Brouwerij De Leite
Brouwerij De Leite is a craft brewery in Oostkamp, Flanders. Luc Vermeersch started with a small setup in a garden shed and grew De Leite into a brewery with its own barrel collection for cuvée beers. You know them from the Paljas beers, the tripel Enfant Terriple and wine-barrel sour beers.
- LocationOostkamp, Vlaams Gewest
- Founded2008
- TypeMicrobrewery
- Untappd 3.39 · 118k ratings
- At Hoptimaal0 in stock · 2 in total
In stock now 0
Right now we have nothing from Brouwerij De Leite in stock. Below you can see what we had before; new beers from Brouwerij De Leite show up here automatically.
Previously at Hoptimaal 2
Sold out. If a new batch is coming, you can ask for a heads-up on the product page.
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From garden shed to brewery in Oostkamp
According to importer Lime Ventures, it started in 1997. Out of love for traditional, rustic crafts, Luc Vermeersch built a garden shed that became the home of a tiny brewery and a bread oven. He bought his 30-litre setup from a Finnish manufacturer, who gave him a week of training. The rest he taught himself, over about ten years.
De Leite was born in 2008, after Vermeersch had taken a brewing course and had started dreaming of a bigger brewery. In 2011 larger brew kettles arrived, along with wooden wine barrels in which the cuvée beers could mature. Until 2018 the brewery had its beers bottled externally. That year it invested in its own bottling line. De Leite describes itself as a brewery with more than 15 years of experience behind the brew kettles.
Luc Vermeersch is brewer and owner. For him, art and family are indispensable, and the brewery says it brings a piece of personal art to every beer, inspired by the creativity within the Vermeersch family.
Barrel-aged cuvées, tripels and Paljas
Barrel-aged sour beers were the next step. In 2011 Vermeersch bought his first 14 barrels from winegrower friends in France. According to Lime Ventures, that programme grew into 105 barriques and 8 foeders of 4000 to 5000 litres. The cuvée beers come from these, such as Cuvée Jeun'Homme and Cuvée Soeur'Ise. The brewery describes Cuvée Jeun'Homme as a complex symphony of flavours, led by wild yeasts.
Besides the cuvées, De Leite makes Enfant Terriple, which also comes in a rum variant, and Tietje, which also exists as a blond beer without alcohol. Femme Fatale is organic and gluten-free.
In 2021 De Leite took over the Paljas brand. Since then, all Paljas beers have been brewed at the brewery in Oostkamp. They include a blond, a brown and a saison. De Leite calls itself a 'house of Belgian craft breweries'. On the walls of the brewery it says: 'Belgian beers, brewed to embrace'.
Brouwerij De Leite at Hoptimaal
From De Leite we have had Paljas Wit: a 4.2% witbier in 33 cl. It is rated highly on Untappd, the best of what we have had from this brewery. Check the page to see which beers are available now.
You drink a witbier fresh and well chilled. That is when the freshness comes through best. Store it cool and dark, and drink it within a few months rather than in a few years.
If you ever pick up a stronger or barrel-aged beer from De Leite, such as a cuvée or a tripel, pour it more slowly and a little less cold. That brings out the acidity, the wood and the depth better.
Frequently asked questions
Where does Brouwerij De Leite come from?
Brouwerij De Leite comes from Oostkamp in Flanders, Belgium. Luc Vermeersch founded the brewery in 2008, after first brewing on a small scale in a garden shed.
What kind of beer does Brouwerij De Leite make?
De Leite makes Paljas, the tripel Enfant Terriple, Tietje and the organic, gluten-free Femme Fatale, among others. They also brew cuvée beers that mature in wine barrels, such as Cuvée Jeun'Homme.
Can you visit Brouwerij De Leite?
Yes, De Leite offers brewery tours and tastings for groups of at least 20 people. You book via the brewery's website.
