Jenever - the alcoholic beverage flavoured with juniper berries - is a traditional drink from the Netherlands.Jenever(also commonly spelled as genever) has a longhistory in the Netherlands.Jenever is often described as "Dutch gin" but this is incorrect.
Jenever- a traditional Dutch spirit
Jenever is the Dutch word for juniper, because the drink is flavoured with juniper berries. Jenever was originally made by distilling malt wine until the alcoholcontent reached 50 percent. The spirit which resulted from distillationhad anunpleasant taste - that's whyherbs and juniper berry extract were added - to make itpalatable.
There are two differentcategories of jenever:jonge(young) andoude(old). These categories refer to the distilling techniques used to create the types of jenever, rather than the age of the jeneveritself.
Jenever is not gin
Jenever is sometimes confused with gin, because their names share the same origin asboth spirits usejuniper berries. Jenever has a malty flavour, more like whisky than gin, due to the base that is used in making it.
Jenever was brought to England by soldiers coming back from battleduring the Thirty Years' War in the 17th century, which inspired the English to make gin. Gin is albeit a completely separatedrink, which contains different ingredients and goes through a very different distilling process.
The origins of jenever
Nowadays, one of the most famous Dutch drinks, it is difficult to tell when exactly in Dutch historyjenever was discovered, or who discovered it. Many attribute its discovery to a Dutch doctor in the 17th century, however, jenever was used as a medicine long before it started to be consumed for enjoyment.
In the late 15th century, jeneverwent from beinga medicine to a beverage, and in 1606, taxes were already levied against it, just like other alcoholic drinks. During the 1500s to 1700s, all Dutch cities and even large towns had several distilleries forjenever or other spirits, making use ofwindmills to grind the malt for the jenever. At one point, Rotterdamhad 200 distilleries, making it the unofficial jenever capital.
Cities where jenever is produced today
Nowadays, the Dutch citiesAmsterdam, Schiedam, Groningen and Dordrecht are known as jenever-producing cities. There are even events and festivals centred around jenever, the most renowned one being in Schiedam. In Schiedam, there's even a jenever museum. Here are the famous brands and distilleries that come from these cities:
Jenever distilleries in Amsterdam
- Van Wees
- Wynandt Fockinck
- Bols – a well-known brand of jenever, distilling since 1575
Jenever distilleries in Schiedam
- Notlet – where Ketel 1 jenever is made
- Onde de Boompjes
- Hasekamp
Jenever distilleries in Groningen
- Hooghoudt
Jenever distilleries in Dordrecht
- Rutte
How jenever is made
The typicaldistillation of jenever is carried out in several steps:
- Rye, corn and malt are mixed together and thenwater and yeast are added. The yeast turns the sugars in the mixture into alcohol. This substance is then distilleduntil it reaches an alcoholic content of 20 percent.
- The mixture is distilled a second time, until it has an alcoholic content of 30 percent. In the third round of distillation, the mixture becomes malt wine and reaches an alcoholic content of around 46 to 48 percent.
- The malt wine (moutwijn)is distilled a fourth time with botanicals and juniper berries. The quantities of juniper berries and herbs varyaccording to the producer’s specific recipe.
Old jenever and young jenever
Oudejenever and jongejenever are thetwo distinct categories of the drink. They are categoriseddependingon the way they are made and their ingredients, and not their actual age.
Young jenever(Jongejenever)
Young jenever arosewhen imports of malt became scarce during the Second World War. It was made using molasses from the sugar beet industry,distilled to high-grade alcohol with an almost neutral flavour.
To carry the name jonge jenever, the spirit must contain no more than 15 percent malt wine and 10 grams of sugar per litre. This type of jenever contains more grain, as opposed to malt. Young jenever can also comprise plain sugar-based alcohol.
Old jenever(Oudejenever)
The word “old” in old jenever is associated with the original method of making jenever, which includes making it from malt wine. The finished product must be more than 15 percent malt wine, with no more than 20 grams of sugarper litre.
Another Dutch drink, Korenwijn or grain wine, is similar to the type of jenever that was available in the 18th century. This alcoholic drink, aged in an oak barrel, contains up to 20 grams of sugar per litre, just like old jenever. The difference is that the malt wine content is higher inKorenwijn,at 51 to 70 percent.
Jenever is a protected term
In 2008, jenever received an AOC (Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée) from the European Union. This means that jenever may only be calledjenever(orgenièvreor genever)if it is produced in the Netherlands, Belgium and certain parts of France and Germany. This is the same well-known rule thatChampagne follows:Champagne can only be called Champagne if it is produced in the Champagne region of France.
How to drink jenever
In bars across the Netherlands, jenever is often served in so-called "tulip glasses", small glasses withturned-out rims that resemble tulips, which are believed to help you enjoy the flavour even better. Jenever is poured right to the top so that the liquidlevel reaches just above the rim of the glass and is held there by surface tension.
Unlike Dutch beer which should always be served chilled, itis recommended to drink jenever at room temperature. Furthermore, connoisseurs of jenever would tell youto enjoy it slowly, as you woulda glass of fine whisky.Young jenever is often drunk as an aperitif, beforefood, while old jenever is more typically drunk as a digestive, after dinner.
Eating Dutch snacksalong with jenever, especially bitterballen,the croquet-like balls, is also a typical Dutch treat. In fact, bitterballen got their name not because the balls themselves are bitter, but because the accompanying distilled spirit - jenever - has a bitter taste.
