Could PomPomPom make craft cider Brussels’ next great local drink?

The emphasis is on small-scale cider rather than the sweet, standardised drink many consumers may associate with the category. Visit Brussels describes a generation of makers borrowing ideas from natural wine, craft beer and international cider traditions, including spontaneous fermentation, prolonged ageing and unconventional blends. Producers from Belgium and elsewhere in Europe are expected, although the complete daily roster should still be checked with the organiser.

That variety matters because “cider” covers markedly different drinks. Fermentation converts the natural sugars in pressed apple or pear juice into alcohol; the fruit varieties, yeasts, blending and maturation then influence acidity, sweetness, tannin and sparkle. A useful approach for newcomers is to ask each producer three questions: whether the cider is dry or sweet, whether it was fermented spontaneously or with selected yeast, and whether anything besides apples or pears was added. Those answers reveal more than colour alone.

PomPomPom’s founders are also producers. According to BRUZZ, four Brussels cider enthusiasts began making their Pomé cider in 2020 in the cellars of Grand Hospice and subsequently moved production to Forest/Vorst. They launched the festival a year later to give cider makers a shared public platform. Their own cider is offered exclusively at the event, BRUZZ reports.

The anniversary programme deliberately treats cider as part of a wider cultural outing rather than a specialist trade fair. Music ranges across live performance and DJ sets, while food provides an opportunity to try cider at the table instead of treating it only as an aperitif. That distinction is central to the organisers’ case: Belgian cider will struggle to become a regular purchase if consumers encounter it only once a year as a curiosity.

Belgium has orchards and a strong fermentation culture, yet beer and wine occupy far more space in shops, bars and the national imagination. In reporting for Le Soir’s SoSoir supplement, producers described the domestic cider sector as young and still working to turn curiosity into repeat sales. Festival co-founder Gary Schwarts said PomPomPom had helped producers meet one another; some later formed an association to communicate collectively and give the sector representation.

This is the broader significance of the weekend. The festival is not evidence that cider is about to displace Belgian beer, nor does its fifth edition prove a mass-market breakthrough. It does show how a small food-and-drink sector builds an identity: producers compare methods, customers learn a vocabulary, restaurants test pairings and makers gain a venue where they can explain why one orchard or fermentation produces a different result from another.

The local fruit story is appealing but requires precision. Apples grown in and around Brussels can be excellent, as the festival’s advocates argue, but participation by Belgian producers does not mean every drink is made entirely from fruit grown inside the Brussels-Capital Region. Anyone interested in truly local sourcing should ask where the orchard is, where pressing and fermentation occurred, and whether the maker grew the fruit or bought it. “Belgian”, “Brussels-made” and “made from Brussels fruit” are not interchangeable descriptions.

The Vaux Hall stands inside Parc de Bruxelles, called Warandepark in Dutch, in the City of Brussels municipality—Ville de Bruxelles in French and Stad Brussel in Dutch. The nearest metro station is Parc/Park on lines 1 and 5. STIB-MIVB says the station has been step-free since June 2025, with four lifts and seven escalators, although travellers with reduced mobility should still consult the operator’s journey planner for real-time lift availability.

The central location also places the venue within walking distance of Gare Centrale/Centraal Station. Brussels signage, transport information and public websites commonly display French and Dutch names together; an English-speaking visitor searching an app may therefore get better results with “Parc/Park”, “Vaux Hall” or “Warandepark” than with an English translation such as “Royal Park”. The City of Brussels event page is the most useful official municipal reference, while STIB-MIVB provides the authoritative route and accessibility information.

A little tasting discipline will make the day more rewarding. Start with drier, lighter ciders before heavily flavoured or sweeter examples, share pours where permitted, eat during the session and alternate alcohol with water. Designate a non-drinking companion or use public transport. Alcohol strengths can vary considerably between products, so visitors should read labels and ask producers rather than assuming every cider is low-alcohol. Families and non-drinkers can enter the public festival, but the organiser’s current programme should be checked for alcohol-free options and age-specific tasting rules.

PomPomPom’s immediate test is modest: can its fifth edition convert a pleasant late-summer discovery into sustained interest in Belgian makers? After the weekend, the more revealing questions will concern attendance, sales, new restaurant or retail listings and whether producer cooperation continues beyond Brussels. Those outcomes are not yet known. For visitors, however, the proposition is already clear: free entry makes this an accessible introduction to a small Belgian sector, while a few direct questions at the stands can separate genuine orchard character from a good marketing story.