EP-138 Olivier de Brauwere and Sébastien Morvan of Brussels Beer Project

This weeks guests are from Brussels, Belgium. It's there that they own a
very American-inspired brewery called Brussels Beer Project.

I first visited their spot a couple years ago when they'd just established
themselves after contract brewing. It was a space defined by a new urban
aesthetic that you find the world over, with bright colors, cafe-style
furniture, and an open floor plan. Not to mention beer styles ranging from
hoppy IPAs to big, sweet Stouts, Saison, and everything in between—a bit of
a universal vibe that you might associate more with cities in general than
Brussels specifically.

Indeed, their project is very much defined by its young community audience,
folks who have helped them raise funds and decide on beer styles. That
dynamic creates a very different approach and vision for what a brewery
means to its fans and customers. And it's a big step away from tradition in
a historical brewing county like Belgium.

As you saw with last week’s guest, there are strong opinions in Belgian
beer about things such as contract brewing, techniques, and traditions. But
what I find, taking a step back, aren’t oppositional forces but, rather,
differing visions for what a brewery can and should be. And I think a big
part of what you’ll hear in this interview is that maybe the word “should”
can be left out of the conversation, as every generation defines these
things for themselves. And rather, focus on “could,” that magical word that
makes it possible to consider other ways of doing things, with a different
purpose, but valuable and interesting all the same.

Running these interviews back-to-back is coincidental. I happened to meet
the founders of Brussels Beer Project in Chicago recently at a taproom
opening and invited them over to record. But I’m happy for this overlap as
they are highly relevant to each other in both location and subject
matter.