The Beer

Two friends wanting to redefine the beer landscape began brewing together in a garage 10 years ago, and thus, the Brussels Beer Project was born. BBP has since become a major player in the craft brewing scene, with two breweries in Brussels and taprooms in Belgium and France. 

BBP promises to brew one new beer every two months, and the brewery has lived up to its goal, offering over 300 unique beers to date! The recipes have included cigar leaves from Nicaragua, flowers from Japan, pastéis de nata from a Portuguese bakery, and a variety of other brewing ingredients. 

The B Corp-certified brewery is on a journey to embrace experimentation and create beers with a positive impact. From the beginning, BBP received international recognition, exporting to four continents, and even had a bar in Tokyo. But with sustainability in mind, the brewery made a big move and decided to stop all exporting outside of Europe in 2022 to have a better carbon footprint. 

“We’re not afraid to go against the grain,” says Kiliaan Deblir, BBP’s Head of Marketing. “Beyond the beer, we want to set an example and be a responsible company and a source of pride in our community.”

The brewery is known for its Delta IPA, the first beer ever made with unsold bread, which has become the best-selling IPA in Belgium. 

The Art

To celebrate its 10 year anniversary, BBP released a limited edition of the flagship Delta IPA. The brewery worked with Lucile Van Laecken, a Brussels-based illustrator and painter known for her funny characters and colourful illustrations. 

“Lucile was given ‘carte blanche’ to tweak the existing label, and she turned it into a party… literally!” says Kiliaan. 

The artist’s animal characters decorate the can, dancing under a disco ball and celebrating BBP’s anniversary in style. 

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The Experience

BBP wanted cans that could fully display the new artwork and make it shine, while representing the popular beer. 

“Labelling our cans has always been a bottleneck in our production chain, raising many challenges for our teams. NOMOQ offered us a technology that wasn’t available before, giving us the opportunity to print directly on the can itself. Not only does it save us time and make us more efficient, but it also looks so much nicer!” says Kiliaan. 

The cans were showcased at BBP’s 10th Anniversary Wanderlust Festival in September, that event that involves the whole city to take part to a stunning beer celebration together with party lovers, beer taster and breweries from all over the world.

The NOMOQ and BBP collaboration didn’t stop there. 

“We’ve already designed a can for a new pop-up beer, the Stone Crush. The artwork was created by Chrostin, a female artist based in Antwerp,” says Kiliaan. 

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Stone Crush is an IPA brewed in 100 hectoliters with a tropical profile. It uses a combo of American & Australian hop varieties that provide notes of citrus, pineapple and stone fruit. The grain bill is smooth, offering an easy and juicy drinking experience.

Chrostin, a prize-winning artist known for her female characters, aimed to turn the vibrant stories of two iconic Belgian cities into a sensory experience for the can’s design. 

“My inspiration for Stone Crush was the city of Antwerp and its nightlife. I used to love playing video games, including GTA Vice City. I specifically chose the colour palette of a hot summer night: purple, dark blue and bright pink. In terms of theme, I chose typical Antwerp elements such as famous buildings, diamonds and a Sinjoor,” says Chrostin. 

We can definitely talk about Brussels Beer Project as a company that brings innovation into the beer world, without sticking passively on the traditional side. New recipes, edgy design, strong values and risk taking decision brought BBP at the pinnacle of the drink production, and we are so proud of being part of their history.