The beers Wielemans-Ceuppens used to brew...

This article is based on the remarkable work of our sorely missed friend Guy Moerenhout. You can find more information on his blog: "C'était au temps où Bruxelles brassait"

Once upon a time, there were the Wielemans brothers and their mother Constance-Ide Ceuppens. They had this tiny little brewery at Rue Terre Neuve in the centre of Brussels. Their production consisted of Brussels' typical beers: faro, gueuze, and lambic, among others table beers.

After a couple of years, the brothers and their mother started to dream bigger dreams. So, they decided to move the company to the municipality of Forest where they could produce more as well as try different things. And that's how the Wielemans-Ceuppens brewery entered into the history of the beer industry as one of its most important representatives in Brussels!

Well, we have been talking a lot about the history of the company in the previous posts. What about getting to know some of the beers the Wielemans-Ceuppens brewery produced over the more of a century of its existence?

Wielemans-Ceuppens beers

In 1885, the brewery started the production of their first blond bottom fermented beers (lagers) – the Bock and the Munich – which needed constant refrigeration (therefore, a lot of compressors for producing the cold!). The two beers were awarded medals in 1889 and 1900 in Paris, in 1904 in Saint-Louis (USA), and in 1906 in Milan.

Guy Moerenhout Fund

Guy Moerenhout Fund

During the next years, the Wielemans-Ceuppens brewery progressed a lot: by 1913 it had hired 245 workers; 4.206.000 kg of malt were passing through its tanks each year; and the transport of its beers was provided by 7 lorries (increasing to 12 in 1914) and 74 horses!

However, during the First World War the production dropped considerably. There were all sorts of restrictions and the supply of raw materials was affected. Additionally, German authorities were constantly demanding copper and other metals, as well as wood, coal, hay, cereals, trucks, horses… Those were tough times!

Once the war got to its end, the brewery focused on the production of dark English-style beers which were very fashionable at the time. In order to to meet the new taste of the public, in 1921 they started produced the Crowned Trees Stout and, in 1926, the Crowned Trees Scotch, which was sweeter. Their names were inspired by the crowned trees adorning the emblem of the municipality of Forest.

Guy Moerenhout Fund

Guy Moerenhout Fund

The next step for Wielemans-Ceuppens was the production of its first real pilsner – the Forst – released in 1928. The beer has made its name gradually in local cafés, to the point of becoming one of the symbols of the brewery.

Guy Moerenhout Fund

Guy Moerenhout Fund

During the Second World War, the brewery faced tough times again. During this period, the company produced a temporary beer, Wiel's, a fluitjesbier (very light with 0.8 degrees of alcohol!). The Wiel's was to become the most famous beer produced by Wielemans-Ceuppens!

Guy Moerenhout Fund

Guy Moerenhout Fund

Among the beers brewed and sold by Wielemans-Ceuppens there were also the National, from 1927; the Mars Royale and the Wing's Ale (produced during the war in 1943); the Navy's Stout from 1945; the Navy's Coronation, which was released sometime after the Second World War; the Christmas, from 1950; the Mans, from 1956; the DB Urtyp from 1959; the Marina from 1958 and the Elephant CTS from 1970.

Guy Moerenhout Fund

Some of them kept being produced and distributed over the years, while others were discontinued after a while. By 1966, according to a booklet developed by the company, only the Wiel's, the Navy's Stout, the Navy's Coronation, the Christmas, the DB Urtyp and the Crowned Trees Scotch were still available.