The Christmas beer from Norwegian star brewery Nøgne ø will be avaiable on cask this year, 200 casks to be exact. No, not in Norway, where the market is not yet ripe for this kind of venture, but in neighbouring Finland. Head brewer Kjetil Jikiun was invited by the Finnish micro Plevna to come over and brew the beer for them. The beer will be available in selected pubs and restaurants in Finland from December 1.
Plevna has a good reputation in the domestic market, having won two gold awards at this year's Helsinki beer festival. Nøgne ø is already well established in Finland, 5 of their beers are available in the government monopoly Alko stores, and they seem to sell well. For a Norwegian, it is a bit annoying that the Finnish tax regime makes the beers far cheaper than in Norway!
In the picture: Head brewer Kjetil Jikiun, Nøgne Ø (right) and head brewer Sam Vitanemi, Plevna