From brewing to bottling, Heineken maintains five-star process

Last week, as the Jamaica Food and Drink Kitchen (JFDK) kicked off the first annual Kingston City Beer Fest on National Beer Day, Thursday, April 7, Heineken Brand Manager Amoye Phillpotts-Brown rounded up a few personalities for a unique experience, dubbed the 'Heineken 5-Star Brewery Tour', at Red Stripe’s 214 Exchange on Spanish Town Road.

The invited guests included members of the media as well as popular recording artistes Adiel ‘Diel’ Thomas and Amanyea, designer Simone Michelle Neilson, vlogger Jamieson Daley, and social media influencers Sue-Ann ‘Petite-Sue’ Gordon-Pitter and Shameika Gordon, who were shuttled from JFDK at the Progressive Shopping Centre in Liguanea to the brewery.

“Red Stripe is home to a number of beers that Jamaicans love, including Heineken. However, many do not know all that goes into creating their favourite brew. It’s a long, complicated and special process, and we wanted to give persons the opportunity to get a sneak peek of the behind the scenes,” Phillpotts-Brown told The Gleaner.

Beer has been made in Jamaica’s capital for more than seven decades, with Desnoes and Geddes (D&G) being the pioneer within the Caribbean region with the opening of the first brewery, its Surrey Brewery, on Pechon Street in the heart of downtown Kingston in 1927. Owned by Eugene Desnoes and Thomas Hargreaves Geddes, the company became better known as D&G. It's brewery was transformed into an ultra-modern facility 30 years later when it relocated to Spanish Town Road.

D&G became the producer of one of Jamaica’s best-known exports, Red Stripe Beer. The list of products expanded over the years to include several other malt beverages, such as Red Stripe Light, flavoured Red Stripe, Dragon Stout, and Malta. It is one of the few brewers in the region producing Guinness under licence, and has also been brewing Heineken under licence for a milestone 50 years. So, it was fitting for the Heineken brand, which has transformed from its origins as a 19th-century local beer brewed in Amsterdam, to arrange the five-star tour in commemoration of National Beer Day.

Phillpotts-Brown shared, “Our quality team at Red Stripe puts in a lot of hard work to get our brews perfect, and so highlighting this tour was important to us. It’s the first tour of the facility in two years. We love to educate people about what we do here at the brewery, so we have always had tours. As plans progress, we will be sure to make our next tour known.”

On arrival, everyone was directed down ‘Heineken Way’ to the Red Stripe Vibes Lounge for a quick safety briefing by the company’s Health, Safety, and Environment Manager, Stevar Palmer, where each person received a pair of steel-toe shoes, earplugs, safety glasses, and vests. When everyone was properly suited in their safety gear, the group was split into two teams led by Tameika Grant, brewing line manager, and Helen Simpson, quality manager.

The Heineken 5-Star Brewery Tour showcased the company’s history and passion for brewing in a one-hour immersive walking tour that took a deep dive into the brewing process (revealing just a few trademark secrets), getting an up-close view of the equipment in its new control room, and mingling with the staff, which surprisingly has a large female complement.

From brewing to bottling, “Heineken, and Red Stripe as a whole, has thrived on a legacy of quality, innovation, and in changing the status quo for women working in the industry,” said Grant. She along with Lenoy Williams, also a brewing line manager, engaged the guests in a Q&A session about the science behind brewing, and even gained the trust of a few and was able to influence them to taste samples of crushed barley that makes the malt. At the moment, part of the facility is undergoing reconstruction to improve its efficiency.

The brewing process uses the same method developed in 1873 as well as the recipe of the finest malt, hops, and a signature Heineken yeast; and from the fermentation of the barley to the palletisation of the product, it takes the better part of a month. The finished product is a consistent, strong bitter-sweet lager with fruity notes and a malty aroma.

Grant then introduced the team to Red Stripe Packaging Line Manager Zitroy Brown at the Packaging House to view the bottle washing and sanitisation, assembling, and packaging processes. After a walk-through of the packaging area, the group was able to imbibe a cold bottle of Heineken 0.0 (which tastes like the typical Heineken minus the alcohol) with lunch.

Leaving the facility with a completely new outlook on the way beer is made, Amanyea said, “I’m definitely one of those persons who Amoye referred to. I had no idea what it took to make beer, nor the importance of each step. I have a huge appreciation for the staff and persons involved in the production of the different beers and beverages. It has actually inspired me to do research of my own.”

Jamieson Daley described the tour as enlightening.“To see a process I’ve never seen before, held my attention. In regard to brewing, I was really interested to find out the secrets, even though the staff wouldn’t give them, and also the little details, like the difference between horizontal and vertical storage. I can say that a lot of people started to ask about the tour after I posted it on social media,” he said.

stephanie.lyew@gleanerjm.com