Craft beer culture in Croatia: Breweries in Zagreb

A culture of drinking craft beers has been increasing in whole Europe in the last years. For those who was the first in this field, there were limited resources about beer making. The profit was the last thing on their mind in the beginning. Everything started at home with very poor equipment. Even today, the beer-crafting is one new and still rising industry branch. Like all around the world, the Croatian beer making progressed from the big companies to small breweries, that find their place among beer lovers. In the whole country, there are more than 30 craft breweries. Only in Zagreb, you can find several very famous ones. Craft beer culture in Croatia started in 1994, and I will present you three most popular breweries.

Medvedgrad

Medvedgrad brewery dates back to 1994, when it was presented as the only small brewery in Croatia. Parallelly with the beer production, the pub was opened and for a long time that was the only place where you could try their beer. Only in 2012, the first beer was sold outside of the pub. In 2015, Medvedgrad (City of the beer) gets a recognition from the Ratebeer website as the best craft brewery in Croatia. Today, the capacity of this brewery is more than 10.000 liters of beer per day. The name of the brewery is based on the Bavarian tradition that the name is given by the nearest city, and in this case, it was Medvedgrad. The most popular beer is for sure Grička vještica. This is a red beer, dark lager slightly sweet and with great aroma. It was produced as a seasonal beer but it became regular because of its popularity.

Zmajska pivovara

After Medvedgrad, Zmajska pivovara (Dragon’s brewery) is the second most popular craft brewery in Zagreb and even in whole Croatia. Founded in 2013, it represents a pioneer of craft beer of modern age. In 2014, they were included in the best 10 newly opened breweries in the world. In every corner in Zagreb you can ask for Zmajska Pale Ale, and everyone will know what are you looking for. It is a light beer with mango and a bit of citrus flavor, and it is soo good! If you are more into dark beers, you can try Porter beer. Stronger than Pale Ale, it has a flavor of dark chocolate and caramel in combination with coffee and dry fruits. Don't try to imagine, come to Zagreb and try it! If you like to drink a bitter beer, you must try Indian Pale Ale, Pozoj. And of course, a very tasty and soft beer is definitely Hoppy Wheat, whose name is talking for itself.

Picture © Credits to: Shane808

The Garden Brewery

The Garden brewery is a relatively young brewery founded in 2016. It is located in the region of Zagreb called Žitnjak. The Garden Pub is a place where you can try four main beers and many special ones in the limited edition. It is interesting that this brewery has a beer in the can, which is very rare for craft breweries.

Picture © Credits to: KariHoglund

So, if you are into craft beers, come to Zagreb and meet the craft beer culture in Croatia! And when you come, check out the places where you can drink craft beers in Zagreb. Just be careful with how much you can take!