• Tweeter

  • republish

Indians, Americans and Germans drink their stuff in beer. RFI / Como Bastin

In five years, sixty breweries have made the city a paradise for lovers of India Pale Ale and other artisanal mousses. Brewmasters from all over the world flock to the Indian technological capital.

From our correspondent in Bangalore,

Sitting on one of the 2500 chairs of his establishment, Martin Bernard presents his cuvée. " Here, a Belgian white with orange and coriander. Here, a beer brewed with peat-smoked malt. Here, a cider that was made with a concentrated juice because the apples grow in Kashmir and that at the moment it is complicated to get some! The man is Canadian, but we are not in Montreal, not even in Brussels, but in Bangalore. He is responsible for Big Brewsky's barrels, a two-hectare "micro" brewery that, like many here, is delusional.

A few years ago there was only Kingfisher, the famous but somewhat tasteless Indian national beer. But today Bangalore is experiencing a brewery revolution that has no equivalent anywhere in the world. More than sixty gigantic bars make and distribute their own pressures and compete with extravagant recipes and decorations. " We installed a waterfall with a large pool of water, water lilies, an enclosure of industrial bricks , describes Martin. Here, everything is wrong, but everything is true! "

Eldorado of hops

Martin is part of the new generation of entrepreneurs from around the world for this hops Eldorado. Among them is Benedikt Scholl, a Munich man who takes care of the 46 Ounces cuvées, a brewery born from a joint venture between Indians, Germans and Americans. Here everything has been thought out to remind you of the famous Biergarten in the Bavarian capital. " We are the biggest beer garden in town ," says Benedikt. There are large wooden tables where to land, a lake, garlands ... The only difference with Munich is that we can stay open in winter and there are palm trees! " But also that the grass is plastic ...

Big Brewsky, the largest Indian brewery. RFI / Como Bastin

As for drinks and food, 46 Ounces also plays Germany's card. " We offer Hefeweizen, a white typical of Munich's Oktoberfest ," says Bénédikt. Depending on the week, we also serve SauerBraten, sweet and sour beef, veal cutlets or sausages. This German brewery did not grow by chance. It is located in the heart of Electronic City, one of the city's business and technology districts. " There are big German companies like Siemens here, and that brings us customers, " says Benedikt.

Bangalore, the Indian Silicon Valley, is home to a population of Indians and expatriates who have lived all over the world, the city's thirst for craft beer. While finishing the 6 in Munich, the Oktoberfest lasts here all the month of October. Under the late monsoon, Narayan Manepalli, founder of the brewery Geist, organizes an evening inspired by the Bavarian nights. His career is representative of this new generation of cosmopolitan foam lovers. " I worked for a long time in the United States, so when I returned to India, I wanted to give my fellow citizens access to quality beers. Launched in 2013, Geist today distributes 40,000 liters of beer a month, including the famous KamaCitra.

" India " Pale Ale

But other reasons explain the excessiveness of the phenomenon. After having been a beer consultant in Belgium, André Leblanc has been offering his expertise in India since 2013. Since the rooftop of the brewery Yellow Submarine, designed in tribute to the Beatles, he traces the genealogy of beer in Bangalore. " The English had placed a lot of garrisons in this city and the India Pale Ale (IPA), which is so fashionable today, was invented for them. It was a special recipe for the drink to withstand the long boat trip from London. "

Beyond the link with the colonial past of the city, legislative constraints are at the origin of the boom of the breweries. " The importation of foreign liquor or even from one Indian state to another is very heavily taxed ," explains André Leblanc. It is therefore more economical for a bar to make its foam itself. However, Bangalore state legislation, Karnataka, imposes a minimum area of ​​1,000 meters for any establishment wishing to obtain a brewer's license. This explains the disproportionate size of the establishments in the city - some would brew as much black money as hops, murmurs an expert on condition of anonymity. According to studies, the beer market in India is expected to grow by 8 to 10 percent a year.

In the heart of Bangalore, there is the luxurious "Kingfisher" skyscraper. Billionaire founder of the eponymous beer, Vijay Mallya had a replica of the White House built on his roof ... but had to go into exile after trouble with the tax authorities. While ten new giant breweries are being built in the city, the home of the father of the Indian national beer is now empty . At 130 meters high, this kitsch palace continues to float as an obsolete symbol at the time of the hop revolution that is seizing Bangalore.