History
As early as 1597, records can be found in Steenhuffel's archives detailing a manor named Den Hoorn.
The first signs of brewing activity at Steenhuffel came in 1747. A deed of consensus mentions two breweries, De Hoorn and De Valck. De Hoorn, owned then by Jean-Baptiste De Mesmaecker, was later to develop into the brewery we know today.
In 1908, Henriette De Mesmaecker, great-granddaughter of Jean-Baptiste De Mesmaecker, married Arthur Van Roy. Arthur Van Roy oversaw the running of their pub and farm, and eventually became the driving force behind the construction of the brewery as we know it today.
The De Hoorn brewery was not spared the violence of World War I, and it was completely destroyed in 1914. However, Van Roy decided to rebuild it; bigger and better than before. He chose to still top-ferment his beer in the old Brabant style rather than brew it using newer methods, such as those used to brew Pilsner.
In 1929, Van Roy decided to give his beer a proper name, calling it Speciale Palm. Speciale refers to the style of beer "Special Belge".
In 1930 Arthur Van Roy taught his son, Alfred, how to brew beer. This, coupled with what Alfred learned at the Brussels brewing school, led to the first copper brewing room with a mill being built. This brewing room is known as "Brewing Room 1" today.
Read more about this topic: Palm Breweries
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