Maria , married Martinus Josephus Eylenbosch in 1874, and he later who took over the brewery operations from Joannes-Baptista Wynants-Cammaert in 1895. After Eylenbosch passed away 's death in 1922, leaving the brewery to his sons , Jan-Baptist and Georges, who continued managing the brewery and began blending gueuze. Although gueuze and lambic were popular in the early 20th century, the industry began to decline in the 1950s due to the rise of sugary drinks and the industrialization of lambic after World War II. The last lambic beer was brewed in 1965, and the brewery continued as a liquor store for a few more years. Between 2006 and 2008, the remaining brewery buildings were converted into lofts. Despite the brewery's decline, the Eylenbosch family continued to run the farm, focusing on livestock, grain, and fruit cultivation, as well as dairy production. Senne Eylenbosch, who had worked at [[Brouwerij_3_Fonteinen|Brewery 3 Fonteinen]], began converting part of the farm into a gueuze blending facility in 2019, reviving the Eylenbosch beers. The first activities of Boerenerf started at the end of 2019. In 2020, the collaboration between Senne and Vincent began, and the enterprise, formerly known as Boerenerf Eylenbosch, became Boerenerf. In June 2021, the blending facility announced it's first fruit lambic, marking the first release of an Eylenbosch lambic in over 50 years. Also in 2021, Boerenerf underwent a rebranding and introduced it's iconic barrel logo. This logo symbolizes the four generations of Eylenbosch brewers in Huizingen, with Senne representing the fifth generation of lambic producers. Although they share the same name, there is no recent familial relationship with [[Brasserie_Eylenbosch|Brouwerij Eylenbosch (Schepdaal)]] due to a gap of nine generations. [[Brouwerij_Eylenbosch_(Kobbegem)|Brouwerij Eylenbosch]] and Boerenerf are two distinct lambic producers.
While gueuze and lambic were experiencing a boom in the early 20th century, by the mid 20th century much of the industry had seen a decline due to the introduction of sweetened drinks like sodas and lemonades, as well as the industrialization of lambic after World War II. By 1965, the brewery had brewed its last batch of lambic and continued to operate as liquor store for some years. Finally, in 2006-2008 the remaining brewery buildings were converted into residential lofts.
While the brewery did not survive the initial collapse of the lambic industry, the Eylenbosch family continued to operate the farm, raising livestock, growing grains and fruits, and managing a dairy on-site. Senne Eylenbosch worked at [[Brouwerij_3_Fonteinen|Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen]] until 2019, and then decided to convert a part of his grandparents' farm into a ‘geuzestekerij’ (lambic blendery). He started to lay the groundwork for the revival of the [[Eylenbosch_(Huizingen)|Eylenbosch (Huizingen)]] beers, and the initial name of his one-man blendery was “Het Boerenerf Eylenbosch”. By the end of 2020, Senne Eylenbosch contacted Vincent Alluin with who he worked together in the same team at [[Brouwerij_3_Fonteinen|3 Fonteinen]]. Vincent Alluin joined forces with Senne Eylenbosch in February 2021 when they started the commercial process to release the blendery’s first beers. In June of 2021, the blendery announced a new range of fruited lambics that marked the first release of an [[Eylenbosch_(Huizingen)|Eylenbosch (Huizingen)]] family lambic in over 50 years. The first batch of fruited lambics were sold in a pack of 6 bottles at the farm mid June 2021. The partnership with Vincent Alluin meant that the blendery rebranded its name to “Het Boerenerf” in August 2021. The company’s semi circle curved logo stands for the 4 generations of Eylenbosch brewers in Huizingen. Senne Eylenbosch is the family’s 5th lambic producing generation. Despite sharing the same name, there is no recent family history with [[Brasserie_Eylenbosch|Eylenbosch (Schepdaal)]] because there is a 9 generation difference. [[Brouwerij_Eylenbosch_(Kobbegem)|Brouwerij Eylenbosch]] and Het Boerenerf are two separate lambic producers. There are currently no plans to join [[HORAL|HORAL]], the consortium of lambic brewers and blenders.
[[File:Courtyard Boerenerf Eylenbosch.jpg|thumb|right|Het Boerenerf courtyard]]
==Brewing and Blending Process==
Het Boerenerf is a blendery blending facility and receives lambic wort from 5 different lambic brewers, being: [[Brouwerij_3_Fonteinen|3 Fonteinen]], [[Brouwerij_De_Troch|De Troch]], [[Brouwerij_Lindemans|Lindemans]], [[Den_Herberg|Den Herberg,]] and Angerik. The first batch of lambic to go into barrels be barreled was brewed at [[Brouwerij_3_Fonteinen|Brouwerij Brewery 3 Fonteinen]] on April 28 and in April 29 2020. This initial brew makes up , forming the majority bulk of Het Boerenerf's the first fruited fruit lambic release in 2021. [[Brouwerij_De_Troch|De Troch]] and [[Brouwerij_Lindemans|Lindemans]] provide the blendery with began supplying lambic wort since in 2021, and [[Den_Herberg|Den Herberg]] and Angerik joined in 2022.Currently there is no in-house brewing installation. The first two batches of lambic were bottled manually on the farm, but since the 2022-2023 season, Boerenerf has used an automatic bottling line. The number of barrels grew rapidly from 25 in 2021, to around 80 in 2022, with a total capacity of about 25,000 liters. The first release of fruited lambic in 2021 was unique in that all ingredients, including the fruit, were sourced from the Zenne Valley and Pajottenland. The ambition remains to work as locally and organically as possible. The blending facility’s commercial season traditionally begins during Easter weekend, with the release of new beer batches. The variety in the beer lineup can vary annually depending on the fruit harvest. In 2022, Boerenerf released it's first traditional 'old gueuze,' named 'Cuvée Heritage', as a tribute to the Eylenbosch family ancestors.
There is currently no brewing equipment. The bottling of the first two lambic batches was done manually by the blender Lambic, cider, and mead are at the farmcore of Boerenerf, although an automated bottling machine will be used for reflecting the beers identity of the 2022-2023 seasonblending facility. The barrel room quickly expanded from 25 barrels in 2021 to around 80 barrels in 2022. The barrels have different sizes (between 200 and 750 liters) An example of this is ‘Symbiose,’ a unique blend of lambic, cider, and originate from Burgundy and Bordeaux. Mid 2022 the total capacity was around 25mead,000 literswhich has never before been commercially released by a lambic producer.
The first release of fruited lambic in 2021 represented some of the shortest chain lambic available with all of the brewing ingredients and fruit coming directly from Pajottenland soil, and sold solely at the blendery. The ambition is to work as organically as possible. The Easter weekend is traditionally the start of the blendery’s commercial season, and thus the release of new beers batches. The variety of the beer line-up may vary each year, depending on the fruit harvest’s quality. Het Boerenerf released its first traditional ‘oude gueuze’ in 2022, and named it ‘Gueuze Erfgoed’. It was available in 750ml and magnum (1500ml) bottles. The blender pays an appropriate tribute to his ancestors of the [[Eylenbosch_(Huizingen)|Eylenbosch (Huizingen)]] family, because of the gueuze’s name (‘Erfgoed’ means ‘Heritage’ in Flemish) and the retro label artwork, which resembles the original 1960's label. The second gueuze batch was released shortly thereafter in 2022, albeit in 375ml bottles. The second release had a distinctive green label, and the third release showcased artist illustrations of a stag beetle.
LambicBoerenerf focuses on the local market (B2C, retail, ciderhospitality, and mead restaurants) while also expanding internationally. Boerenerf products are now available in more than 20 European countries and have seen significant growth in the main pillars of Het Boerenerf, because they represent the blendery’s DNA. These three ferments allow the blender to creatively produce a higher variety of limited batches. ‘Symbiose’ is one of those creative limited batches. It is a unique blend of lambic, cider Asian and mead, since this combination was never before commercially released by a lambic producerAmerican markets in recent years.
The blendery intends to promote its beers mainly on the local market, although international exports expanded as of 2022 because of the blendery’s growth ambitions. One of the ambitions in the near future is to brew lambic at the farm again in order to make the revival of the family's legacy complete.
== Beers ==