Henri Vandervelden Establishes the Brewery Later Known as Oud Beersel

In 1882, Henri Vandervelden established the brewery that later became Oud Beersel in Beersel, southwest of Brussels. Vandervelden had worked seasonally at the De Kroon brewery in Uccle, where Lambic was produced during the cooler months, while spending the remainder of the year buying and harvesting fruit. This combination of brewing and fruit work inspired him to establish his own beer business. Vandervelden bought land on Kasteelstraat in Beersel and had local bricks made for the construction of a house, brewery, and carriage house. The buildings were completed around 1882, which Oud Beersel regards as the foundation year of the Vandervelden brewery. The family enterprise continued through subsequent generations and was renamed Oud Beersel in 1954, becoming part of the traditional Lambic and Gueuze culture of Beersel and the Pajottenland.