Filliers Distillery (Partner News)
Dec 31, 2018
On the banks of the Leie River in picturesque Bachte-Maria-Leerne in Belgium, tucked away among rolling meadows and grain fields, Filliers Distillery has been creating premium spirits such as grain genevers, fruit genevers, gin, whiskey and vodka since 1880.
The artisanal distillery process at Filliers makes use of traditional copper alembic stills (pot stills), and is a delicate balancing act that relies on the craftsmanship and many years of experience of five generations of Master Distillers.
Filliers distils and “cuts” according to carefully guarded family secrets, passed directly from founder Karel Lodewijk Filliers to the next four generations of Master Distillers, to arrive at the most exquisite distilled beverages.
In 1880, Karel Lodewijk Filliers – great-grandfather of the current generation – was issued a license to set up his “genever roastery” in Bachte-Maria-Leene in replacement of the former agricultural distillery which was lost to fire in 1863.
In the course of many years, Karel Lodewijk continued to refine his recipe until, ultimately, an artisanal Grain Genever of the very highest quality trickled from his stills. Up to this very day, Filliers Distillery distils its spirits in the exact same manner it always has, with the entire process from grain processing to bottling taking place in-house.
However, the next generations have not been resting on their laurels. Firmin Filliers developed a gin with Belgian hops in 1928, which has recently been reintroduced to the market as Filliers Dry Gin 28. The development of this gin was an obvious choice, as gin is a direct descendant of genever. Additional product innovations such as whiskey, eggnog and fruit genever followed, with respect for the craft always the primary concern.
