Sleutel Bokbier

Sleutel Bokbier is the most remarkable survivor of the entire De Sleutel range — a seasonal Bokbier that continued to be produced annually long after the Dordrecht brewery itself had closed its doors in 1968. First brewed as part of De Sleutel's modernised bottom-fermented range from 1933, the Bokbier became a beloved Dutch seasonal tradition. When Heineken acquired De Sleutel in 1953 the Bokbier was retained, and remarkably, even after the brewery's closure in 1968, Heineken continued to produce the Sleutel Bokbier annually at other facilities — preserving the brand for a full 33 years after the physical brewery had gone. The final Sleutel Bokbier was released in 2001, ending a tradition that had spanned nearly seven decades. The beer lived on in collectors' hearts — Untappd records show bottles from the 1987 vintage still being enjoyed decades later, described as 'caramel, port, liquorice — thinned with age but certainly still drinkable.' A true Dutch brewing legend.