Crafting Goa's Nightlife One Brewery At A Time

A look at what’s chillin in the beer market of Goa

- Sapna Shahani

WHEN we travel abroad, most of us who are beer drinkers want to try local craft beers, which are unique, artisanal and more experimental than their blander cousins, lager beers. Internationally, the craft beer industry is worth billions in developed countries and has also made its way to developing countries like Vietnam, where it helps to boost tourism. In India, other cities like Bangalore, Pune, Mumbai and Delhi have seen microbreweries mushroom for some time now at an exciting pace.

Goa is a popular market because of lower excise duties and since it attracts a cosmopolitan crowd who drink more when they are on holiday. The consumption pattern in Goa goes against the trend of drinking stronger beers like in the rest of the country and has been primarily a lager market. But a few years ago, Bira stormed into Goa and when the market responded favourably, many others followed. Susegado moved their equipment from Singapore to the Habanero Tex Mex restaurant in Baga and Simba chose to launch their bottled wheat and India’s only stout in Goa before any other market. Mumbai-based White Owl followed and now, Bengaluru’s popular microbrewery Arbor is setting up a ‘solar’ unit in Pernem.