14 November 2023

A Century of Cheers: Celebrating 100 Years of De Hoorn

Last week, the walls of De Hoorn, which date back from 1923, rang out once again in joyous celebration. The heart of Leuven's beer culture marked a milestone, with a five-day festivity commemorating a century since its inception as a brewery and the birthplace of Stella in 1926.

Cheers to bringing people together for the next 100 years!

A week of festivities

In 2023, the brewery celebrates his 100th anniversary, so AB InBev and De Hoorn joined forces to deliver a week of celebrations and history filled with activities. From netwerk events to brewery visits, beer pairing diner and podcast with testimonials. This week was filled with a unique view at 100 years De Hoorn.

Starting strong

The festivities, designed with Leuven residents in mind, kicked off with special stakeholders' events at De Hoorn bringing local and national stakeholders, industry experts, and passionate beer enthusiasts together. The speeches from figures such as brewery director of AB Inbev, Olivier Maillet, our own CEO Fien Paepen, historian and podcast maker, Jakob Ulens, Lalynn Wadera, alderman of economics and our mayor Mohamed Ridouani complemented by a network event and walking dinner curated by Leuven's top chef Kwinten De Paepe, set a prestigious tone.

"Not only do we have a rich history as the birthplace of Stella Artois, De Hoorn has since found a new, vibrant destination as a hospitality hub to bring people together, to inspire, and to innovate. Here, where the beer was once brewed that brought people together, we are now building the future by collaborating and having fun. De Hoorn Brewery may be a century old, but it's more alive than ever."

Fien Paepen
CEO of De Hoorn

Inviting the locals

Midweek, the celebration shifted to both the old brewery at De Hoorn and the new Stella Artois Brewery, offering on both locations free tours to more than 2.000 residents of Leuven. The tours in the old De Hoorn Brewery were provided by the experienced and passionate guides of Leuven Leisure. And there is more, for 100 lucky Leuven residents to win golden tickets. These fortunate few were then treated to an evening of culinary delight, seated at the longest table in the protected heritage room which used to be the beating heart of the brewery, for an exclusive beer pairing dinner experience curated by local Chef Kwinten De Paepe.

Centenaire, party of the century

The festive week concluded with the centenary celebration 'Centenaire' on Friday, November 10th. During this evening, everyone joined in the festivities taking place in various locations within De Hoorn. Guests got to enjoy special beers and delicious cocktails while dancing among the old brewing kettles.