Põhjala Brewery is a craft brewery in Tallinn, Estonia. Its name is Estonian for "northern realm". It is the largest craft brewery in the Baltic states and the only one to be included in the Ratebeer "top 100" list of world breweries. In 2018 the company had a turnover of 2.3 million euros. Põhjala has a particular focus on porters, barrel ageing, and ingredients from the forests of Estonia.
History
The brewery was founded in 2011 by four Estonian beer enthusiasts, who were soon joined by head brewer Chris Pilkington, formerly of Scottish craft brewery Brewdog. The first Põhjala beer, Öö Imperial Baltic Porter, was contract-brewed before the company's original brewery opened in Tallinn's Nõmme district in April 2014. In 2015 the company opened its first bar "Speakeasy" near Tallinn's main railway station. In 2018 nearly 4.9 million euros were invested in moving production to a new brewery in the Noblessner Harbour area of Tallinn. The average capacity of the brewery is 1,200 hectolitres per month, and 6,000 bottles an hour can be filled on a new bottling line. The facility also houses a shop, sauna and taproom with 24 taps. In 2019 Põhjala opened a pop-up bar in the Chinese capital, Beijing.
Põhjala beers
Põhjala's best selling beer is Virmalised, an India pale ale which accounts for over a quarter of total production. In addition to a core range of nine beers, the brewery produces numerous specials and has collaborated with craft brewers such as To Øl, Lervig, De Struise, Jester King and Jing-A Brewing Co. The Cellar Series is a range of dark, barrel-aged beers while the Forest Series uses rare botanicals and forest ingredients. 70% of Põhjala's production is exported to over 30 countries, with the largest markets being Finland, France, the Netherlands, China and Italy. The brewery has been criticised for producing its Baltic porters using top fermentation, rather than the bottom- or cold fermentation often used for the beer style.
Core range of Põhjala beers
'Forest Series' of Põhjala beers
Examples from the 'Cellar Series' of Põhjala beers
Tallinn Craft Beer Weekend is an annualcraft beer festival organised by Põhjala Brewery, which first took place in 2015. It features over 40 Estonian and international breweries showcasing over 200 of their beers.
