3 Fonteinen, Lot, Belgium

3 Fonteinen is a traditional lambic and gueuze brewery with a long history dating back to 1887. It is known for its adherence to heritage, honest production methods and the place it has held for years in the top 50 best breweries in the world.

Today, the brewery is located 'on top of the mountain' in the village centre of Beersel, while the wooden casks are located 'down below' in Lot, next to the Senne. It is in this latter location that 3 Fonteinen is expanding with a 'beer pilgrimage site’: a new brewery with a park and a visitor centre.

The new building houses a barrel room, a logistics hall for bottling and labelling, offices and - the eye-catcher - the new brewery, built on the same scale as the original site in Beersel. In order to experience and share the taste and beauty of their products, there will also be a new Lambik-O-dream: a tasting room that will overlook the brewery and offer space for events. 

In essence, this project is about combining different activities. The connection between these functions is made by a concrete cupola: a 30-meter dome spanning the space between buildings and creating possibilities for events. Each façade of the adjacent buildings acts as a pillar to the central dome. An additional connecting element under the dome is the boardwalk. Built high up in the air, it gives visitors a view of the functions surrounding the brewery, without disturbing the brewery’s activities.

Around this project, the existing industrial area will be transformed into a park. In it, wild Schaerbeek chickweed will be planted and there will be room for about twenty bee colonies. The paving required for logistics traffic and emergency services on the site will be kept to a minimum.  

The roofs of the different buildings will serve respectively as an energy roof with solar panels, a green roof with herbs, a parking lot for visitors and a grain roof that will be clearly visible from its surroundings thanks to its slope.