Geuzestekerij De Cam

In Gooik, at the heart of Belgium’s Pajottenland, Geuzestekerij De Cam keeps lambic’s patient art alive without pretending to be a conventional brewery. Its identity is that of a geuzestekerij: lambic wort from neighboring producers is matured, blended and bottled in a historic setting whose brewing associations reach back centuries. The result is a small-scale, place-rooted expression of spontaneous-fermentation tradition. A blendery in an old brewing place De Cam was founded by Willem van Herreweghen in 1992 and began operating in Gooik in June 1997. The blendery occupies a former brewery site with documented roots reaching at least to 1705, while the surrounding building is recorded as ‘des Heeres Landcamme’ as early as 1515. The name Cam itself is an old Dutch word associated with a brewery or brewing farm. The work of the geuzesteker Karel Goddeau took over De Cam in 2000. Rather than brewing lambic as a conventional brewery would, he obtains lambic wort from artisan producers and allows it to mature in wooden casks before blending and bottling it. The local tourism authority describes the process as producing geuze and fruit beers, while Pajottenland sources note that geuze is made by blending young and old lambic and undergoing further fermentation in the bottle. Pajottenland in the bottle De Cam’s setting is not decorative background but part of its brewing identity: Gooik lies in the traditional lambic region, where spontaneous fermentation and gueuze blending form a living regional tradition. The operation also works with fruit beers, including kriek, and maintains an orchard with cherries and other fruit. Its character comes from combining inherited methods, local place and the changing components of each blend. De Cam is defined by patient lambic blending in a historic Gooik brewing setting rather than by conventional beer production. Gooik, Pajottenland, Flemish Brabant, Belgium 1992 1515: The historic site is recorded as ‘des Heeres Landcamme’, linking it to an old brewing-farm tradition. 1992: Willem van Herreweghen founded Geuzestekerij De Cam. 1997: De Cam opened in Gooik and introduced its local lambic-blending operation. 2000: Karel Goddeau took over the blendery.