Brouwerij De Molen

Brouwerij De MolenBrouwerij De Molen
Brouwerij De MolenBrouwerij De Molen
Brewery, Bar, Eatery, Beer-to-go

Overtocht 43
Bodegraven, 2411 BT
Netherlands

+31 172 610 848 | map
brouwerijdemolen.nl
BEER STATS
Average:
3.79
Beers:
143
Ratings:
4,083
PLACE STATS
Average:
4.31
Reviews:
12
Ratings:
32
pDev:
13.69%
View: Beers | Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 4.43 by BdM from Netherlands

Jul 08, 2016
 
Rated: 4.25 by Iamjeff6 from Virginia

Dec 10, 2015
 
Rated: 3.84 by Remiot from France

Nov 15, 2015
 
Rated: 4 by acurtis from New Jersey

Sep 29, 2015
 
Rated: 3.87 by VierBier from Netherlands

Aug 06, 2015
 
Rated: 4.13 by ptrck_nl from Netherlands

Apr 25, 2015
 
Rated: 4.5 by BlazerT from Poland

Dec 15, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by Carlosbier from Netherlands

Nov 16, 2014
 
Rated: 4.81 by Abandlr

Nov 08, 2014
 
Rated: 5 by Lobo45 from Texas

Oct 14, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by 22Blue from Kansas

Oct 02, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by MoFro from Norway

Sep 25, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by ElviraS from Estonia

Sep 22, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by MicroBeerMan1980 from Pennsylvania

Sep 22, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by Beer-Ed from Netherlands

Sep 12, 2014
 
Rated: 5 by AlexM from California

Sep 10, 2014
 
Rated: 4.75 by Vargavaka from Sweden

Jul 13, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by Jungleyors from Spain

Jun 26, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by kermis from Netherlands

Jun 20, 2014
 
Rated: 4.75 by Hayley_86 from Netherlands

Feb 16, 2014
Photo of 4thelvofbeer
Reviewed by 4thelvofbeer from Virginia

4.63/5  rDev +7.4%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.75 | selection: 4.75 | food: 4.5
Awesome! Beer pairings with cheese and sliced meat plates make an awesome combination (even though I was sick....sorry Donn et al....I had an IPA and some bread and beer sausage). Then, when you are finished having lunch and some great beers, they have an attached bottle shop with De Molen's finest brews in addition to some other beers from local and international favorites. I love De Molen and am looking forward to going back!
Feb 02, 2014
Photo of youbrewidrink
Reviewed by youbrewidrink from Vermont

4/5  rDev -7.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4
To be fair I was here for Berfts and had the beer pairing dinner during the festival.

Peter Paul did an amazing job with the beer and food pairing, the serice was top notch.

If this is any indication of how this normal go at the resturaunt, this place is awesome.

Killer bottle shop attached to the resturaunt, selling all De Molen beers as well as beers from all over Europe & the USA.

Only about an hour from Brussels or Amsterdam, well worth a slight detour.
Oct 01, 2013
Photo of mtbdonn
Reviewed by mtbdonn from Colorado

4.64/5  rDev +7.7%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.75 | service: 4.75 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
A-Excellent brew/pub built under an old Dutch windmill.
Q-DeMolen brews are quality!
S-Great service, very helpful and knowledgeable of available items
S-Excellent selection; bottle shop on premises
F-Only had a few snacks but they were awesome. Great selection of beer cheeses, beer bread and beer sausage!
V-It's the Netherlands so everything is overpriced.

We only stopped for a couple beers on the way to Amsterdam. But couldn't stay long as friend was ill. I will go back again at first opportunity!
Mar 20, 2013
Photo of Jeffo
Reviewed by Jeffo from Netherlands

4.43/5  rDev +2.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
Been coming here for one reason or another for the last 4 years or so, but never bothered to write a review of the place. Not quite sure why. Anyways, we had a really nice time here (again) this past weekend, so I thought I'd write something up.

First of all, it is useful to mention that the pub / bottle shop and the actual brewery are seperately owned. They used to occupy the same building, but in 2011, the main brewery moved just down the street. I'll try to say a few things about both places and give an average score.

I usually come down from Utrecht or Amsterdam, which is about a 25 or 50 min train ride respectively, then make the 5 minute walk down to the windmill. Once I got hopelessly lost and it took me a whole 15 minutes. Luckily Bodegraven is relatively small and everyone knows where De Molen is.

The brewery itself is a medium sized set-up and the 100% Dutch brewmaster's name is Menno. He basically stays at the brewery and rarely shows his face at the pub. In fact, I don't think I've ever seen him in the pub in the 4 years I've been going there. Anyways, Menno is a experimenter extrordinair and will do anything you can possibly imagine. This means that some brews don't turn out all that well, but that others shock the shit out of me. Their stout beer is usually top notch and their barrel aging program is vast, expansive, and world class. Lots of barrels, and lots of awesome stout and barleywine to put in there. This is where I think De Molen shines, as Menno definitely has the best barrel program in Europe, and perhaps the best in the world.

The pub is a really cozy, quiet little place that is rarely too busy to be problematic. Whenever I've been in there, the staff, who are all 100% Dutch, as well as the owner Pieter-Paul, who is also 100% Dutch, have always been kind, courteous, and more than accommodating. We have shared beers with the staff and have even been given nice "secret-stash" surprise beers on the house. The beer list itself, however, is fantastic as it is. Usually there are 6 De Molen beers on tap, as well as another couple hundred beers from all over the world available in the shop that you can drink there as well. The service is speedy, attentive, and all the staff speak enough English to help out the non-Dutch tourist. Finally, the food here is also excellent, so I always look forward to a lunch or dinner here when the opportunity arises. Prices in the restaurant are perhaps a touch high, but not unreasonable for the quality of the product.

A quick word about the bottle shop. Essentially the whole De Molen line that is currently available is here. Things sell out obviously, but when something is released, it will surely be at the shop for at least a little while. That said, the prices are often €1+ more expensive here than in Amsterdam. As much as I love this little shop and try to support it all I can, my wallet dictates otherwise at times. Furthermore, besides De Molen beer, there is also a good selection of beer from Denmark, Norway, Italy, as well as some American craft. A good selection indeed, but just be sure you're not buying old product. I mistakenly bought an old, light-struck 75cl Raging Bitch once, which was totally undrinkable, and saw a 2+ year old Port Brewing IPA on the shelf the last time I was there. I generally stick to the De Molen stuff and things I know are new or resilient. Whenever I leave here, my trusty travel bag with Canadian flag attached is always way heavier than I wanted it to be.

All in all, the quality of the product and experience makes this place a must stop for any De Molen fan, or any beer enthusiast traveling through the low countries. While the prices can be a little higher than hoped, the selection and quality are top class, and the service is excellent. I am very happy that I can call De Molen my "local brewery."
Feb 19, 2013
Photo of Jugs_McGhee
Reviewed by Jugs_McGhee from Colorado

1.55/5  rDev -64%
vibe: 1 | quality: 1 | service: 1 | selection: 3 | food: 1.5
I had the worst experience possible at De Molen. I'm not a finnicky person and I never send food back. I've worked as a waiter in the past and I always treat staff as I'd want to be treated at any restaurant or bar.

We took trains for an hour and a half and then walked for forty minutes to arrive at De Molen. I was really excited to go there during my beer odyssey because I'd heard about the quality of their beers.

We arrived forty minutes before their dinner menu started, so we decided to just have a couple beers to wait until we could order dinner. I revealed my excitement about being there to our waiter and we each ordered a beer each.

Half an hour later, the beers arrived. Recognizing the service delay, I asked the waiter for four more beers (knowing we'd finish the two we had gotten before the four more came).

Shortly thereafter, we were surprised to see a person who seemed to be the brewmaster approach our table. He was clearly English and informed us one of the beers on the menu we'd been given wasn't available and asked if we wanted a different one. He seemed slightly annoyed; we thanked him and picked a different one right away.

Twenty minutes later, three beers arrived (not four). At this point, it was an hour and twenty minutes past the point at which the dinner menu was posted to begin. (We'd now been there for nearly an hour and a half and had two beers). We asked if we could order dinner. The waiter said he'd ask the brewmaster and quickly disappeared. We were very confused by this point.

The waiter returned and said that he'd take our dinner order. We ordered two basic dishes on the menu, and asked if we could have a plate of fries as well. Keep in mind we hadn't eaten since before boarding the train earlier in the day. He took our order amicably and left.

Three minutes later the brewmaster returned to our table and SCREAMED at us for ordering fries. People around us turned and stared, as shocked as we were. We apologized but he didn't seem to want to be calmed.

After about an hour our food came, which was mediocre. It took a half hour to receive the bill.

I considered asking to go into the bottle room (I had read excellent reviews of it), but was too frustrated with De Molen to consider it.

After four and a half hours spent there (no exaggeration), we left.

I've never had a worse experience at a brewery, or even a bar or restaurant. We were polite and considerate the entire time but got shrieked at for no apparent reason.

All I can think of is some sort of archaic anger on the part of the brewmaster (or whoever that English lad that screamed at us and seemed to be in charge was) towards the Irish flag on my backpack, but jaysus aren't we adults?

I just wanted to try some quality beer, but I ended up getting embarrassingly bad treatment and service.

The selection was pretty good, but I can't rate the quality high.
Dec 23, 2011
Photo of jagadd
Reviewed by jagadd from North Carolina

4.43/5  rDev +2.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4
Came here as part of a tour of their newly built yet still nonoperational brewery. The tour was quick and simple yet still informative. The quality of the product De Molen is able to put out with the limited amount of space and equipment is a testament to their love of beer.

The town of Bodegraven is about an hour and a half trip from Amsterdam and well worth a day trip either by yourself or with a few friends. Being a small town/village/burgher?, the brewery is not hard to find being in walking distance from the train platform. You can sit outside and order from a menu consisting of 4 to 5 of the beers brewed on premise or head inside to the shop and pick up a few singles that range in style, price, and rarity.

The owners are nice and quick to respond to any question that you may have. You can tell they enjoy what they are doing. The food is also far beyond what one might expect to see at a brewery and the prices are fair as well. A nice selection of breads, appetizers, lunch, and dinner courses.

Lastly, the beer at this place is to die for and on par if not exceedingly better than all of the major European heavy hitters (mikkeler, norke, brewdog...etc, you get the idea). A rare find, much like their beers, with those even being a bit difficult to find in the main cities like Amsterdam and Utrecht.
Oct 02, 2011
Photo of bylerteck
Reviewed by bylerteck from Canada (ON)

4.16/5  rDev -3.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 3.5
I took the train here with my brother on a day trip from Amsterdam to Haarlem. It took some searching, but it was worth the walk. Bodegraven appears to be a nice, quaint town.

We arrived and took a seat on the patio, the only other people around were a German family having lunch. We asked what beers were on tap and the waitress/young girl cheekily walked the 'on tap' board over to us. I managed to have about 4 beers whilst there, with the waitress correcting my pronounciation when needed, making for a light hearted environment. I checked out the interior which was more 'pubby'. But it includes a nice meeting place where there were business people going about there business like business. I asked to see the brewery which ended up being extremely small, which impressed me.

In the shop I was able to score a t-shirt and a few bottles, none of which will ever be sold in Ontario. I'm sure on a Saturday night this place would be busier, but I was happy to sit outside in the Sun, drinking great beers. The girl was always back in a hurry if our glasses were empty, asking if we needed something else. Considering there were only 5 or 6 beers on tap, the selection was lacking, but I was pleased with everything on offer. I assume most of the product gets bottled for export or Belgian/Dutch sale, but a few more beers on tap would change my rating of the selection.

All beers were cheaper than expected, and the bottles I bought were a great price.

If you're in the area and into good beer, it'd be hard to pass up a trip to this place.
Aug 11, 2011
Photo of rvdoorn
Reviewed by rvdoorn from Netherlands

4.8/5  rDev +11.4%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | food: 4.5
this place became my beer home. Pp, the shop,bar and restaurant owner is an extremely nice guy and very passionate about beers and cooking with them. Having said that, the menu in the restaurant is changed on a regular basis all the products are locally produced. Especially the dishes made with the molens beers make this restaurant unique! On draft there are on general 5 de molen beers,sometimes limited beers that will never be bottled. The best for me is still the beershop tough. Pp made a beautiful selection of de molen beers, dutch, belgium, scandinavian, french, italian and american brews. Sometimes one can find extremely rare bottles here!! Unique in the netherlands!
Jun 06, 2011
Photo of beerpirates
Reviewed by beerpirates from Belgium

4.14/5  rDev -3.9%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5
We both enjoy beer very much and we wanted to see the place where they come up with a new beer every few months. We were both impressed by the fact how small it is, considering their output. The people there must do some really judicious work. The price for the whole procession of beers was really good . They have a small shop where they sell their own beer and also a small but carefully chosen selection of Scandinavian and American beers. Add to that a number of great "like your granny used to have" traditional Dutch products of the edible and drinkable kind, and you get a nice little store. The staff are nice and enthusiastic, even though the younger people seem to be more trained in being good bar/restaurant personnel than beer experts. For the rest Bodegraven is as boring as a small town in the middle of Holland can be, even though it actually has strong historic roots, which are showcased around the town on municipal boards. It is one of those places, which once had great promise in old times but became forgotten when superseded by the modern age. In the beer landscape of the Netherlands
Apr 30, 2011
Photo of crosamich
Reviewed by crosamich from Florida

4.47/5  rDev +3.7%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
Peter Paul & Jose were fantastic hosts. Food was tasty and very reasonable. We didn't have a big look around but the drive in made Bodegraven look like a clean and beautiful town. We were debating stopping here on our way from Amsterdam to Belgium for the weekend. So glad we decided to take the time. We planned on lunch, a couple beers and a look in the bottle shop. A couple hours later and I left with a box full of goodies. We were there shortly after opening so were able to chat them up for quite a while. Bottles may be a bit high but they have plenty of unique offerings...sometimes you have to pay to play, right? As Brabander said, they are building a new brewery 200 meters down the road so shouldn't really affect the set up. Going to start with viewing days for the new brewery I believe next week. Although, I hope they leave remnants from the old brewery because people need to see the small set up that they run with. It's impressive in how small it is. A great way to start a beer-cation! Bring bottles to share with Peter Paul.
Apr 26, 2011
Photo of Brabander
Reviewed by Brabander from Netherlands

4.7/5  rDev +9%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 5 | food: 4.5
I was there two times now, the first time with the Borefts festival and the second one a few weeks ago to trade some beers with Peter Paul of the brewery.

The Molen is located a bit outside the place of Bodegraven and is a very good place to go to to drink some great beers and eat some great food. You can easily go there by train from The Hague or Utrecht. A five minte walk and the you are there.

The beer bottles are a bit pricy when you know the prices of the beers when you are in Belgium.

The quality of the beers are very very good and there is possibility to get a tour in the brewery when you are there. They are building a new brewery nearby and i don't know how this will work in the future.
Mar 24, 2011
Photo of doopiedoopiedoo
Reviewed by doopiedoopiedoo from Netherlands

4.34/5  rDev +0.7%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5
De Molen's beer store is a small beer store with a great selection of European Craft Beers (think Struise, Mikkeler, Nogne and sometimes even Narke). Also a fair selection of American Craft beers are to be found here but the main attraction to me are all the fantastic de Molen Beers on sale here. No BMC or any of other main stream beers in this store.

When Peter (the shop owner) is in he'll like to give you advise on some of the great beers he has in his store and point out new stuff you might like. He has also kept me informed about new de Molen releases through a personal e-mail.

I've bought a bottle of Raging Bitch here that wasn't outdated but also not as fresh as you would have liked it.

This is a small little beer store with a great selection. It has a welcoming atmosphere and invites you to browse all you want without ever feeling rushed. Prices are a bit high but the selection is wonderfull and some of the beers are just not to be found anywhere alse in Holland. If you are ever close by make sure you stop in and enjoy this great little shop.
Feb 26, 2011
Brouwerij De Molen in Bodegraven, Netherlands
Brewery rating: 3.79 out of 5 with 4083 ratings