Antwerp wine producer Wijnfaktorij matures wine in cellar of Het Steen

Antwerp wine producer Wijnfaktorij (Wine Factory) will mature 900 bottles of red wine produced in Antwerp in the cellar of Het Steen. The wine will be bottled in 2026.

Since January, Het Steen has made a cellar available to Wijnfaktorij for maturing 900 bottles of red wine for a year. This involves three to five barrels of 225 litres. The wine will be bottled in 2026. The label will feature a reference to Het Steen and a ship, as the Tall Ships Races will once again take place in Antwerp in 2026.

Alderman for tourism Koen Kennis (N-VA): “We are starting a tasty wine story: we are maturing Antwerp wine in the cellar of Het Steen! Or where tourism, the middle class and iconic Antwerp heritage come together. Historically speaking, Antwerp has always been a wine city. For example, near the Grote Markt you have the Wijnstraat (Wine Street) and Wijngaardstraat (Vineyard Street) and in the harbour area the Wijnweg (Wine Road): names that refer to the wine trade that took place here in the Middle Ages. Wine was even grown here in Antwerp at one time. Even today, Antwerp is a real wine city with many wine bars, wine merchants and even a winemaker near the Groenplaats. And now also with a more than unique wine cellar!”

Wijnfaktorij

Wijnfaktorij is the only wine producer in Antwerp and makes Belgian wines from home-grown grapes. The city winemaker now has three hectares of Hageland vineyard and makes unique Antwerp wine that is served in top Antwerp restaurants such as The Jane, Hertog Jan and Bistrot du Nord.

The rosé wine Chansaar from Wijnfaktorij is available in the Antwerp City Shop of Het Steen and Antwerp-Central Railway Station. Last year, the millionth visitor to Het Steen received a bottle of Chansaar as a gift.

Patrick Nijs of Wijnfaktorij: “How much more Antwerp can it be if the wine that is made in the heart of the city can also mature for a year in the historic cellars of Het Steen? There is no name for the wine yet, but we still have more than a year. Patience is a fine ingredient in making good wine.”