Four dream of beer: at this micro-brewery in Oerlikon, everything is done by hand
4.10.2018
Translation: machine translated
"How did you find out about our crowdfunding programme?" Dani Frei asks me on the phone. I can hear the enthusiasm about my enquiry in his voice. "Why don't you come round tomorrow? I need to have two hands free for brewing beer. Unfortunately, a telephone interview is not possible, sorry."
The Zurich district of Oerlikon is considered grey and faceless. Office and industrial buildings alternate with newly built housing estates, particularly popular with expats - foreigners who come to Zurich for a temporary work assignment. In this dreary neighbourhood, a beer is being brewed in the basement of an office building, where every step is (still) done by hand. It is warm and smells of sweet malt as I enter the cellar. "Right, you're a bit late," says Dani, wiping the sweat from his brow. "I started brewing at half past six today, so now I'm less stressed and can take my time for you. I slept in the brewery again today..." says Dani, pointing to a camp bed at the back of the cellar.
Less stress means he has to use a small kettle to distribute the mash (the heated mixture of water and grain malt) into three vessels. Dani dips the kettle into the hot mash dozens of times and empties it into the vessels. Lautering is the name of the process in which the "raw" beer is created, still completely without alcohol. The sugar is released from the grain. During the subsequent fermentation process, this sugar is then converted into alcohol. The equipment has nothing in common with the beautiful copper pots we know from large breweries. Rather, everything looks tinkered with. "It doesn't just look like that, it's a craft... for example, these are converted freezers that have a drain". The raw beer drips out of the drain and is collected by a kettle. These kettles also have to be emptied dozens of times.
From the kitchen to the brewing cellar
It all started in the kitchen at home three years ago, 105 years after the historic "Brauerei Oerlikon" closed its doors. "Everyone actually advised us against the name. We did it anyway," says Dani Frei as he empties the last drops of mash into one of the containers he made himself. Oerlikon doesn't have the best reputation among the hip locals. Only when the bike races take place on the open track in summer do they stray into the suburban neighbourhood. But the critics have been proven wrong: "Oerlik-Öhlsch", "Oerlik-IPA" and the summer beer "Oerlik-Ginciseaux" are selling like hot cakes, especially in the bars in the trendy districts 3, 4 and 5. So well, in fact, that the brewery now wants to expand.
By now, the four boys have invested a lot of heart, soul and savings. Brewing is a financial zero for them. They all work part-time. As an actor, Daniel Frei has no regular income and currently has the most time on his hands. He spends four days a week brewing beer. The savings are not enough for the expansion, which is why "Brauerei Oerlikon" is now looking for backers on the crowdfunding platform 100-days.net with a video appeal and various goodies. Dani beams: "It's incredible, but the target of 40,000 francs has almost been reached!". The money will be used to expand the plant and simplify the work process. It will then be possible to produce 700 litres a day instead of 400. "The brewing system is being customised in Italy and should be ready in spring. I hope that will be enough: we already have a few large orders for next year, and without the new brewing system we'll never be able to fulfil them," says Frei.
Manual labour has its price, even if not everyone understands that
David Schulze, the second of the four "Brauerei Oerlikon" operators, has now also arrived. Dani and David run the day-to-day brewing business, Tobi Etter often lends a hand in the evenings where there is a need and Alex Kleinberger is responsible for Marketing. When filling the bottles, for example, every helping hand is worth its weight in gold: washing out, filling, corking, stamping the expiry date and labelling - everything is done by hand. A "huge job", which also explains the relatively high prices of the speciality beer. "We've also been criticised for our prices," says Dani Frei openly. "But when we explain how many steps go into making a bottle of beer, the criticism quickly evaporates."
Expenditure and income are roughly balanced at the moment. In addition to the new brewing system, the purchase of an automatic corking machine is also planned. This is the only way to produce almost twice as much. A nice side effect: the quality can be brought to an even more consistent level with the new system. "We now have almost no more fluctuations in quality, but something can always happen. We once had to throw away 400 litres of beer because it was undrinkable. I still don't know what went wrong," recalls brewer Frei. In the meantime, he also has time for a quick tour while David washes out the large kettles.
Dividend is paid out in beer
"Behind this door is a beer lover's paradise," says Dani and opens a metal door. Cold air blows in. The cold room is stacked with black mugs bearing the brewery's distinctive logo. "Here on the right are all test series, stuff that's currently being developed. A honey beer, for example. Or a refinement of the summer beer". In any case, there is no shortage of ideas and visions. "You might think that the beer market in Switzerland is saturated. We have the most breweries per capita in the world and more are being added every year. But I think we still have room for improvement. Only just one per cent of all beer consumed in Switzerland is beer from microbreweries," Dani explains to me.
"After the huge response to the crowdfunding, our brewery is now the talk of the town. That gives us extra motivation. You've only just found out about us," I have to admit. An excellent craft beer is being brewed seven tram stops from my front door and I didn't know it until now. I changed my mind and contributed 200 francs to the crowdfunding campaign. In return, I get an invitation to the Beer Shareholders' Spring Festival. Quote from 100-day.net: "[...] you can drink as much beer as you want for one day". Cheers.
Do you want to realise your dream of brewing beer? We offer you an easy way to get started with this beer brewing kit.
And you can find our range of beers here:
Simon Balissat
Teamleader Editorial
Simon.Balissat@digitecgalaxus.chWhen I flew the family nest over 15 years ago, I suddenly had to cook for myself. But it wasn’t long until this necessity became a virtue. Today, rattling those pots and pans is a fundamental part of my life. I’m a true foodie and devour everything from junk food to star-awarded cuisine. Literally. I eat way too fast.
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