There has been commercial brewing at or near the site of the Affligem brewery in Opwijk, northwest of Brussels, since 1790, with the De Smedt family holding sole ownership from 1832 until 1984. Their first major brand was Op-Ale in 1935, a hoppier version of the Speciale pale ales that took root in Belgium around 1900. The business survived two world wars and in 1970 took over the brewing of beers for the Benedictine Abbey at Affligem, which had itself brewed at times, well into the 20th century. However, the family was reluctant to make the necessary investments required to compete in a market desirous of blond lagers and increasingly dominated by larger producers. In 1984 they sold half the company to their then brewery manager, Theo Vervloet, and passed him its stewardship. Vervloet applied his considerable abilities to single-mindedly making the plant more productive and the business more efficient, without compromising production standards. Its Affligem brands grew well enough for them to gain the contract to make beers for the Abbey of Postel, and others.
By 1999 Brouwerij De Smedt (or BDS) had revived to the extent that the family withdrew altogether, selling their shares to the Dutch brewer Heineken, who may have become the first truly global brewer but until that point was conspicuous by its absence in Belgium. The deal created Affligem BDS and ensured that the beers went global, with a guarantee that they would continue to be brewed only in Belgium until 2031. Heineken also bought much of Vervloet’s shareholding with the right to buy the rest upon his retirement, which they did, in 2010.
