Brouwerij Boelens

The roots of Brouwerij Boelens go back to 1850, when two brewing families – Boelens and De Meester – founded the original brewery together. When it was founded, the business was called “De Meester-Boelens”, after founder De Meester. Because he remained childless, he asked his cousin by marriage Henri Boelens to continue the brewery. Henri married Maria De Meester, whereupon the name of the brewery was changed to “Boelens-De Meester”.

During the First World War, in 1915, the brewing kettles were confiscated by the German occupiers. However, the Boelens family was given permission to continue operating as a bottling company by purchasing beer from other breweries.

After the war, bottling remained the company's main activity, which also functioned as a beer trader. This situation remained until the middle of the 20th century.

In 1978, Kris Boelens took over the beer trade and the idea arose to breathe new life into the old brewing craft. In 1993, artisanal brewing was restarted. Since 2016, son Yannick has also been active in the brewery, continuing the family tradition in a new generation.