Põhjala and the craft beer industry in Estonia
Up in the north, there is a land of chaos and darkness, inhabited by terrible creatures. It’s very cold and there lies the source of evil. This horrible place belongs to Finnish and Estonian mythology. Maybe you are familiar to, at least, its name. Lots of local artists pay tribute to it. From literature to rock bands such as Sentenced. A few years ago an Estonian brewery decided to adopt the name as well, and they became known as Põhjala brewery.
The meaning of Põhjala is “northern lands”, but it refers to that mythical place described above. Enn Parel, one of the founders, says they chose this name to play with the geographic element, since they are located on the 59th parallel north, separated from Finland and Sweden by the Baltic Sea. “Others go for street, neighborhoods, city or even country names. We wanted to play with geography, but not in a limiting way, since Põhjala is an abstract location”.
“Estonia is a beer country and not wine. People is not afraid of tasting new things. Differently from Belgium for example, we are very open to new trends.”
For a very long time, Estonia has been a “beer country”, ranking amongst the top 10 per capita beer consumption locations around the globe. With the mission to put the country back on track over the beer map again, Põhjala kicked-off in 2013. In 6 years, they managed to build a solid brand, gaining customer’s attention and many markets, exporting now for approximately 40 countries.
How it all began
A country of tiny proportions, with a gigantic brewing culture. In a dispute with the Polish, the city of Tartu claims to be the place where the Baltic Porter style was born. Apart from discussing whether this is true or not, what matters is that they are quite proud to have a history around beer.
Beer fan for the entire life, around 17 years ago, Enn began to drink and have an interest in it. He used to research and travel, to drink and know more about beers. The interest got deeper and deeper, and he turned into a homebrewer.
When they came up with the idea of founding a beer brand, they all had other jobs, and this was just a side project. It all started slowly and carefully. They first tested how the beers were received by the customers, doing contract brewing. After a very successful beginning,
Then they decided to build their factory. They kept contract brewing and building the factory at the same time. They had to invest quite a bit. When the factory was about to be ready Enn and a partner quitted their jobs. They didn’t take money or salary in the first years.
By the time that Põhjala decided to enter the market, there were mainly two macro options available if you wanted to drink local. One was Viru, and other Olvi (which is Finnish, by the way). Imported beers: just a few shipments of Brewdog, Anchor, and others were arriving. Enn Parel says that Põhjala was definitely one of the main responsible for the fast development of the craft scene in the country, putting Estonia in the map of the high-end European breweries.
The key factor for the success
Some breweries achieve success with what we call a “hero beer”, a beer that stands out from the crowd, making the brand well known in the industry. But for Põhjala, success came due to a “Brewmaster hero” instead. When he joined, the brewery jumped years ahead of anyone else in Estonia, in terms of quality, creativity, and execution. Enn doesn’t deny the fact that their beers were of an inferior level, if compared to Chris’, “We wouldn’t be where we are today if it wasn’t for Chris”.
Chris Pilkington is a former brewmaster from Brewdog, in Scotland. They met each other when one of Põhjala’s partners did an internship in Aberdeen and had the chance to taste Chris’ beers. Chris got invited to Tallinn and they homebrewed together. Põhjala ended up making an offer to him: earning the same salary plus becoming their partner. In a blink of an eye, Chris was already there, brewing awesome recipes in Estonia.
Today, he is the mind behind all the recipes, all of them. Enn and his associates sometimes create the concept for some beers, but Chris “brews” the ideas, transforming concepts into recipes. This way, the founders are still involved somehow on the brewing process, but according to Enn, they don’t even know how to brew in the new equipment “it’s like a spaceship”.
Essentially Estonian
IPAS are awesome beers, sells good, but what they really like to do is to experiment. The country is covered with forest, around 60% of all territory. So people are used to living very close to nature. Things like going to the woods to harvest mushrooms are a tradition. Because of that, Põhjala decided to develop a special line called “Forest Series”.
For this set of beers, they do pick all the ingredients to brew from the Estonian forests. “It’s one of the most interesting things that we do”. How about a Salted Porcini Porter? Or a Birch and Juniper Ale? For dessert, you could also have the Brown Ale with Vanilla and Pine needles.
Enn doesn’t know if this is the peak of what they do, but no doubt this is one of the coolest and essentially Estonian beers you could ever taste it. Check out here the complete list of beers.
What’s trending in the land of Baltic Porter
Back in 2013, the Baltic porter was an immediate super hit. The first batches were always sold out in a couple of hours. But now, Pilsen sales beat the Baltic Porter every day. But their best-seller is the Virmalised, or Aurora Borealis — an American IPA.
Põhjala facts and numbers
- 2019 is their first year in the big brewery.
- Aurora Borealis is their best-seller by far.
- Production volumes:
Last Year 5500 Hl.
This year 11000 Hl.
Market share: Estonia is 30% of their market. From 70% left to export, the biggest buyer is France. Finland is number 2, China 3.
