December the 5th, 2020 – the Porec-based craft brewery Bura Brew has been on the market for five years now, and from the initial three beers they presented to the market, nine eventually came to them – seven types in bottles and barrels and two which come solely in barrels.
As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marta Duic writes, Bura Brew’s beers are unfiltered and unpasteurised, and from the very beginning, this craft beer business has had three owners, Alessandro Zecchinati, Claudio Rossi and Veronika Beckers, and during the season they hire another employee.
Before heading down the road which would lead them to this craft beer adventure, they all worked in different industries, but decided to opt for change, move to gorgeous Istria and start a new business.
”We procure some types of the hops we use from Slovenia, and others come from other parts of the world. Additionally, some types of malt are from here in Croatia, others come from Belgium or Austria, and we produce our beer in our plant in Porec where we also deal with direct sales.
In 2019, we produced 650 hectolitres, and this year the amount should have been even higher had there been no pandemic. Regardless of that, 2020 went well, we can’t complain, we’re satisfied with how we managed to survive. From 2016 to 2019, our sales increased by 25 percent.
An important source of our income this year was completely absent – festivities, street food festivals and beer festivals where we participate almost every weekend with a stand where we sell a large amount of draught beer, meet many people, share our knowledge and promote our beer,” explained the Bura Brew trio.
In addition to constant production, they also have two limited edition beers: IBA Istrian Belgian Ale and Trippin Tripel. As they claim, these are two beers made in the style of belgian ale and as such are highly valued among consumers. They’re produced in a limited version because the second fermentation takes place in the bottle, which lasts at least four months, so they’re made only two or three times a year.
In addition to the shelves of retail chains such as Kaufland, Konzum and Interspar, Bura Brew also collaborates with a number of restaurants, cafes and pubs across the country.
”The last novelty we introduced to the market was our Seaside Session IPA, a hop beer with a citrus aroma but very drinkable which sold out in just a few days so we plan to produce it again. Our main market is Istria, but our products are present throughout Croatia. Local people know us and more and more people appreciate our beers. What they often tell us is the best compliment a brewery can get: in addition to our beers being good, people appreciate that our product is always the same and consistent,” they stated from Bura Brew.
Their last significant investment was in new fermentation boilers, and the plan was to invest in the expansion of storage space, but due to the pandemic, this plan was put on hold.
“This year we’ve proved that we’ve done well in recent years, that is, that we’ve introduced diversity. Diversity is fundamental: it means finding new sales channels, also abroad. But this year has taught us a lot, too. We constantly export to Austria, Switzerland, Germany and Italy. It was in these countries that sales went well, which helped us a lot with a solid season in Istria.
For 2021, we plan to present our new beers to the market, but first we must study the market trends in this period, it’s difficult for everyone, especially cafes and restaurants that are temporarily closed,” they stated from Bura Brew.
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