The story behind Nørrebro Bryghus – from fall 2000 to the opening of Nørrebro Bryghus, Ryesgade 3.

The man behind the initiative, brewery director Anders Kissmeyer tells his personal story about the genesis of Nørrebro Bryghus:

When I in the fall of 2000 made my decision to devote myself 100 % to the project of starting up my own micro brewery, it was not only based on the belief in the idea and its possibilities. A private friend, who had earned well on establishing and later selling a biotech company, got so interested in the project that he invested one million DKK in the company, where I was to be the driving force in realising the idea.

In March 2001 I started working full time on making a thorough business plan for the project after leaving my job as head of department at Carlsberg. At this point the foundation of the idea had already been defined and described – an innovative and uncompromised quality-conscious brewery, which should actively participate in broadening the Danish beer culture. Based on own research and conversations with wise people with great passion and experience from the commercial part of the Danish beer market, it was rather quickly decided that the optimal way of launching the product would be to combine the brewery with a restaurant. Not only would this give a direct exposure and direct contact with the customers, but it gave me the opportunity to realise another of my ambitions: to bring forward the combination of good crafted beer and a more modern kitchen than the traditional Danish beer kitchen. This was inspired by Carlsberg’s Semper Ardens project, where Carlsberg worked together with Claus Meyer, a well-known Danish chef.

In late fall 2001 I contacted Claus Meyer about my project. He offered his competences within the business, if a trustworthy and solid business plan could be established … A few month later I came into contact with Frederik Heegaard, who had only just sold his life’s work – Novasol. Frederik got interested in the project and after thorough and intense work on the business plan, Frederik stepped in as the main investor and as a driving force in both the preparations, the preliminary operation phase and as chairman of the board.

Frederik Heegaard's involvement in the project was in many ways the final breakthrough. Not only did he put a lot of effort and work into the project, but he also managed to contact the remaining and necessary investors. During spring 2002 a durable construction was in place with ten small private investors.

I must say that it was some of a lucky punch that Nørrebro Bryghus came to be located at Nørrebro. During the fall 2002 we had reached a point where a more concrete position of the brewery had to be determined. At that time we only had one attractive opportunity available. But to be 100% sure that we had not overlooked anything, we decided, one final time, to contact the estate agents that we had consulted earlier. In this connection Ryesgade 3 came up. The owner of Ryesgade 3 was interested in bringing more life to the area, because the building was mainly for office use. The first time I saw the premise it was in a rather raw state, but there was no doubt in my mind that it was perfect for a microbrewery.

The area around Ryesgade and Nørerbro share some of the same values that lie in the intention behind Nørrebro Bryghus: innovation, quality and a positive lifestyle in an informal atmosphere. The old, classicistic building, where Nørrebro Bryghus is sited, is both beautiful and carefully renovated by C.W. Obel Estate. The premises – we believed at that time – were suitable in size and proper proportions. The horizontal division between the two floors was partly removed to provide enough space for the brewery. The brewery now became the centre of attention with the steel tanks and the raw brick walls. Perfectly matching the raw and minimalistic design of the restaurant.

This successful aesthetic unified whole and coherence is owed to the architect Lone Wiggers from C.F. Møllers drawing office. The untraditional graphic design elegantly frames the interior, a masterpiece from Søren Varming, Punktum Design.    

And finally - where else should Nørrebro Bryghus be situated? It all feels as if it was meant to be, but of course it was the position that provided us with the name for the brewery. A name that already is widely known and a name that we are very proud of.

In March 2003 the final tenancy agreement was settled with C.W. Obel. Everybody – at least me, who had been working full time on the project for the last two years – was very eager to get started as fast a possible. So a very tight and ambitious schedule for the reconstruction, interior design and plan for opening was formed. The aim was to open in August 2003.

This tight schedule indicated that we had to start the rebuilding before the final details of the project had been discussed. It was a very existing way of doing such a large project, but far from advisable. A large part of the interior design of course had to do with the brewery itself, as we needed to be able to start using it. It goes without saying that we needed the brewery ready some time before opening, so that we could serve our own crafted beer from day one. No beer – no opening!

How it is possible to make room for and finishing a fully functional brewery in less than 2 months, with an already very tight schedule and a not fully developed rebuilding plan, can be hard to understand. And as it turned out it was even harder to do in reality, because of the many demands to water pipes, gas, electricity and many other factors fundamental for the functions of the brewery. Lars Hjorth (at that time a newly hired brewery assistant, now Nørrebro Bryghus’s Master brewer) managed to keep all the balls in the air and all the involved parties interested and yet still (almost) happy and satisfied, even though they where working their arms of to do everything in half time. Because of this, it was possible in mid July to start the brewing process. In no time the 5 fermenting tanks were filled with hand crafted beer from Nørrebro Bryghus.

Without being too technical, the brewery is built so that it is possible to supply enough beer to the restaurant and bar. As soon as beer is ready it is transferred to the storage tanks, so the fermenting tanks can be refilled. Unfortunately the cold storage room had been several weeks delayed according to the plan. So 5 weeks before the planed opening we had 5 tanks of finished – and very drinkable – beer, but no place to put it and therefore it was not possible for us to brew more as was planned. If the first guests at Nørrebro Bryghus were just a little bit thirsty, it would not take long before we would run out of beer. And that was exactly what happened. The last Friday in September – exactly 2 weeks after the opening – we ran out of 4 of the 5 beers we had on tap. A catastrophe we could only barely hinder, by getting beer from other micro breweries that resembled our own.

But the most important element in an organic unified whole, which Nørrebro Bryghus is, cannot be neglected. It is all the people who put their heart, soul, ability, time and enthusiasm into creating this company and who almost solemnly decide whether or not the ship will sail. Nørrebro Bryghus is no exception. Already from the beginning of the summer 2003 the first key persons – at that time brewery assistant and now master brewer Lars L. Hjorth and Kitchen chef Frederik Stormoen (in March followed by just as talented Mads Magnusson) were found and followed by at that time restaurant manager and now restaurant director – Maj Toppenberg. Thanks to their incredible work and dedication in the period before the opening and after, Nørrebro Bryghus has become a reality and a growing success.