Rock City Brewing

The Netherlands

"We brew beers for those who dare to venture off the beaten track."

Historic Dutch beer city Amersfoort

Perhaps not the most well known city for tourists visiting The Netherlands, but the historic city of Amersfoort is well worth a visit. There is evidence that this medieval city, south-east of Amsterdam and not far from Utrecht, had people living here on and off as far back as 1000 B.C. It was not until the 11th century that people really settled in the village near the Eem river. The village eventually was granted city rights in the 13th century and not long after city walls were built.

The excellent water quality of the river Eem made Amersfoort an attractive place to establish brewery. Up until the 17th century nearly hundred breweries alternately established themselves in Amersfoort! It will therefore come as no surprise that Amersfoort was one of the four most important beer cities in the Netherlands at that time, alongside the cities of Haarlem, Gouda and Delft.

Rock City Brewing, brewery name with a history

The nickname of Amersfoort is Keistad, which translates to boulder city. It refers to a local folktale about a huge boulder that was dragged by 400 people over a distance of around 10 kilometers into the city of Amersfoort. We guess the founders of Rock City Brewing didn’t have to think long and hard about of a distinctive geographic name for their brewery.

The logo of the brewery also refers to the city: red and white are the colors of the city and the shield represents the tale of Saint George and the dragon. That story is also reflected in the original Amersfoort city coat of arms.

Phoenix Brouwerij and Rock City Brewing

After initially contract brewing at the start of the brewery in 2014, the founders, among them brewer Koen Overeem and his brother Walter, were looking for ways to start a production brewery. In 2017 a successful crowdfunding campaign was organized and in 2018 Rock City Brewing opened its brewery and brewpub in Amersfoort.

By that time they also already acquired the license to brew beers under the name of Phoenix Brouwerij. This Amersfoort brewery dates back to 1873 and was a bigger company than Heineken at the time. In 1970 the brewery went out of business but the name Phoenix has since 2016 risen from the ashes.

Dutch craft beer and food in Amersfoort

Rock City Brewing is proud to put Amersfoort as a brewing city back on the map. The brewery is located in a small industrial area on the northwest side of Amersfoort. It has an indoor brewpub with an open kitchen that is equipped with a giant American style smoker and a barbecue. Across from the kitchen is a tap wall with over 20 taps, filled with fresh craft beers brewed in the Rock City brewery kettles that you can see from your seat. Right at the entrance there also is a spacious and sunny terrace.

Looking for more Amersfoort beer history? Rock City Brewing is in size by far the largest brewery in Amersfoort, but also the youngest. Already in 1989 Bierbrouwerij De Drie Ringen opened its doors in the historic city center of Amersfoort. This small and cosy  ‘city brewery’ was an initiative by the former owners of the Phoenix brewery who could not bear to see that there was no longer a brewery in Amersfoort. Also well worth a visit when in Amersfoort. 

Updated: 11-09-2024