Our family history
On 17 November 1992, our family moved to Texel. We went to live in the old milk and cheese factory De Eendracht on Schilderweg. This huge building had become impoverished after more than seven years of vacancy; it needed new occupants who would restore it to its former glory with attention and passion. Our entrepreneurial blood ran faster and we, Maurice and Helma Diks, promised then-mayor Schipper to renovate the building and restore the jobs of yesteryear.
Our food business in meat and preserves grew and prospered and developed into an extraordinary enterprise. The hard work paid off and there was a lot of interest in our thriving sole proprietorship.
The changing market and a nice offer made us decide to sell the business in September 1999. The year of rest that followed that decision turned out to be a brilliant idea and gave our lives a special twist: the then owner of the brewery, which was located in the back part of the factory, saw his chance. He could use some help during his holiday. Maurice was easily persuaded that two weeks of ‘looking after the shop’ wouldn't hurt.
Soon Maurice lost his heart to the craft of brewing beer. The two weeks turned into five years as manager and brewer-in-training. Children Sander, Jasper and Marinka, grew up in the factory, where we had converted the old laboratory into a fine home. Our children learnt to work at home, grew up and left the parental home after high school to study across the street.
In 2004, new life came to the brewery with new management and Maurice at the helm. Under his daily management, in the position of brewmaster and technical director, the brewery grew into a beautiful company with appealing beer flavours. With attention and passion, Maurice developed a series of speciality beers that many Texel visitors and beer lovers still enjoy drinking.
A new beginning! (2017)
Now, many years later, it was time for a change again. This time, our daughter Marinka was the trigger.
‘Say mum and dad, when are we going to do business together?’, she asked us in March 2017. Not only we were immediately excited. Her older brother Sander, twin brother Jasper and Sander Visser (Marinka's husband), were also immediately in favour of a joint venture. And so Family Brewery Diks is the youngest brewing venture on Texel.
The family complete (2020)
Over the past few years, the whole family has worked hard to build the brewery, develop new flavours and we are super proud that by now the whole family is working full-time in the brewery. Whereas at its inception Maurice Diks, Helma Diks and Marinka Visser-Diks spent their time full-time in the brewery (and the rest of the family could also be found in the brewery all free hours), Jasper Diks quit his job in October 2018 and joined the team on a daily basis. In June 2020, Marinka's husband Sander Visser was ready to join the team full-time as well. When Marinka's big brother, Sander Diks, also indicated he would join the team from September 2020, it was party time, because the family is complete!
The new brewing location at Meyertebos 7, in Den Burg.
On 2 May 2019, the Diks family brewed its first Island Pils in their self-built brewery at Spinbaan 11 in Den Burg. After a wonderful five-year period, a new location has been found to future-proof the Family Brewery. The Meyertebos on the edge of the Waal and Burg nature reserve is the dream spot that became available in 2022. On 22 November 2022, the request in principle was submitted to the Municipality of Texel to be allowed to settle on this spot. Now exactly 2 years later, the first tour has taken place and the brewery has moved to Meyertebos 7 in Den Burg.
