Review // Kempisch Vuur, Belgian Peated Single malt
Soon it will be a new year, and with every day that is passing, we are nearing a brighter future. Symbolically, light symbolizes hope. And how do you create light? By building a fire. And what could be better than having a lovely Belgian peated single malt around said fire? That’s where “Kempisch Vuur” comes in.
On a dreary winter day, there’s peated whisky to cheer (and warm) you up!
Text by Mickaël Van Nieuwenhove
Photography is © Distileerderij Pirlot, © RR, and © Mickaël Van Nieuwenhove
Belgian peated whisky?
Truth be told, that was a bit of a set-up to start talking about this Belgian peated single malt called Kempisch Vuur ('The Fire of the Kempen’). I wanted to convey the feeling that I had when I first tasted this whisky. It is a good one, let me be clear about that. It is also the first Belgian peated single malt ever, and that’s something to be proud of. It’s even connected to the history of a region in Flanders. There’s plenty to talk about. In this article, I’ll talk about the history of peat in a region called the Kempen, the history of the brewery / distillery that is creating the first Belgian peated single malt, and obviously my thoughts and tasting notes. Enjoy!
SOS Peat!
The Pirlot brewery and distillery is located in a region of Flanders called the Kempen. This area, bordering the Netherlands, has a rich history of peat harvesting, especially in between the 13rd and 18th century. Peat was dug up in the bogs, cut, and then dried to be used as fuel. Transportation was done via ‘turf canals’, which were dug specifically for this purpose. Because Belgium became independent in 1830, most of the history of the peat industry is actually about a region now situated in Belgium and The Netherlands.
Although the peat industry is now completely extinct in Belgium, the bog areas, known as “veen” in Dutch, are still highly important. Because they are classified as ‘wet’ areas, they are a natural way of balancing temperature fluctuations. The wetter and area, the cooler. Additionally, the more water these bogs withhold, the lower the risk for floods in other areas. Additionally, bogs are ‘big sponges’, which also store large amounts of CO2 in the soil. Plant material which ends up in a bog, is barely broken down. All the CO2 which has been collected by these plants, are currently stored in the bogs.
It comes as no surprise that these bogs are an important pawn in the battle against global warming. Sadly, they are losing that fight. In the beginning of this year, bio-engineer Karen Vancampenhout, professor at the branch of Forestry, Nature, and Landscape of the University of Leuven, stated that the circumstances for certain bog areas is dire: “The valley of the Nete is drying up”, she states in an article by The Gazet Van Antwerpen. The only way to save these areas, and to make sure that huge amount of CO2 is not released, is by making sure the areas stay flooded, and the peat stays wet. If you know a little about peat, you probably know it takes at least a 1,000 years for it to grow back.
As mentioned above, the situation is critical, but not hopeless.
A top-down photograph of one of the bogs in the Kempen. Picture is © RR.
The Pirlot Brewery & Distillery
In comes the Pirlot distillery, which links their first peated single malt to the rich ‘peated history’ of the area. There’s a raising of awareness here, and I certainly hope that, through their whisky, people will learn more about the surrounding area, and might even be convinced to help save it.
The Pirlot distillery is actually a branch of the Pirlot brewery, which was founded in the 1994 by Guy Pirlot, who started brewing in his mother’s kitchen in the 1980s. The aim: to create ‘a fine beer’. The method: as artisanal as possible. And if possible, also by linking the history of the area to the beers. After plenty of positive feedback, Pirlot decided to open up a brewery on his own.
Fast forward to 2020. There’s a deal with another local brewery, Het Nest, to work together. The more ‘mass market’ beers will be brewed at Het Nest, which has a bigger brewery, and the ‘smaller’ beers will be brewed at Pirlot. Additionally, the distilled spirits of Het Nest and Pirlot will all be distilled and matured at Pirlot. Currently, there are 6 types of beer being brewed. I’m planning to review some of them in my new 2021 limited series (breaking news!), which will focus on beer & whisky pairing.
Yes, the brewery was not enough for Guy Pirlot. Gradually, his interest in spirits grew as well. After all, you need to brew stuff before you can distill stuff. The focus, as mentioned already, lies on peated whisky, because of the link with the history of the area. Their aim: to put Belgian whisky on the whisky map. I think they’ll get there.
Because there is no peat industry left anymore, Pirlot’s peat is imported from Scotland, and their malts are peated by the Belgian company of Castle Malting, which provides malts for a variety of breweries and distilleries around Europe. In that way, the whisky process is both European and Belgian, in a sense.
But if you think that distilling is easy in Belgium, well guess again. Once the distillation starts, the Belgian government gets very interested. Before distillation, an excise duties officer needs to ‘seal’ the still, which Guy Pirlot bought in Germany. When the distillate is put in casks for maturation, an excise duties officer needs to be present before the seal can be broken. He is also there to supervise the filling of the ex-Laphroaig casks. When the people at the distillery want to take samples, you guessed it, the excise dutiesofficer needs to be present. The casks are even locked in a steel cage, so no one can sneakily access them. I didn’t think the Belgian law was that strict. I learned a lot that day I visited the distillery.
There’s an already considerable amount of casks maturing in the warehouse, and I think I spotted Oloroso and PX casks as well. Their whisky is not simply an ‘experiment’. These guys mean business.
I like to touch casks. They are true examples of craftsmanship. Sadly, these were under lock and key!
Kempisch Vuur, 5 year old Belgian Peated Single Malt
For the record, this is not their ‘first’ whisky in theory. There is a 3 year old Kempisch Vuur expression, but I did not taste this one. I heard, however, that this is the superior one. There’s the classic 46% ABV, but the real twist lies in its maturation on Laphroaig Quarter Casks, which basically allows the distillate to be influenced by peat twice: once during the distillation of the ‘green beer’ made from peated malt, and another time because of the maturation on Laphroaig. But, before you might think that this is a ‘Laphroaig light’, I have to say that this expression has its own distinct identity.
The first thing I notice when I nose my dram of “Kempisch Vuur”, is that the label is absolutely lying. It states that this whisky expression is ‘lightly peated’ (in PPM), but I must say that the peat is very convincing in the nose! And I love it! There’s charcoal, wet ash, and even rubber (bicycle tires or rubber boots). Behind it, a sweeter note, a bit more fruity, with even some nuts right at the end. The total nosing experience is like pushing away a heavy curtain of smoke, after which you can find more lighter notes. This is definitely a whisky that ‘opens up’ and ‘reveals itself’ after a couple of minutes. Such complexity.
On the palate, the whisky is far less smoky. There’s more room for other notes to develop. There’s notes of stewed fruits, with even some berries in there. There’s late autumn honey, a bit of vanilla, and just a ribbon of smoke to tie it all together. After a while, I started to pick up some spices as well, and it’s lovely how this whisky ‘dries out’ on your palate. The nutty notes are back, and it’s almost like walnuts in my mouth. There’s a little bit of tanginess, and a smoldering burn in the throat.
The whisky is a little bit chewy, and for some reason it moves between ‘easy to drink’ and ‘sticky on the tongue’. There’s even a bit of cured meat right at the end, as a drawn-out but subtle finish. To top it off, a little bit of charcoal reminds you that this is a peated single malt, in case you forgot.
I am very proud of this product, and I’m not even tied to the distillery in any way! This is another step in the creation of a ‘Belgian whisky scene’, and I’ll be damned if I am going to stay quiet about this. Ask me for a peated whisky, and I’ll certainly mention this in the list of my favorites!
I am also quite proud of this photograph. The colors are fantastic!
Bonus: More Pictures from my Distillery Visit
Guy Pirlot with the special still he bought in Germany.
I wasn’t lying about that steel cage…
Things to come in the next couple of years… Oloroso finish, anyone?