Welcome to STOEF. I am Steven, the name 'Stoef' is a nod to my own name and that of my grandpa Stef. I try to blend the past and the present in the products I create in the same way.  

 Find out what products STOEF offers
More information about workshops
Custom products or alcohol-free pairings 

What does STOEF do

I am very interested in food production and fermentation, but also foraging and agroforestry have a special place in my heart. My passion for all these topics shines through in my products, which are crafted with exclusive botanicals and foraged herbs. I enjoy being involved in the whole process. From flavor design to the graphic design on the labels. I have experience in lots of different fields, such as alcoholic fermentation, lacto-fermented foods, kombuchas, fermented sodas and many more. Sharing my passion and knowledge with others, whether it is through my products or workshops/tastings, is what I love most. Whether you are interested in my standard line-up, a custom product/pairing or a workshop/course on fermentation or foraging, don't hesitate to contact me!

How it came to be 

My journey into food production and fermentation started when I was just 10 years old, looking after bees and making honey. By 15, I turned that honey into my first mead, and was very impressed by these natural processes and how the mead changed over time. That's why I decided to study Food Technology at Wageningen University (doing my thesis on the production of sparkling wines) to further explore this world of food production.
From those early days with bees, I explored brewing beer and learned the art of making cider at Elegast Cidery where I worked as a cidermaker and looked into the valorization of their waste pomace as a raw material for the production of a low-alcoholic cider. I worked at a restaurant where I learned a lot about food pairing and (natural) wines and created (fermented) non-alcoholic pairings. Through the Wageningen Student Farm I learned a lot about agroforestry, foraging and organic agriculture, which tied it all together. The intersection of all these different sides of food production is what STOEF represents for me.

 Work at Elegast Cidery

Since November 2022 I have been working as an assistant cider maker at a cidery. I helped sorting apples, loading the bins onto the production line, managing juice extraction, test for things such as TA, pH, SG values and manage the fermentation of the juice. Besides the regular cider production I have looked into the development of a low-alcoholic cider using water kefir and kombucha cultures. It has been a really valuable experience. This experience made me very familiar with spontaneous fermentation, apple cider and the scaling up of a fermentation business. Besides the practical work in the cidery I have also been a representative at some events. From standing behind stalls at  fermentation festivals to tap takeovers.

The Green Rose

I have always been interested in food, drinks, nature and sustainability but an unexplored part for me was food service. In the half a gap year I took between February and September 2023 I got to know this aspect very well working as a waiter. Food service became an additional passion for me and I started learning a lot about etiquettes, food pairing, and wine. The newly born passion introduced me to the Green Rose, a Michelin guide fine dining restaurant in Arnhem. I worked here as a waiter/sommelier, explaining the dishes and wines to the guests. It was a very fun, engaging way to learn about dishes and especially wine and it's pairing abilities. While working here I also got to know amazing natural wines and the beauty of simplicity in winemaking. It is something that inspired me to embrace simplicity and minimal input in order to rely on the beauty of the unpredictable.

Non-alcoholic fermented drinks

The restaurant I worked at had a nice assortment of (natural) wines but wanted to be able to offer their guests interesting non-alcoholic drinks as well. I produced different fermented drinks for them, related to the menu that was being served. For example, a kombucha (made with Greek mountain tea and magnolia flowers) and a rhubarb soda (fermented with ginger bug, with added woodruff, ground ivy and stinging nettle). The drinks were received very well by the guests and some even bought extra to take home.

 Pomace 

From January 2023 until July 2023 I participated in a challenge organized by the Wageningen University, called the ReThink Waste Challenge. Together with 3 team members I researched the possibility of fermentation of waste pomace and producing specific aromatic molecules to be used in the food flavouring industry. Our proposition was very well recieved and we came in  2nd place, also recieving money and support to start up this idea and turn it into reality.

Personal Projects

I experiment with fermentation a lot in my free time. With friends or just by myself. 

Together with some friends frome my studies I have brewed a lot of interesting beers, such as a beer where we incubated the grain with Aspergillus Oryzae, resulting in a very smooth, peachlike aroma. I have made soy-sauce, water kefirs and lactofermented vegetables. 

Following are some examples of the projects I am most proud of.

Red wine from own grapes. 

 My father has a 20 year old grapevine in his backyard, some of the grapes are eaten but most rot away on the ground. This is why each year I try and make a red wine out of these grapes. It is a very educational experience and each year the wine is getting better and better

Beer fermented using wild yeasts derived from spontaneously fermented apple cider. 

 While cleaning the fermentation tanks at the cidery I come across a lot of different aromas, one day I was cleaning the vessel and I smelled almost pure banana coming out of it. This is what inspired me to brew a Weizen style beer using this wild yeast culture as the basis, to add some nice aromas I added some lavender honey as well. This beer is  regularly shared with my housemates and friends and is an amazing summer beer.

3 Flower Rosé mead 

 As an alternative to a refreshing rosé wine, I decided to make a dry mead with some nice flower additions. I added Hibiscus mainly for the colour but also for some tannins and acidity and also added wild roses and lavender. It turned into a refreshing,floral mead with an herbal touch

Mead from WSF spring honey

My study in Wageningen allows me to meet amazing and inspring people. Amongst that are the people from WSF, a student farm association. I had the honour to join one of their beekeeping courses and got to know a passionate beekeeper. They supplied me with 10 kilograms of honey from which I made three types of mead for the WSF members. 

A chai mead, with chai spices. A spring flower mead with wild flowers, roses, lavender and ground ivy. And a 'wild' mead, with nothing added, purely relying on the wild yeasts present to get a complex, floral mead.