CYCLE RACING
Heineken is very much involved in cycle racing. In Holland
the brewery has organised the classic Amstel Gold Race
since 1965. Besides this, Heineken sponsors the Amstel
amateur cycle-racing team, which has been in existence
since 1963. Some well-known Dutch professionals, like
Joop Zoetemelk and Gerrie Knetemann, started their
careers as amateur riders in this team. In 1979 Heineken
organised the World Cycling Championships in Holland.
Day-trippers
Extensions
Old and New
The Heineken! Dreher brewery at Pedavena nestles against the foothills of the Dolomite Mountains.
Pedavena
Tullio Mancosu is the director of
the Heineken/Dreher Brewery
in Pedavena, Italy. A village
situated 80 km to the north west of
Venice. But he does more than just
brew beer. He also supervises a superb
park and grounds, many dozens of
animals, a number of tennis courts, a
weather station, an electricity
generating plant and a large catering
operation. There will not be many of
his colleagues with so many different
responsibilities. The Pedavena
Brewery therefore occupies a unique
place amongst the seventy or so
breweries which cooperate with
Heineken throughout the world. Not
least because of its splendid location
between the high peaks of the
Dolomites. In winter the personnel
only have to drive a couple of
kilometres from their work to reach
The brewhouse at the edge of the superb park.
More than
brewing alone
the ski slopes at Mont Avena.
It was a bright and sunny Sunday when
we arrived in Pedavena. The car park
opposite the brewery was almost full
and a policeman was shepherding the
flocks of visitors across the road to the
park and the 'Birreria'That's the name
of the catering establishment. As ever,
the monkeys and their antics had
attracted a large crowd of onlookers.
So had the parrots. The various birds,
deer, goats and other small animals
looked unconcernedly at the people
strolling by. The park was filled with
beds of tulips backed by handsome
trees. Repeated snapshots were being
taken of two bronze lions, each time
with another set of children on their
backs. The beer garden was fullas was
the enormous hall in the 'Birreria'In a
somewhat quieter corner of the park
we were suddenly confronted by tall
windows behind which were four big
brewing kettles.
"Our brewing capacity had to be
expanded"Signor Mancosu explained
to us. "That presented a major
problem; we didn't want to do anything
to alter the brewhouse itself, as it
stands in such a splendid position at the
edge of the park. So we left everything
that is visible exactly as it was and
simply made the kettles deeper. As a
result we can brew 20% more beer. We
also saved on energy at the same time,
as we now do our boiling there under
pressure, just like in a pressure-cooker
in the kitchen", he adds with a smile of
satisfaction.
If you extend your brewhouse all the
other departments have to be
expanded as well. And that's exactly
what happened. Big storage and
fermenting tanks were installed in the
open air. New beer stores were built
and all pipelines renewed. Much more
work was done, but care was always
taken to ensure that the traditional and
characteristic old buildings were at
least preserved from the outside.
All those visitors are living proof that
Heineken has a unique business in the
Pedavena brewery. It's nice to know
that everything is being done to
preserve the brewery's unique
character despite all the
modernisation. Truly an illustration of
environmental awareness. Both
because of the energy-saving
technology that has been incorporated
and because the buildings simply meld
in so well with their beautiful
surroundings.
T. Mancosu, director of the
Pedavena brewery.
The towers, balustrades, windows and
the blend of high and low buildings
make this brewery a sight worth
seeing. It is now almost a century old.
The zoo and the 'Birreria' were added
on later by the previous owners. To
increase the amount of beer consumed
And, to judge by the crowds of beer
drinkers we saw during one afternoon,
their idea has certainly proved a success. A corner of the park.
A part of the park and the catering establishment in Pedavena. Thousands of visitors
at weekends are no exception.