Brasserie de Cazeau

The first Brasserie de Cazeau was established in Cazeau in 1753 as an appendage to a local inn. By 1795 it had grown into a full-fledged brewery, producing for the town and local countryside. By the beginning of the 20^th century, Brasserie de Cazeau began exporting beer.  World War 1 and the German occupation of Cazeau halted production and it wasn’t until 1926 that the brewery was finally re-opened. After a brief period of success World War II upended Europe once again, and once the dust had settled, Maurice, the brewery’s owner, handed over the brewery in 1952 to his son Jean Agache. The post-war period was rough for continental breweries; especially those that used long-fermentation methods, and in 1969 the Brasserie closed its doors. Long-fermentation gives the yeast more time to oxygenate and transform the surrounding sugars into alcohol, as well as running less of a risk of the yeast over-fermenting.

In 2004 Jean Agache’s son, Laurent Agache, partnered with his cousin to re-launch the brewery. Using second-hand equipment and a single recipe, the brewery returned to business. The results were nearly immediate; and since then production has steadily increased, to its current point of over 350 barrels of hand-crafted beers per year. The proud brewing tradition of the Brasserie de Cazeau spans over 250 years, two world wars, and a 30 year closing period. The brewery has withstood it all in their mission to maintain and innovate in the world of hand-crafted traditional beers.