Like a normal brewery… but pint-sized 🍺

Batches are kept small, ingredients sourced locally, and you’ll be on first-name terms with the owner by your third bev. Microbreweries are pocket rockets 🚀 You’ll find them in warehouses alongside criss-cross canals and behind unmarked doors on leafy streets.

We’re heading to the beer capital of Sweden to try six of Gothenburg’s best microbreweries…

Spike Brewery, Gamlestaden

“Creativity is our mission, music is our passion, beer is the inevitable vehicle.”

We’re hoping any day now Spike Brewery will drop a volume of poetry called, Hops and Dregs. Until then, we’ll tell you about their bevs...

Martin, Mats, and Marcus (a boyband waiting to happen) are mates that started experimenting with flavour profiles after work. That grew into a brewery pub with its own taproom and guided tours. People come to this Gamlestaden hot spot for the street food, soul music, and 10 rotating taps.

Our pick of the bunch? Dusty Fingers. It’s a Brut IPA, which means it's dry but still really drinkable thanks to the citrus flavours. The can has a stack of New York rap artist’s LPs on the sleeve... And the name’s funny.

Vega Bryggeri, Tingstadsvassen

We’re going to Vega, baby...

Makes more sense when you know Vega Bryggeri does America-style IPAs. But you won’t be sinking pints in the Little White Chapel with Elvis, you’re headed for the old factory blocks of Göta Älv. Makes absolute sense because these guys are all about sustainability. They keep things community-based with brewing equipment from local welders.

As for the brews? They’ve got better backstories than the Hollyoaks cast. Take our fave, the Vega Winter Stout. It’s a tribute to Sweden’s first icebreaker, Isbrytaren I, which was tasked with keeping the ports ice-free and accessible for ships. In their words, it’s “a tribute to warming acts in harsh climates.”

Beerbliotek, Sandarna

So you thought it was just Brangelina that could squish two words together, did you? Beerbliotek wants you to think again...

Take a second. Appreciate it. Drink it in. They smashed the Latin word for library (bibliothēca) with the word for beer (beer). Pack up your bags folks, nothing you do will ever be as good as this.

They keep it simple in their brewery, creating beers that they want to drink and collaborating with their mates. It’s the perfect spot for chilled out weekend drinks or picking up a gift. Each of their beers is numbered to let you know the unique batch you’re slurping.

We like the West Coast IPA. It’s got a zesty taste thanks to the orange peel and pine. Ideal for modern IPA drinkers who like a bit of bitterness and a crisp finish.

Qvänum Mat & Malt, Kvänum

Claes and Annica Wernerson’s microbrewery is more wholesome than an apple crumble at your nan’s house.

The pair run their brewery and distillery out of some isolated barley fields in Varaslätten. Try saying that after a beer... or seven. The water comes from the farm’s own well, brewing happens without additives, and spirits are distilled in copper stills that look like antiques.

The beers are as natural as it gets, and the spirits are laced with malted grains, cocoa, cumin and fennel. YUM.

Psst! it's an hour and a half drive from the centre of Gothenburg. But what's a car journey between friends? Plus this place deserves an honourable mention.

Electric Nurse + Dugges, Landvetter

Every girl and her dad’s, brewing a beer in Gothenburg. Literally.

Ida Engström worked as a nurse and her partner Peter worked as an electrical engineer... A great name for a brewery was born. The pair began Electric Nurse as hobbyists but soon became fully-fledged beer aficionados.

Turns out hops run in the blood. Ida’s dad is one of the big dog brewers in Gothenburg. If you’re heading to his place, Dugges, get a cognac and coffee beer. It’s a coffee stout that’s been rested on a freshly emptied cognac barrel...

We’re not drooling, you are.

Poppels Bryggeri, Jonsered

This list wouldn’t be complete with the OG. The granddaddy of the microbrewery scene...

Poppels may sound all cutesy and sweet - but it’s no joke. It’s been said that one of these beers is drunk every 20 seconds. Madness. What’s micro about a massively successful company, you say?

Well, at Poppels they’ve managed to stay #humble. Way back in 1649, Johan Casparsson Poppleman started a brewery. He was one of Gothenburg’s first. The company was handed down through the family for generations before closing in 1835. But this beer-y fairytale has a happy ending. In 2012 a relative of Poppleman co-founded Poppels. They’re now the largest organic brewery in Sweden.

Get their take on the Double Indian Pale Ale. It’s an amped-up blend of six malts and American hops.