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Stockholm awash with beer and whisky

The Stockholm Beer and Whisky Festival has hit town again and, as Jennifer Heape discovered, it’s a far cry from beer bellies and a packet of pork scratchings.

Published: 26 September 2008 17:11 CEST
Stockholm awash with beer and whisky

Housed in the beautifully renovated Nacka Strand Factory, the Stockholm Beer and Whisky Festival is expecting its largest turnout so far in its sixteen year history:

“It’s our biggest ever. This year we have over 15,000 different whiskies and beers on display and are expecting between 23,000 and 25,000 visitors over the two weekends” said project manager Marianne Wallberg.

On entering the exhibition, visitors receive a rather lovely souvenir pint glass from which beer tastings can be supped. Once inside, it is surprising how large the venue is. A bustling indoor space, where banners, posters and stalls all jostle for attention. The whole atmosphere is complemented by live music and several food vendors, from English Fish and Chips to an Aussie barbecue.

Once the initial disorientation had subsided, the first port of call was Sigtuna Brygghus. The stall represents one member of Sweden’s burgeoning micro distillery movement. Located near Valtsa 7km from Arlanda Airport, north west of Stockholm, Sigtuna Brygghus produces a mere 4,000 litres of beer per month.

Sigtuna has 8 different types of beer on the menu so far and is one of the only micro breweries in Sweden focusing on German style beer. Manning the stall was Mattias, who explained how the brewery is “trying to keep the tradition alive”.

Of their more unusual brews, mead must be the winner. Packing a whopping 10 percent alcohol content, the mead sampled was very light in colour with a distinct but in no way unpleasant taste. “It’s a great substitute for Champagne”, says Mattias. “I always bring it out for New Year”.

Next up was Slottskällans Bryggeri where, surprisingly for such a male dominated industry, one of the experts was a young woman. When asked why she decided to get involved in the brewing industry, Charlotte replied: “I like beer”.

Working her way up from humble beginnings as a bar tender at her Student Union boozer at Uppsala University, Charlotte states that she got involved with Slottskällans because she “wanted to show people that there is more out there than just simple lager”.

Recommended by Charlotte herself, the deceptively easy-drinking Imperial Stout was the next to be tried. Despite a 9 percent ABV and a full-bodied taste, it is a very palatable tipple with hints of chocolate and coffee.

Founded in 2003, Oppigårds Bryggeri is another new contender in the micro brewery game. In-house expert Ulf Beijner suggested a sample of the Late Summer Ale, a surprising drink with a delicious fruity taste, most notably of grapefruit.

Also up for appraisal from Oppigårds was their Starkporter; a dark, sweet beer with a strong taste of coffee and chocolate, and the fantastically drinkable Golden Ale.

In addition to beer, the festival hosts many varieties of whisky. Opened in 1999 but not fully commercially functional until 2002, Mackmyra was Sweden’s first whisky distillery.

The question of why set up a distillery in Sweden comes to mind, considering the popularity of Scottish whiskies? A question to which Mackmyra spokesman Christian Ingerhed retorts: “Why not?!”.

Although still a small enterprise with only 28 staff, Mackmyra Whisky is making a big impact within the industry.

“There’s a great market for whisky in Sweden, there’s a lot of interest in it, especially malts”, explains Ingerhed: “We wish we could produce more, but since we started up so recently, we are just waiting for the whiskies to mature”.

Mackmyra is a distillery with a big vision, with plans to take Swedish whisky to the international market. “We have 30,000 bottles ready and labelled for overseas buyers” said Ingerhead. And with allthe ingredients 100 percent Swedish, Mackmyra is confident it will be a hit.

Swedish produce was not the only fare on offer at the festival, with American beer well represented. Bob Pease, vice president of the Brewers Association comes annually to the event in order to highlight American craft beer.

Pease aims to bring the success of craft beer in the US to Sweden by promoting the export of American beers to Scandinavia. With over 40 breweries participating in the Export Development Programme, it is proving popular.

“We have found that demographically, Swedish beer consumers are educated and usually with some disposable income”, said Pease. “They are interested in, and willing to, pay for something better. We want to raise the profile of speciality beer in Sweden”.

In particular this year, Pease wants to focus on combining beer and food: “Beer actually goes better with food than wine, it’s just that wine has the moral high ground”.

Cheese is a great first choice for those wanting to experiment mixing beer with food, but sweets and desserts can also offer delicious partnerships.

There are a myriad different beer types and tastes and the best way to learn about coordinating food and beer is to experiment. But for those who would a little guidance, or just some inspiration, then have a look at the Brewers Association’s beer and food matching chart

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Moving on from the booze, Scottish expat Anne Dunlop, originally harking from just outside Glasgow, was presenting her series of delicious whisky-inspired fudge. Ranging in taste from Laphroaig to Lagavulin, the homemade treats are a real delight. Fudge is also a great accompaniment to beer. Try with a full flavoured, sweeter beer, such as stout.

The Stockholm Beer and Whisky Festival was a thoroughly enjoyable and interesting experience, and is sure to blow away any lurking misconceptions or prejudices against the humble pint. The festival is running from the 25-27th September and is well worth a visit.

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How the Covid crisis led to a boom in Swiss beer production

Switzerland now boasts the highest density of breweries anywhere in Europe, with the Covid crisis a major factor in transforming the country into a beer hub.

Published: 20 August 2021 16:06 CEST
Updated: 25 September 2021 07:24 CEST
How the Covid crisis led to a boom in Swiss beer production
The Feldschlösschen brewery. While Feldschlösschen might be the country's best known beer, there are hundreds of smaller breweries worth checking out. Photo: Wikicommons.

When it comes to food and drink exports, Switzerland is best known for cheese and chocolate. While Swiss wine has carved out a niche on the global stage, it is Swiss beer which has recently started to make its mark on the global stage. 

In 2020, 80 new breweries were established in Switzerland. 

Switzerland now has 1,212 breweries – which gives it a higher ratio of breweries to people than any of the other big brewing nations in Europe, including Germany, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic and Belgium. 

Just ten years ago, Switzerland had only 246 breweries, while in 1990 there were only 32 breweries in the entire country, the Neue Zürcher Zeitung reports. 

Switzerland is getting thirstier

The explosion in brewery numbers is a consequence of a change in the Swiss appetite for beer. 

Reader question: Can you drink in public in Switzerland?

In recent years, the classic lager variety has gradually fallen out of favour, with the share of craft varieties growing by 43 percent over the past five years. 

The change is a genuine example of quality trumping quality when it comes to beer consumption. 

In 2010, the average amount of beer produced by each brewery in Switzerland was 11,000 hectolitres, while that is now less than 3,000. 

According to Switzerland’s NZZ, only 14 breweries produced more than 10,000 hectolitres of beer last year, while more than 1,000 breweries produced less than 50 hectolitres. 

While the variety of beers being consumed has expanded – particularly those made in Switzerland – the amount of beer each Swiss consumes has fallen slightly in recent years. 

In 2008 the average Swiss consumed 58 litres of beer, with 55 litres being consumed in 2019 – the last year for which figures are available. 

In 1980, the average Swiss consumed around 70 litres of beer per year. 

The following chart from Statista shows these trends. 

Beer consumption over time in Switzerland (per capita). Image: Statista

This pales in comparison with serious beer drinking countries, with the average yearly consumption in Germany being 140 litres. 

Wine still leads the way however in Switzerland. Of those who consume alcohol in Switzerland, 32 percent drink beer while just under half (49.4 percent) drink wine). 

While anyone bragging of cheap beer in Switzerland might have had a few too many, for people living in Switzerland the costs are relatively affordable. 

In addition to the high wages paid in Switzerland, the Swiss VAT rate of 7.7 percent is the lowest in the OECD, a 2021 study found. 

Statistics show that Switzerland has an above average consumption of beer per capita when compared to OECD countries. 

Just one in five Swiss abstain from alcohol completely, which is low by OECD standards. 

Why now? 

The proliferation of new breweries is obviously welcome for the nation’s beer drinkers, but it seems that Switzerland is coming late to the party. 

According to the NZZ, a major reason is Switzerland’s alcoholic drinks ‘cartel’, which meant that all alcohol was sold in standardised form nationwide. 

The cartel “regulated sales, prices, quality, recipe and range of products for which the whole country was advertised collectively and uniformly,” with the result being bland, mass market beers in each of Switzerland’s 26 cantons. 

The rules were so pervasive that even pub owners were in many cases restricted from choosing which beers they wanted to have on tap. 

Created in the early 1900s, this cartel survived until 1991, when it finally fell. In typical Swiss fashion, it was even kept in power by a referendum which took place in 1958. 

As a consequence of the change, it is now easier than ever to start smaller breweries – which in turn influenced the Swiss palette to move away from the standardised cartel lager and to more adventurous brews. 

Seven beers to try in Switzerland

Whether you’re a beer enthusiast or a sometime sipper, you’ve probably heard of the big market brands like Feldschlösschen, Haldengut and Gurten. 

Here are some lesser known brands which will tickle your fancy. 

Quöllfrisch

While most of the beers on this list are relatively unique, Quöllfrisch is a standard lager type beer with which most people will be familiar. 

However, it’s anything but standard and represents perhaps the best a blonde lager can be. From Appenzell, this beer is relatively easy to find no matter where you are in Switzerland. 

In fact, it’s served on Swiss airlines. 

De Saint Bon Chien

The L’Abbaye de Saint Bon-Chien is a truly unique beer. With a strength of 11 percent, the sour beer is aged in wooden barrels that previously contained red wine. 

Highly sought after, the beer comes from Saignelégier in the canton of Jura close to the French border. It is the highest ranked Swiss beer on the beer ranking site ‘Untappd’, with several discontinued beers from the same brewery sitting alongside it. 

Relatively difficult to get, it is available in small bottles or 20 litre kegs. 

Brüll!Bier

Zurich’s Brüll!Bier is one of the city’s best microbreweries.

Unlike many other Swiss breweries which tend to focus their efforts on only a few beers, Brüll!Bier brew several varieties touching on traditional styles, contemporary classics and experimental offerings. 

While the red ale and the helles are excellent session beers, one speciality is the Prince of Ales Yorkshire Pale Ale, which can only be found at the British Beer Corner in Zurich. 

Brewed to resemble a Yorkshire Pale Ale, it’s tasty and delicious – and will go down well even if you’ve never had a YPA before. 

Calvinus

Another beer that can be found in most parts of the country, Calvinus has several different traditional beer styles including a wheat beer, a thick dark ale and a Belgian pale ale. 

Originally from Geneva, it is now brewed in the mountains of Appenzell using only organic ingredients. 

According to legend, it is based on a recipe handed down in Geneva by Calvin the Reformer. 

Ittinger Klosterbräu

An amber ale with a relatively standard alcohol content (5.6 percent), Ittinger Klosterbräu is bitter but fruity. 

The beer is brewed in a former Carthusian monastery on the banks of the Thur river. 

It’s also one of the rare Swiss beers to be made with local hops – which are actually grown by the brewery itself – with more than 90 percent of beers made with hops exported from elsewhere in Switzerland. 

Bier Factory Rapperswil

Rapperswil, on the outskirts of Zurich, is not only a great place to live if you work in the city – but also a great place to have a few beers. 

The brewery has a taproom where you can try many of the beers they brew, including some staples and some experimental favourites. 

One of the best is the Wanderlust Pale Ale, a hoppy pale ale which can easily be a session beer. 

Appenzeller Castégna

Another beer from the beautiful Appenzeller region, Appenzeller Castégna is brewed with chestnuts grown in the southern canton of Ticino which give it a “sweet, chestnutty aroma” according to a rather uninventive online review. 

Brewed by Brauerei Locher, the Castégna is relatively difficult to find throughout the country other than in Ticino. 

It’s a proud vegan friendly beer, whatever that means, and is often served with desert due to its sweet taste. 

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