When was it started:
About 11 days ago (besvaret 03-03-2015) we signed the paperwork to purchase the building in Tejn that the brewery will be housed in but the actual work on it started after we moved to Bornholm in May 2014. Since then we have been sourcing ingredients, making contacts and looking for a perfect location for the brew house. We started test brewing in September last year and are looking forward to getting the actual beers out there.
Real brewery or "contract brewery":
Real Brewery. We have tanks, equipment, bottles and barrels arriving every day.
Who is behind the brewery:
Jessica Jenkins and Christian Skovdal Andersen. Jessica is one of the main force behind Australia's first gourmet restaurant with a beer in focus, as well as co-owner of Boneyard Brewing in Melbourne, Australia. Christian is a familiar face in the Danish brewing scene, where he runs the internationally renowned beer brand, Beer Here.
How did it come to this:
When we moved to the island we fell in love with the people, the area, the food culture and the produce and we wanted to contribute to it with something that hasn't been done before. We wanted to create a range of beers that aren't readily available in today's market featuring as many local ingredients as possible. We sourced some that are already grown here, some farmed and some foraged in the wild but have also collaborated with people over here to grow things that aren't as yet available and will be grown specifically for our beers. Also, with the combination of the two of us and our different backgrounds we think we can create a pretty special product.
What is the plan:
At the moment we have capacity for 100,000 litres per year. And I think we will leave it as that for a while. The plan is to export from the very beginning. We already have several interested distributers around the world which is very exciting. Once we get the brewery up and running we will start doing tours and tastings. From there we will be opening a tap room where people can come drink and hopefully also eat food specially chosen to match the beer. In our barrel room we will be starting at 20-30 person private dining room. It will be for special tastings or dinners to show people how incredible beer can be with food. We will also be having a small store on the premises where people can come and purchase the beers and other produce that we will be creating here.
What kind of beers should we expect:
Our focus is on mixed cultures, open fermentation, local ingredients and aging on wood. We are starting with about 150 barrels from all over the world that have previously had wine, cognac, whiskey, champagne and a range of other delicious liquids in them. Some of the beer will spend up to three years in barrels. There will be funky, sour, bitter and smooth beers in the range. We are creating a range of beers to pair with food though they will obviously be beautiful to drink by themselves as well.
What's the next move:
Well, seeing we just got the building we have walls to knock down and walls to fix up, equipment to arrive and install and general beautifying of the place. Really we just need to get beers in barrels as soon as possible so we can hopefully have something available by May.