St Bernardus

Because of the anticlerical policy of the beginning of the nineteenth century, the Carlsberg Abbey Community, located in the north of France, decided to move to Watou, a small Belgian village which is only a couple of miles. Then became a farm in “Refuge Notre Dame de St. Bernard”, producing abbey cheeses as a main activity. In the early thirties the attitude toward the clergy in France improved and in 1934 the community decided to leave Belgium and to report all activities in France. Evarist Deconick took over the cheese factory and built a first building in Trappistenweg Watou where the cheese was also marketed. The first building was later transformed in today’s private rooms, but the traces of the cheese factory are still visible inside the residence. Shortly after the Second World War, the Trappist monastery of St. Sixtus decided to stop the sale of its beer. He was made a deal: between the walls of the monastery would be produced beer only for their own use, for sale to the public within the gates of the monastery and the taverns connected to it. Deconick still wanted to produce and commercialize the Trappist Beers under license (for a period of thirty years). Near the cheese factory was built a new brewery and Deconick started producing its Sixtus beers with the help of the brewmaster of Westvleteren, who brought with him the wisdom, knowledge, and original recipes. In the early sixties the son of Deconick Claus stepped into the brewery and began negotiations to renew the license. These were completed in 1962, again for a period of thirty years (up to 1992). In 1992, the agreement came to an end because the Trappist monasteries decided that the qualification of “Trappistenbier” could only be given to beers brewed inside the walls of the Trappist monasteries. So since 1992 the beers produced in Trappistenweg 23 Watou are marketed under the new brand “St. Bernardus “in reference to the Refuge de Notre Dame de St. Bernard. Currently a member of the “Belgian Family Brewers”. At this point, the range of beers was enlarged by adding a blond beer, the St. Bernardus Triple, the existing Pater 6 – Prior 8 – 12 Abt.