Craft Beer in Ljubljana

Slovenia is an excellent wine producer and has more than 25 000 wineries. The deep knowledge from the winemaking is fusing with the beer culture and gives Slovenian crafts an unique taste. The overall focus is on the yeast and not only on the hops as many brewers tend to do.

The capital Ljubljana has much to offer and is a very cosy and lively town with cute streets and beautiful houses. Almost very restaurant in Ljubljana has a few craft beers available and you have over 30 active breweries to choose from.

When in Ljubljana, begin with at visit at the Tektonik Brewery that has a tap room and brewery at the same place. The brewery has guided tours every Friday which are led by Nataša who has very good knowledge and passion about craft beers. After the tour you have eight craft beers on tap to choose from and a handful on bottle.

Until today, Tektonik has brewed over 48 different beers and does excellent beers sold around Slovenia and some abroad. Tektonik wants beer to be available for everyone and has a policy not to exceed 5 euro for a half liter of craft beer. Some barrel aged crafts cost more but all other beers cost around 4 euros. The food is thought through and all charcuteries and cheese are locally produced and well matched with the beers.

There is also a good beer shop in Ljubljana called  Beer Shop Že v redu. They have ten taps with craft beer and more than 100 beers on bottle and can.

The best craft beer bar in Ljubljana is probably Lajbah Craft Beer with 22 taps filled with Slovenian craft beers and a few foreign ones. Cosy outdoor seating as well as indoors and the staff have good knowledge on local crafts. Beers are rotating fast so you can always find something new to sample if you already did their 22 taps.

If you are more curious, take a bus 20 min and visit Loo-Blah-Nah Craft Brewery. They are known for their ipa and ale and have 10 beers on tap at the brewpub. But you can also sample their beers at Lajbah or Beer shop Ze V Redu.

Yeast Experimenters and Breweries outside Ljubljana

Reservoir Dogs Brewing have made around 50 beers so far and have their brewery and tap room in Nova Gorica just by the Italian border. They are specialised in barrel aged beers and beers brewed with wine yeast. They have over 200 wooden barrels filed with beer waiting to mature and be blended for their special editions. Sour beers aged in tequila barrels or imperial ipas stored in whiskey barrels are some of their creations. Many beers are stored almost two years and those that are fermented with wine yeast can be over 10 % strong. The wine yeast is coming from organic farms in the area and they do also brew with wild yeast similar to many Belgian beer styles. Don't be surprised if you find their beers abroad, they export to most countries in Europe and have collaborations with foreign craft brewers.

Another brewery focusing on special yeasts is Barut Brewing and Blending with 19 beers produced so far. They are experimenting with wine yeasts and brave flavours so if you are into sour beers, Barut is a must to try. Since beer with wine yeast is something more popular in Slovenia than in neighboring countries, it's a kind of signum worth exploring.

Another interesting brewery is Pivovarna Pelicon that has made 24 different beers and are most known for their ipa and ales.

The HumanFish Brewery has made over 40 beers and brew very nice ipa and stouts. They are also part of the top breweries in Slovenia and a must to try. This is one of the older ones and have played an important part during the boom in Slovenia.

Maister Brewery is also relevant for the beer connoisseur. They have made almost 20 beers and has been in the craft beer business for many years.

This is not all but many relevant breweries to try when in Slovenia.