After delay, beer cellar on way

<editor's note>
From the St. Petersburg Times
published December 31, 2002 
</editor's note>

Construction begins on the county's first microbrewery after its Belgian owners 
get a favorable exchange rate. 
By JENNIFER LIBERTO
 
SPRING HILL -- The 10-foot-deep sandy pit being dug along U.S. 19 looks ripe 
for a posh pool, but the liquid it will hold is not for swimming. 

The hole marks the late, but impending, arrival of the county's first 
microbrewery and will hold a European-style beer cellar. 

St. Sebastiaan Belgian Microbrewery -- a brewery and 320-seat restaurant 
serving French, Belgian and American cuisine -- will be located in a 
10,000-square-foot building on U.S. 19 south of the Hampton Inn. 

Hernando County residents could be savoring fresh-brewed Belgian beer in 
August, under the current construction schedule, said co-owners Leen Sterkens 
and Serge Van Limbergen. 

Sterkens, 25, and Van Limbergen, 30, had originally planned to open Spring 
Hill's first brewery early this year, but the economic downturn strained their 
European investments. They delayed the project 18 months, waiting for a better 
exchange rate. 

"Financially, it was not a good time," said Van Limbergen, who along with 
Sterkens moved to Spring Hill from Belgium two years ago. "Everything that 
happened in 9/11 had a big impact on the exchange rate, so we put the project 
in the freezer for a couple of months." 

With the recently improved exchange rate, construction has begun. The land is 
leveled for the building, and the cellar is under construction. 

"In Belgium, everyone keeps beer in a cellar, so we figured it should be 
feasible here," said Van Limbergen, who had Belgian architects draw up the 
first draft of design plans to assure a European-style building. 

The brewery and cellar will be constructed in a first phase, followed by 
the restaurant. By the time the restaurant is completed, the beer will have 
already been brewed and ready to serve, Van Limbergen said. 

The $2.5-million project will eventually employ between 80 and 90 people. 
The brewery will offer three to four beers brewed on site. 

Van Limbergen and Sterkens chose to move to Hernando County because friends 
had moved to Spring Hill to open a restaurant. Before Van Limbergen and 
Sterkens could join them in their business, the friends retired. 
But Sterkens and Van Limbergen said they already had fallen in love with the 
area and its sunny weather, a nice change from the rainy climate of Belgium. 
Sterkens' family has been brewing beer for nearly 300 years and runs nine 
breweries throughout Europe and Asia. 

The name St. Sebastiaan was the original name of the family's brewing company 
as well as the patron saint for help during the plague in Europe. Priests were 
some of the original beer brewers because water was contaminated and spread 
illnesses. The beer cellar may even be a first for the Tampa Bay area. 

"You could probably count the number of beer cellars in the state of Florida on 
one hand," said Vince Vanni, a consultant for the brewery's owners. 

Back to January 2003 front page