Carlsberg will establish a new brewery in Lithuania in partnership with Brooklyn Brewery, extending the two companies’ collaboration in Europe.
The new site in Klaipėda, in the west of the country, follows the recent joint venture in the UK, which saw Carlsberg acquire craft brewery London Fields. The business will be operated by a joint venture between the Danish outfit and Brooklyn Brewery.
The firms also partnered on HK Yau – a new brand of beer exclusive to Hong Kong – in June.
The new brewery in Lithuania will be installed at the site of Švyturys Brewery – part of the Carlsberg Group – and will see its brewers collaborate with those from Brooklyn Brewery to create a range of small-batch classic and experimental beers.
The brewery will be located where Carlsberg-owned Švyturys beer is made.
The new range is scheduled to launch at the end of this year, following completion of the construction of the new building at Švyturys Brewery.
Rolandas Viršilas, CEO of Švyturys-Utenos alus – the Carlsberg-owned beer company that produces Lithuania’s two most widely consumed beers – said: “Brooklyn Brewery has become a synonym for high-quality craft beer, and the fact that they are coming to work in Lithuania is evidence of our robust beer market and our passionate consumers.
“We have noticed that our consumers’ habits have been changing: the beer-drinking culture and the level of knowledge about beer is rising; and the demand is growing for diverse flavours and new, versatile beers. The partnership with Brooklyn Brewery will allow us to satisfy this growing demand by offering numerous new, exclusive and experimental beers.”
The collaboration between Carlsberg and Brooklyn Brewery dates back several years: the two brewers have operated the the New Carnegie Brewery in Stockholm since 2012 and opened the EC Dahls brewery in Trondheim, Norway last year.
Brooklyn Brewery CEO Eric Ottaway said: “By investing in Klaipėda, we are expanding our collaboration with the Carlsberg Group in Europe, and we believe that our work with the Lithuanian brewers will help both parties to grow. We are equally excited to work closely with the great local beer enthusiast community, and look forward to exploring all kinds of new flavours together with them.”
© FoodBev Media Ltd 2024