Susan's NGTAW Blog: Genever Museum - Making Gin the Old Fashioned Way

A tour of Schiedam's Jenever Museum

Friday, April 22, 2022

Learning how to make Dutch gin, and taste testing it, is a great way to spend a Friday afternoon. The Dutch were the first to make genever (jenever is the Dutch spelling), centuries ago. Genever is distilled from grains (rye, barley, even corn) into a malt wine, which is then redistilled to concentrate the alcohol. During the process, botanicals are added for flavoring - specifically juniper berries.

English soldiers and seamen were exposed to Dutch genever during the 80 Years War (1568-1648) for Dutch Independence, when they fought with Holland against Phillip II of Spain. The English called the spirits "Dutch courage" and began making a version of their own - gin.

Schiedam was the historic center of the Dutch genever industry and Schiedam's Jenever Museum is the place to learn all about it. In addition to learning how to make genever and its many variations, the museum is home to De Gekroonde Brandersketel, an historic genever distillery that makes traditional malt wine genever according to a recipe from the 1700s!

The museum is an active distillery, home to De Gekroonde Brandersketel

Interesting interactive exhibits, talking about life in Schiedam when 400 distilleries were active

A model distillery warhouse, showing the various components and locations of the process

Genever, as originally made (oude jenever), starts as milled grains and yeast, which produces a malt wine of about 8% alcohol content. The malt wine is distilled three times in pot stills, stoked by a coal fire, and concentrated to 43 - 48% alcohol by volume.

Juniper berries and other botanicals are added at the end of the process and the spirits are aged in American oak barrels for at least 3 years. The use of pot stills to concentrate the malt wine produces genever that mimics the historic process, known as oude jenever. However, about a century ago, a new column still became fashionable, which distilled a more "pure" and light tasting base alcohol. Genever made using the column still is known as niewe jenever, and its lighter taste - and easier process - made it the dominant form of genever for the last century.

Yellow pot stills, with coal fires below and copper S-shaped distillers above

Oak casks for aging the spirits at least 3 years

Schiedam's use of coal to fire the pot stills left a toll on the city. The city was known as Zwart Nazareth, or Black Nazareth, from the canopy of black smoke that hung over the city.

Workers in the industry were paid, in part, with genever for their wages. They were allowed between 8 and 11 tea glasses full of gin per shift. The conditions were hot and smoke-filled and they had an average life span of 40 years. The had to carry large bags of milled grain up three flights of stairs - a weight limit of 70 kg per bag was introduced - 160 pounds!!