Would you like a beer with a view to how it's produced? – 3Bir brewery offers craft gin as well

On the first wave of craft beermaking in Serbia in early 2013, the friendship between three old acquaintances and the love of beer slowly matured into an idea of craft beermaking for commercial purposes, eventually turning into a business partnership in 2016, Aleksandar Bisevac, the director at the Novi Sad-based craft brewery 3Bir (Zbir), says in his interview with eKapija.

– Today, 3Bir has five employees, and in 2018, we got another member in our family, Loft cafe restaurants – Bisevac says and adds that they also established their own production facility last year, as well as a wider production capacity and beer offer.

Our interviewee points out that 3Bir follows world trends when it comes to the craft scene, but that it also experiments with beer styles and ingredients, so that the end-product would be unique in the market. They currently offer 15 beers, some of which are always available (Akira, Slager and Shake), whereas the offer of other beers depends on the season and the market demand.

– Akira is a red IPA rich with aromas of mango and tropical fruit, which won the best drink award at Ukus Fest and the grand gold medal at the Agricultural Fair in Novi Sad in 2019. Our beer Gari, a dark American stout, won the cup and the grand gold medal at the Novi Sad Fair in 2019. it features the aromas of espresso, tiramisu and dark chocolate. Slager is a German lager which combines German consistency and local hops, whereas Shake is a milkshake stout – a milky sensation of refined aromas, rich in taste and full of the finest milk chocolate, caramel and morning cappuccino aromas, with a sweet strawberry finish – Bisevac says.

He points out that they are always trying to surprise their customers with something new. They now offer a new beer – Arhipelag, a light IPA beer with refreshing elderberry Hawaiian isle flavors and the color of a yellow sapphire. According to Bisevac, the capacity of the brewery is 1,000 liters, whereas the monthly production capacity is around 10,000 liters of beer.

3Bir sells its beers in Novi Sad and Belgrade.

– The best and the widest offer of our beers is in Novi Sad, at the Beer Store outlets, Loft cafes, Pivoteka 77 outlets, Brick Bar and many others, but we are also present in several outlets in Belgrade, such as Srpska Kuca Piva, Low Alternative Bar, Pivodrom... – says Bisevac, adding that 3Bir beers are not being exported yet.

When asked about the perspectives of this job and the problems experienced by producers of craft beer, our interviewee points out that craft beermaking is currently on the rise in Serbia, but that it should be taken into consideration that the market is young and therefore challenging in some ways.

– Some of the challenges are characteristic, such as the lack of professional workforce, the monopoly of large producers and similar, but the specific problem in this industry is that there are almost no local producers of raw ingredients for the needs of craft breweries. That's why beermakers are forced to import or buy imported ingredients, which makes the production much more expensive – our interviewee complains.

The 3Bir brewery, as he says, gets some of its hops from a local manufacture located in Backi Petrovac, and these are mostly American hops varieties with pronounced aromatic features, whereas the Pils-type barley malt is procured in Backa Palanka. Another problem, according to Bisevac, is that there are no producers of specially selected brewer's yeast, so all beermakers are forced to import this ingredient as well.

All things considered, is craft beermaking profitable?

– We'll see. We are not yet in the process of making a return on the investment. There's a great potential, but it also requires a certain amount of time, because the market is still developing. I assume that, in around 10 years, the market will be stable and a wider public will be aware of the advantages and qualities of craft beer – our interviewee believes.

He adds that the beermaking technology is widely known and relatively simple, but that making a healthy beer without flaws requires a lot of knowledge, effort and attention to detail.

– Beer is spoiled very easily, the biggest two culprits being microbiological contamination and oxidation, so it's imperative to keep the hygiene at a high level, because craft beer is an unpasteurized and unfiltered beer – Bisevac points out.

He also reveals 3Bir's plans for our portal:

– We are also opening our Tap Room, an outlet which will be separated from the production facility by glass, which will enable the visitors to enjoy top quality craft beer with a unique view to the production process. Also, we are currently experimenting with strong alcoholic drinks, so our offer includes a gin made using our own recipe. We also hope for an expansion of the capacities of the brewery and the offer, but we also plan to educate the market by taking part in various events, panel discussion and lectures about craft beermaking.

Branislava Petrovic

Zbir pivara d.o.o. Novi Sad

3Bir brewery

Aleksandar Biševac

craft beermakers

craft beermaking

craft breweries

production of craft beer

production of hops in Serbia

brewers yeast

production of barley malt

craft beermaking profitability

craft beer flavors

Tap Room

Akira beer

Šlager beer

Shake Milkshake beer

Arhipelag beer