Bury St Edmunds father and son René and Max van den Oort, who run Beautiful Beers and Vespers Bar, brew their own Belgian beer

A father and son who run a popular beer shop and bar in Bury St Edmunds have expressed their pride in brewing a Belgian beer together that they will sell at their businesses.

René van den Oort has run Beautiful Beers, in St John’s Street, since 2011 while, last year, he opened Vespers Belgian Beer Bar, in St Andrew’s Street South, with his son Max.

The pair have worked with a brewery in Belgium to come up with their own house beer that will be served both in bottles in the shop and on draught at the bar, with the beer to carry the Vespers name – Vespers Blonde.

René said: “I couldn’t be prouder. As a family we are passionate about beer and always have been.

“To have my son open the bar last year was very special for us as a family, but to now have our own beer, with the Vespers logo, it’s just perfect.

“It was actually a very emotional moment when Max served my wife and me the first glass of Vespers Blonde.

“We want to find and offer our customers the best beers from around the world and in particular showcase the amazing array of beers from Belgium and other European countries, including the UK.

“Now we can proudly add our names to that list, combining English malts and ingredients with the expertise of a Belgium brewer we know and trust.”

He said it was always their ambition to brew a beer that they felt was as good as some of the great Belgian blonde beers and produce something that would appeal to an array of beer lovers.

“We spent months picking the ingredients and working with the brewers to achieve the flavour we wanted,” added René.

“We feel the end result is pretty special and we hope our customers do too.”

Despite it being a long journey from initial idea to first pour, he admitted the testing process wasn’t the hardest job in the world.

The family has lived in Bury St Edmunds since 2001 and wanted to celebrate their close connection to the historic town.

The logo features Bury St Edmunds’ iconic cathedral, with the Vespers name coming from the evening prayers that would have once been heard across the town’s abbey.