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Craft beer is a beer produced by a craft brewery that has nothing to do with big corporations. Instead of that, craft brewery is independent and has a limited annual production capacity. Craft beers are most often produced without substitute ingredients, whereby the quality of the beer is given the greatest importance.
Craft beer can literally be of any style. For example, a lot of people think that lagers are not craft beers. However, we must know that a beer brewed in a craft brewery will always be a craft beer, regardless of whether it is a lager, IPA, APA, Stout, or some other beer.
Craft beer is a beer made by a craft brewery and there is no need for further discussion about that.
For more details, read here.
According to the definition of the Brewers Association, a craft brewery is:
We would also like to add the following:
For a lager to be a craft beer there is only one condition: it must be produced by a craft brewery. For example, if Mlinarica makes a lager, that lager will for sure be a craft beer. Likewise, if one of our fellow craft brewers makes a lager, that beer will also be a craft lager.
Lager is not a craft beer only if it is made by an industrial beer producer/ brewery. To cut it short: all beers produced by a craft brewery are craft beers, including lager.
The main difference between ale and lager beer is in the fermentation temperature. While lagers ferment at lower temperatures (8-12 °C), ales ferment at higher (16-25 °C, and some even up to 35°).
In fact, the same yeast is present in both beers, but in each of them it needs different conditions for growth and development.
Since the fermentation of lager beers takes place at lower temperatures, they also require a longer time for fermentation and aging. While lager beers are, on average, ready for consumption in about 40 days, ale beers are ready in already 15 days (but this can also vary depending on the type of ale).
Lager beers are usually „clearer“ and more drinkable, unlike ale beers, in which the yeast produces additional flavors due to fermentation at a higher temperature.
The ideal serving temperature depends on the type of beer. Some lagers are best consumed when they are between 5 and 7 °C. IPAs and other hoppy beers are best served at 7-10 °C. Heavyweights like RISs, Barleywines, and Porters are best at 10-15 °C.
Each beer has its optimal temperature for consumption. When the temperature of the beer is higher, the aromas and flavors are felt more strongly.
Sour beer is a beer that is most often made by using bacteria or using „wild“ yeast better known under the name Brettanomyces.
There are 3 main techniques for the production of sour beers: Kettle sour (the most common one), Barrel aged sour beer (we are one of the few breweries in Croatia that also make their sour beers using this technique), and Spontaneous fermentation (that type of beer production we are also closely following).
It is considered that before the industrial revolution and the development of the microscope all beers were somehow sour because yeast had not yet been fully discovered. The brewers of that time did not know why exactly beer turns sour, so people needed to drink it quickly. Until the appearance of stainless steel materials brewers fermented most of their beers in wooden barrels and large pools.
The sour beers we appreciate the most are the ones that are for a long time aged in wooden barrels (it is done so to achieve a greater complexity of taste). We produce such beers in our Brettcave and Duality series under the style of Mixed fermentation sour beers.
More about sour beers you can find here.
The shelf life of craft beer mostly depends on the temperature at which you store it. If you do not pay attention to the storage temperature, there is no guarantee that your craft beer will still be good, regardless of its expiration date.
For example, if you store your craft beer for 2-3 months at a temperature of 25 °C, do not expect it to be good for consumption, even if its expiration date is in 6 months.
Craft beer is a living product that does not have stabilizers or preservatives, therefore it is best to store it in a cold place, in the refrigerator. We recommend you to respect the craft beer and its storage conditions. The craft beer deserves that, and so do you.
We can only say: both yes and no! Some beers have minimal foam or no foam at all, and they taste delicious. For example, Imperial stout, Barleywine, or some sour beers have a minimal foam, while also having rich aromas and flavors.
Hence, the foam does not determine the quality of the beer.
Still, if some beer is supposed to have a strong foam, such as lager or Weizen, and it, on the contrary, doesn’t have a stable one, this can indicate that something may be wrong with it.
This is probably the stupidest and most widespread myth and misconception about beer. To dispel this prejudice, let’s consider one example from the perspective of beer production. For example, we have a beer recipe, and the desired alcohol after fermentation is 4%. We then decide to add 2-3% of dark malt to the recipe. What will we get? A dark beer with 4% of alcohol. Therefore: the dark color of the beer did not increase the level of its alcohol.
The alcohol in beer is obtained from sugars and they come from grains. Sugars later bind with yeast and then alcohol and CO2 are produced. For more about beer production, click here.
To conclude on this topic: the percentage of alcohol is determined by the amount of sugar in the wort, not by the dark color of the beer. The more malt or other starch-containing raw materials we add to the beer, the more alcohol will we get in the end. Some beers have 10% alcohol and are still light in color.
On June 21, 2016 we have registered at the customs office, and from that day we officially started our beer adventures and challenges.
The color of the beer depends on the malt we use. For instance, for our Vienna lager we use 80 percent Vienna malt, which gives the beer a strong amber color. Pils malt, on the other hand, always gives a light, pale color. 3% of dark malt is enough to get a completely dark beer, etc.
In short, malt is what gives color to the beer.
Yes, you can, it is even recommended! We claim that with certainty, from our own experience, and believe us, we have tried it many times.
Of course, you still should not overindulge in beer drinking, because beer contains alcohol, and it is well known that too much alcohol makes the next day harder. It is even advisable to make a change while drinking. For example, after some imperial stout, or any other sweeter beer, some refreshing sour or lager will fit in perfectly, and vice versa.
Neither yes nor no! Of course, it is an indisputable fact that craft beer is of higher quality than an industrial one, so it doesn’t bring serious consequences for the next day, but we must point out, as we have already stated above, that beer is an alcohol-containing drink, and that excessive drinking of beer may easily cause a headache the next day.
IPA stands for India pale ale, which is nowadays the most popular beer style.
Historically speaking, this beer was created on a ship. When India was an English colony, the English transported their beers to India by ship. During the first voyage, the beer went bad. The English did not expect that the beer could get spoiled during the long journey from England to India. On the second voyage, they already had a little bit more experience. They decided to make a beer with a higher percentage of alcohol (which protects the beer) and a higher share of hops.
During the sailing, in order for the beer to survive the journey to India, they also added hops to the barrels. Why hops, you might ask yourself? Besides giving the beer a fantastic aroma and flavor, hops are also a natural preservative that protects the beer.
In conclusion, once the beer reached India, English soldiers enjoyed it without having any idea that they are partly responsible for the development of IPA.
Now you know the historical background of how IPA came to be, and today in modern craft brewing there are several subtypes of it. Some of them are American IPA, English IPA, New England IPA (NEIPA), Hazy IPA, Session IPA, Black IPA, Red IPA, etc. To check for all the types of IPA, take a look here.
The most common assumption of most people is that beer is made from hops. We have to say right away that this is total nonsense.
First of all, beer is mostly made of water (about 90%), followed by malt, then hops and yeast.
Hops are added to beer (into the wort) as a spice that balances the flavors. Hops give beer additional aromas, flavors and bitterness. There are also certain styles of beer made entirely without hops, for example Gruit beer.
For a more detailed description of the beer-making process, check here.
A lot. There are various subtypes of different beer styles, like subtypes of IPA, APA, Stout, Porter, Sour, Lager, etc. Here is a link where you can take a look at all beer styles.
Pub Mlinarica was opened in the summer of 1998 by Ivica and Sanda Jendrić.
Our brewery is located right next to the pub.
Who can even count that? Here is the link that will take you to the Untappd application, where we regularly update information about all new beers.
Beer can be spoiled for a number of reasons. For example, if we do not store the beer at the optimal temperature, it spoils easily. Beer can also spoil faster if something goes wrong during its production process. For instance, if the tank or the line through which we fill the beer are not washed properly.
Oxygen is a well-known and great enemy of already produced beer. The beer can easily spoil faster if the beer filler leaves too much oxygen in the bottle or can. The problem can as well arise if the supplier (or someone else) stores the beer outside in the sun during the summer.
There can be many reasons for beer spoilage. That is why it is the best to check the expiration date of the beer before buying it. If the date when the beer was bottled is also written on it, then we are sure that we know what we have in our hands. Although beer has natural preservatives, such as hops and alcohol, which extend its shelf life, we still need to store it at a cold temperature.
If you come across a craft beer that you suspect it is spoiled, it would be best and most generous of you to contact the craft brewery and tell them where you bought it so that the brewery can respond accordingly.
Absolutely YES! Draft beer before everything else! When the beer is packed in a keg/barrel, it is filled all the way to the top, which means there is very little room for the oxidation of the beer. Furthermore, the beer in the keg does not come into contact with UV rays,
and the cold temperature of the beer in the keg is thus retained for a long time. Something similar happens when beer is in a can.
Draft beers always taste better and fresher than bottled beers. Regarding draft beer, there is one thing that we have to take special care of, and that is the pipes/lines through which the beer passes.
These lines must be cleaned at least once a month so that sediment does not accumulate in them, especially during the summer.
Draft beer RULES.
Can! Can! Can! The beer in a can is better than the beer in a bottle! Unfortunately, a large number of people don’t even know this fact.
But why is that so?
We don’t know exactly either. People probably think that the can releases the taste of aluminium and that the beer will then not taste good anymore. People don’t know that the inside of the can has a fine coating that doesn’t release any metals or flavors, but it’s neutral and perfect for storing liquids.
The situation with a can is similar to that with a keg: in the can, the beer is filled almost to the top, so there is little room for oxidation. Likewise, beer in a can is also protected from UV rays, it keeps a cold temperature for a long time, it is easy to transport, and cans are also easier to recycle than glass.
Foremost, of course, here in Mlinarica, but then also in other cafes and shops in Zagreb and Croatia.
Some of them are: Valhalla beer bar, Spunk, Spirit, Masters, Spicy Days, Pomalo beer shop, TOiTO, Industry concept bar, Brewtiga.hr, Horvati, X, Volim Kvart, CroCraft, ugostiteljski obrt Galerija etc.
IT IS NOT! When the beer is cloudy, that is no reason to think it is also spoiled! Beers can be cloudy/hazy for a number of reasons. For example, wheat beers are always more cloudy due to the high presence of wheat malt in them. Wheat malt has a lot of protein and increases the cloudiness of the beer.
Yeast can also be one of the reasons for a beer to be cloudy. Certain yeasts have a weaker sedimentation ability and remain in suspension, giving the beer a cloudy appearance and a specific taste. Oats in beer can also affect its cloudiness.
All of these are normal factors that can affect the cloudy appearance of the beer, but one must know that sometimes cloudiness simply indicates that the beer is young. Young beer is a beer that hasn’t yet finished fermentation.
In it, the yeast is still in high suspension and the beer then has a strong yeasty and bitter taste. Such a beer looks the same as some NEIPA or Hazy IPA, but in fact it is a young beer that has not fully fermented. In such cases, therefore, you will only be able to rely
on your own tasting abilities when evaluating.
Still, you will rarely get young beer in a café or shop.
With our own hardworking hands. All the cakes, kremšnite, strudels, baklavas, urmašice, štrukle, knedle (homemade dumplings with plums), and all the other cakes we make ourselves and we are very proud of them.
From the first day, we have been making the mixture ourselves. Over time, we perfected the recipe and now we have one of the best mixtures for ćevaps and meat patty in Zagreb and beyond! At least that’s what our guests say…
From smaller family farms (OPGs), mostly located around Vrbovac and Karlovac.
With lots of love and also lots of good beer!
Craft beer is most often produced from malt, hops, yeast and water, without substitute ingredients and additives. Of course, in the process of creation, it doesn’t make sense to limit yourself to just a few ingredients. That is why all kinds off raw materials are put into craft beer, ingredients such as oats, barley flakes, various types of fruits, spices, lactose, etc.
Unfortunately, in recent times, an increasing number of craft breweries have started adding various synthetically derived aromas to their beers in order to obtain certain flavors. According to our beer philosophy, that has nothing to do with craft – it is only a shorter way to get the results. For us, craft beer is a challenge – how to get the desired aromas and flavors in a natural way – and also much more.
For a more detailed description of how craft beer is produced, take a look here.
With draft beer, it is best to first rinse the glass with cold water. After that, we can set the glass or beer mug at 45 degrees, and pull the handle for pouring the beer.
It would be the best for the beer to be poured without interruption, in order to release the CO2 from the beer as successfully as possible. Furthermore, the tap through which the beer passes must not sink in the beer during the pouring, because CO2 is then not released from the beer and it would in that case sit hard on our stomach.
When the beer is being poured from a bottle or a can, it would also be the best to first rinse the glass with a beam of water, and then pour the beer in a glass from a height drop distance sufficient to release CO2 from the beer. What exactly are we talking about, check in the video on this link.
We organize birthday celebrations, first Communions, confirmations, baptisms, Christmas parties, funeral wakes, etc.
