Brewing gourmet beers

Q&A: Vivek Sharma

Howzatt, in Gurgaon, is the first micro-brewery pub in the country. General manager Vivek Sharma explains the concept of such freshly brewed beer to Neha Bhatt

Will the concept of a micro-brewery work in India?

There have been plans to start a micro-brewery in India for years. At Galaxy, we wanted to bring to India what has been popular in UK from the ’70s. Being the first micro-brewery, there will be curiosity around it.

We used the services of a brew master from Bangalore, Dr S Cariapa. We have worked with new flavours. Through our micro-brewery, on display in the pub, we will educate guests on raw materials, the brewing process and technology to produce craft beer.

Where is the technology from and what’s the investment?

We have a setup of eight tanks in the brewery which we have imported from China. This gives us a chance to have a variety in flavours. There is a capacity to process 250 litres of beer.

The beer market is growing so we hope to make full use of it. Fresh beer will be processed every two weeks. Setting up a brewery has cost us more than what a restaurant would have taken.

What styles are you experimenting with?

Taking an alternative attitude to brewing, we have four styles lined up which are free of preservatives. Our gourmet beers include the light lager — fewer calories, perfect for a corporate lunch. The premium lager is a full-bodied malt beer with higher alcohol content.

The dark lager is strong, processed with roasted malts and with a touch of sweetness and bitterness. The Weiss lager is brewed from premium malted wheat and light barley malt, resulting in a sweet-sour blend. The unfiltered taste will be new to drinkers. We will also introduce lime and orange beer.

How have tasters received this beer?

From around 400-500 tasters, most found our fresh beer to be less gassy, due to a lower degree of carbonation. The taste is light and crisp. Our wheat beer and dark beer have been most popular. The others are acquired taste.

How are you pricing your product?

We are looking at people from all age groups. But our mainstay will be corporates, young professionals and cricket enthusiasts. A visit to our brewery will be about 30 per cent cheaper than to other watering holes. We are planning branches across the NCR.