Subjective ramblings about beer, pubs and associated topics

A decent pub

There are a few pubs in Oslo which are worth visiting, but there is something lacking in all of them. One has a splendid hand picked selection of beers - but only about a dozen. One has the broadest beer selection - but rude and uninformed staff. the micro brewery is OK -but has an uninspired range of beers. One place actually has a broad range of beers, but there does not seem to be any system in what they offer.

Here is what I would do if I was asked to set up a pub in Oslo:

I'd offer real, unpasteurized cask ale from rotating breweries. There are three brewers I'd contact: Norwegian flagship micro Nøgne ø, Møllebyen Mikrobryggeri in Moss and Dugges in Gothenburg, in Sweden, but just a few hours drive from here. When you see the success of real ale on cask in Sweden, there should be a market here, too.

I'd hand pick the best domestic bottled micro beers, which doesn't take long. In addition I'd stock the best bottled beer from the rest of Scandinavia - from Jämtland and Nils Oscar in Sweden and Ølfabrikken in Denmark. I would ask Jämtland to brew my house pilsener.

I'd stock a regular range of Trappist beers.

I'd have a rotating selection of Dutch, German, Belgian and English beer, finding a Continental wholesaler that could send me a steady supply of new beers according to my specifications. Maybe I'd team up with a beer importer to get them to do the leg work. I'd try for a mini beer festival each month, hightlighting a brewery, a region or a style. Everyone should be sure to find a new beer every week, in cask or bottled.

I would set up a website, updated with each change of stock, with the option of having an e-mail subscription.

I'd offer beer tastings.

There would be no Carlsberg products available

Posted by: KnutAlbert at 16:09 | link | comments (12)
beer, microbreweries, nøgne ø, dugges

Comments:

#1  08 January 2007 - 19:33

 

Golden Naked Christmas Ale could be the only Carlsberg product available.

If someone sets up a pub like this, you would probably get more ratings than me. ;-)

Anonymous

#2  08 January 2007 - 19:36

 

you should have some lambic as well. Not the sticky commercial stuff, you would need the real thing.
And maybe a broad selection of single malts as well.

Anonymous

#3  08 January 2007 - 19:44

 

Hva er det som hindrer deg i å starte? Dette er allerede min favoritt pub.

Anonymous

#4  09 January 2007 - 07:00

 

Two points: Sure, a lambic would be nice, but that would be for later - more extreme beers would be after the pub had established a customer base. I'd consider English real ales, too, it should be possible to hook up with the distribution system(s) they have on the West Coast of Sweden.

What's stopping me? To quote an old Willie Nelson song: If you got the money, honey, I've got the time!

KnutAlbert

#5  09 January 2007 - 12:12

 

Er det greit at puben som jeg vurderer å starte blir hetende "A Decent Pub"

Anonymous

#6  09 January 2007 - 12:57

 

Det koster en halvliter!

KnutAlbert

#7  09 January 2007 - 19:23

 

Er det greit med en adnams bitter - har tenkt i de samme baner som deg en stund - skal gjøre en del undersøkelser mot mulighetene.

Anonymous

#8  09 January 2007 - 22:54

 

Godt nytt år, Knut Albert! Høres ut som et drømmested- eller er det hallusinasjoner fra en ølørken? Skulle gjerne stilt opp både foran og bak baren for et slikt sted i Oslo!

Anonymous

#9  10 January 2007 - 08:14

 

Adnams Bitter er utmerket, et fremragende flaskeøl. Jeg må skrive flere slike blogginnlegg, så kommer leserne sannelig krypende ut i lyset for å kommentere også!

KnutAlbert

#10  12 January 2007 - 07:46

 

Hvis noen lokker med Adnams bitter, eller kanskje enda heller en Adnams Broadside så kommer ihvertfall jeg innom en tur!

Anonymous

#11  17 January 2007 - 08:56

 

There was a place called Gambrinius ølhus in central Oslo in the 90ies that tried to do something like this. I do not know why they folded. Could be that they tried to have too much available on tap, I do not know.

I do believe your adivise to be cautious in the beginning, and to start with a good but limited list, is a good idea.

Percjorgensen

#12  17 January 2007 - 12:39

 

I think they had far too many beers on tap. I would start with two cask ales plus a few wheat beers/lagers on tap.
I am truly amazed by the Swedish pubs with more than a dozen cask ales available, more than the busiest London pubs.

KnutAlbert

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