Both located in Saint-Geoire en Valdaine, the Louvat biscuit factory and the Val d'Ainan craft brewery are gourmet destinations not to be missed! Both run by passionate women, they are well worth a visit, a must for food lovers! Let us introduce them to you…
The origin of passion
Christelle, the rebirth of Louvat
Christelle Ivangine-Bogey She worked in culinary events. Her business having ceased due to the health crisis, she took over the Louvat biscuit factory in 2020 Facing financial difficulties, the company retained all 15 employees, aiming to restore the prestige of this family business, founded in 1954, by rediscovering its former strengths: quality and a friendly atmosphere centered around biscuits. To achieve this, they revived old recipes and created new ones with the help of Patrick Casula, World Pastry Champion based in Biviers.
Meringues, marshmallows, shortbread, cookies, rochers, financiers, glasses… but also savory biscuits for appetizers, the textures and tastes are varied! Alongside products for mass distribution, a premium range, "Maurice's secrets" is sold in gourmet food stores.
Catherine, a pioneer in Isère
Catherine Dereume Like Obelix, she fell into the brewing cauldron as a child! Of Belgian origin, with a great-grandfather who was a brewer and a grandfather who was a brewing engineer specializing in tank construction, she was destined for it! After studying food science and completing a specialization in fermentation in Belgium, she bought the building in 2005 with her ex-husband to make her first sales in April 2006. At the time, it was the 3rd brewery in Isère, whereas today there are more than 60!
At the Brasserie du Val d'Ainan, another range of 24 beers (blondes, brunes, ambers, whites, bitters) is offered, and even whisky and brandy! They also make seasonal batches and occasionally create new recipes. The range remains very typically "Belgian", with a lot of work done on the malts and spices, unlike the more bitter English-language productions. To make them, The process is truly artisanal. rather than aiming for quantity.
Good ingredients = good products!
Both are committed to using local and healthy products as much as possible.
At Louvat, crispy and crunchy biscuits!
A good biscuit is made with good ingredients, that's the secret!
Louvat sideThe base of the biscuit is simple: eggs, sugar, flour and butter! The flour is produced 40 km away et certified "IsHere", the Bilieu goat cheese, the flavorings are based on fruits or essential oils and natural dyes, no preservatives (except for the rochers and financiers with their distinctive texture). 50% of the range has been renewed, including both sweet and savory options for appetizers, to nibble on or spread, with Beaufort cheese, wild garlic, goat cheese… The meringue is made with 100% icing sugar. The biscuits are flavored with dried fruit inserts, Génépi liqueur, and Chartreuse liqueur. Louvat also offers zero-waste biscuits with reworked and re-made fragments: "the Indecent" and "the Scandalous".
In 2025, was born the Voiron biscuit : "The crispness of the Louvat biscuit, the power of the Bonnat chocolate, the delicacy of the Antésite lemon-licorice extract make this biscuit an exceptional product. 100% Voironnais, 100% gourmet! A shop has also opened in recent years. in Voiron.
A small beer at the Brasserie
Our beers are unfiltered, unpasteurized and refermented in the bottle at room temperature to create the effervescence like Champagne.
The brewer adds a sugar syrup and the yeast, still present, consumes and transforms it.
in alcohol and sparkling. While industrialists themselves inject CO2To get their beer out in just one week, the Brasserie du Val d'Ainan needs five times longer: three weeks of fermentation in tanks and two weeks in bottles! The process is more complicated to control and slower, but it's less dreary! "The bubbles are so important. Because the effervescence is what releases the beer's aromas when it bursts on the palate. We brew on average twice a week, which is about 100 batches per year of 1,000 liters each, yielding 850 liters of beerThis yields 850 hectoliters, making us a microbrewery with a production of less than 1,000 hectoliters.
The two basic inputs are malt from barley and hops. For the former, they use two main types, one of which is derived from barley crops in IsèreEven though malting, a complex operation, is carried out in central France by large malt houses, malt from Isère has allowed us to benefit for the past two years from... "IsHere" label on 4 of the recipesAs for hops, there is no production yet.
They source locally, but projects are underway. Their supplies come from the North, Alsace, and other parts of Europe. This depends on the desired aromas and also on market prices, which fluctuate considerably. They have planted 50 vines around the brewery. Covering only 10% of their annual consumption, it is reserved for special batches. They use other sources as much as possible. local ingredients such as hemp from Pont-de-Beauvoisin for the golden hemp or the Honey from Les Échelles / Entre-deux-Guiers.
Projects related to the environment
At Louvat'sThere is no shortage of ideas:
“We would like to continue developing the range, with products in line with the evolution of the biscuit industry. All this in an expanded, more environmentally friendly building, with solar panels or a station to recycle our wash water. We are also considering ovens using alternative energy sources… in short, to improve, to have an impeccable company and to strive towards self-sufficiency.”
Brasserie sideThe projects also rhyme with sustainable development: "Our magnificent building was a former textile factory that operated using water power. So one day, perhaps, we could use this technology to aim for our electrical self-sufficiency!"
Where to find them?
Head directly to the Brewery or the biscuit factory to taste, buy and even visit!
- Louvat Biscuit Factory: Visits by reservation only. To register, consult the site.
- Brasserie du Val d'Ainan: Free guided tour and tasting all year round. Learn more
For more treats and other ideas in Valdaine…
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