Brasserie Illegaal – Brewery visit
In June I had the pleasure of visiting Brasserie Illegaal. This brewery is located in Brussels, to be more precise, in the commune of Forest, close to the Ring-road and Flanders. To get there you can take a bus or train from Brussels-Midi station.
The brewery has an impressive collective of founders: it’s made up of seventeen people, many of them from the art scene. They come together every six months to make decisions together. The official start of the brewery was in 2021, but in the years before, the collective already often brewed beer for their own parties. These were hosted in different locations around Brussels and gradually gained more traction and grew too big to continue like that. An official business was the next step, but the name remained true to their origins: Illegaal.
Art, beer and parties
The Illegaal brewery collective has three main goals: space for art and culture, good parties and high quality but affordable beer to drink at these parties. When you see the brewery these goals are immediately clear. Every wall is decorated with graffiti, the brewery is state-of-the-art and there is ample space for dancing, concerts and relaxing. The building has two entrances, as was envisioned by the owners. One for the brewing and one for the parties. The cute French bulldog from the logo was found on a curtain outside the party entrance, waiting for the next party for sure.
The brewery
During our visit we were shown around by the brewer and one of the founders, they were fantastic hosts and answered all our questions. Illegaal brews on a shiny 20 hectoliter system. The building has a high ceiling made from metal sheets, which gives it a nice, industrial vibe. With the sun on it in summer, brewing will surely be a hot activity.
Most of their beer is brewed for on-site use during the parties and concerts they host, and goes straight to the big tanks that feed the bar. The rest of the beer is canned, for which they use a Canadian canning system. All cans have original art on the labels, made by one of the founders or other artists. Their beer cans can be found in beer shops all over Belgium and even further. The fermentation tanks are 500 liters and they brew 2-3 times per week. They pasteurize their alcohol-free beer and the Club Rate Mate, but not the rest of them.
The beers all have to be high quality, but easy drinking and not too crazy as that is what their customers like. After the very nice tour we tasted several of their beers and were definitely impressed. The Piels lager for instance is lagered for 10-12 weeks and this is well reflected in the taste. Their Social lager is lagered for 8 weeks. Definitely no short-cuts here! We also enjoyed the Raison saison, the Khop Killer neipa and the Tropicaal ipa. Special mention for their alcohol-free beer 6 Roses. Made in house with special yeast and absolutely delicious.
Illegaal brewery hosts parties every weekend, find the event list here, and I was told there generally is someone there if you want to drop by during the week to buy or drink some beers.
Brasserie Illegaal
Rue Bollinckx 300
1190 Bruxelles
Website: https://brasserie-illegaal.com/