- Brewery Ommegang
-
For the medieval pageant, see Ommegang.
Brewery Ommegang 
Location Cooperstown, New York United States;
Belgium (occasionally)Owner(s) Duvel Moortgat Brewery Year opened 1997 Website www.Ommegang.com Active beers Name Type Hennepin Saison Abbey Ale Abbey ale Witte Witbier Rare Vos Amber ale Three Philosophers Quadrupel/Kriek blend Seasonal beers Name Type Ommegeddon Funkhouse Saison Ommegang Chocolate Indulgence Stout Stout Brewery Ommegang is a Belgian brewery located near Cooperstown, New York that specializes in Belgian-style ales.
Contents
History
Ommegang began brewing Belgian-style ales in 1997. Built by Don Feinberg, an aficionado of Belgian beers, it started up in a purpose-built building based on a traditional Belgian farmhouse, set on a former 136-acre (0.55 km2) hop farm in the Susqehanna River Valley, four miles (6 km) south of Cooperstown, New York in the Town of Milford.
Since its opening, Ommegang has grown rapidly — in early 2005, its owner said they have been unable to meet demand for their ales and as a result would add 40 percent to their production capacity over the next year.
Don Feinberg sold Ommegang in 2003 to Belgian brewer Brouwerij Duvel Moortgat, brewers of the world-renowned Duvel Golden Ale. As a result, Ommegang Ales are made both in Belgium and in Cooperstown, New York. Duvel Moortgat brewed limited amounts of beer for Brewery Ommegang in 2006 to help meet demand, but has not brewed any since then.
Brewery Ommegang currently distributes its beers in 43 states and Washington, D.C., including Alaska and Hawaii but excluding Montana, Idaho, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, West Virginia, and Mississippi. It has also recently shipped beer to Sweden in response to commercial inquiries from that country.
Each summer, the brewery hosts a large beer-tasting event, known as Belgium Comes to Cooperstown. The event, which occurs on a Saturday in July, includes four hours of unlimited beer sampling of over 200 Belgian and Belgian-style beers, followed by food, live music, and a bonfire. The 2007 version of the event added a Friday night beer dinner for 250 people, with 7 courses and 14 beers to pair with them.
On 7 October, 2007, Brewery Ommegang hosted the inaugural "CX @ Ommegang," a cyclocross race, organized by Team SCARR, a cycling team with Brewery Ommegang as their title sponsor. Cyclocross is wildly popular in Belgium and a cyclocross race on the grounds of a Belgian-style brewery was a natural fit. Well over 150 racers from all over New York State registered for the event. The course included a hairpin turn inside the main event tent.
Ommegang Abbey Ale
Ales
Active
Ommegang brews six ales full-time:
- Ommegang Abbey Ale (a classic Belgian-style abbey double)
- Hennepin Farmhouse Saison (a Saison or seasonal Belgian-style rustic golden ale)(The first Saison in America)
- Rare Vos Amber Ale (a cafe-style amber ale)
- Ommegang Witte Ale (a Belgian-style wheat ale)
- Three Philosophers (a Belgian-style quadrupel with authentic Belgian kriek blended in)
- BPA (Belgian Pale Ale). Dry hopped with Cascade hops, going into year-round production for 2011.
Ommegang Abbey Ale and Three Philosophers can be aged for flavoring
Seasonal
In 2007 Ommegang began brewing two new seasonal ales:
- Ommegeddon Funkhouse Ale (a golden ale with Brettanomyces bruxellensis and dry-hopping, brewed in July)
- Ommegang Chocolate Indulgence Stout
In 2007 Ommegang brewed another new seasonal
- Ommegang Biere de Mars (an amber ale, bottle-conditioned with Brettanomyces bruxellensis)
In 2009 Ommegang added:
- Ommegang Adoration Strong Winter Ale: 10% ABV, spiced, dark and malty.
In 2010 Ommegang brewed these Limited Edition specialty beers:
- Chocolate Indulgence Stout
- Ommegang BPA (since elevated to year-round sales)
- Ommegang Zuur (a Flanders Brown Ale, brewed in collaboration with Liefmans of Belgium)
- Ommegang Tripel Perfection (a Belgian-style tripel, but with spices)
- Ommegang Cup O' Kyndnes (a Belgian-Scotch ale, brewed with smoked malt and heather flowers)
- Ommegang Adoration Strong Winter Ale, updated from 2009
In 2011 Ommegang plans to brew and release
- Ommegang Chocolate Indulgence (Belgian-Style Stout, 7% ABV)
- Gnomegang (Belgian-style Strong Blonde Ale, 9.4% ABV) - Fermented with Chouffe yeast in primary fermentation.
- Ommegang Aphrodite Tart beer (Belgian-style ale)
- Ommegang Adoration (Belgian-style Strong Winter Ale, 10% ABV)
Awards
All of Ommegang's five full-time Belgian-style ales have won numerous awards, including:
- Cave-aged Hennepin winning the 2004 Great American Beer Festival Gold Medal for French- and Belgian-style Saisons [1]
- Hennepin Farmhouse Ale winning the 2006 World Beer Cup Silver Medal for French- Belgian-Style Saison [2]
- Three Philosophers winning the 2006 World Beer Cup Bronze Medal Belgian-Style Dark Strong Ale [2]
- Witte Wheat Ale won the 2008 World Beer Cup Silver Award for wheat ales, and won the Silver Award again in 2010. 2011 Gold Medal winner at GABF.
- Ommegang Abbey Ale won the Gold Award for Belgian Abbey Ales at the 2010 World Beer Cup
External links
References
- ^ "2004 Great American Beer Festival Winners List". Great American Beer Festival. 2004. http://www.beertown.org/events/gabf/04winners.htm. Retrieved 2008-07-09.[dead link]
- ^ a b "2006 Brewers Association World Beer Cup Winners". World Beer Cup. 2006. http://www.beertown.org/events/wbc/winners_list/winners_2006.html. Retrieved 2008-07-09.[dead link]
Coordinates: 42°37′37″N 74°56′43″W / 42.62694°N 74.94528°W
Categories:- Companies based in New York
- Beer brewing companies based in New York
- Microbreweries
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
