Mikkeller Collaborates With To Øl on New Bar in Nørrebro, Copenhagen
When the man behind the successful Danish microbrewery Mikkeller was a physics teacher at a Copenhagen high school, he taught two of his students to brew beer after school. Now the three of them have teamed up to open a world-class beer bar in Nørrebro, Copenhagen.
The two high school students Tore Gynther and Tobias Emil Jensen got a bonus education when they were students at the Copenhagen high school Det frie Gymnasium. By coincidence one of their teachers was Mikkel Borg Bjergsø, who alongside his work at the school, built up Mikkeller, his world acclaimed microbrewery. After school he taught the two enthusiastic students to brew beer in the school kitchen. Today the brewing has become more than just a hobby for the two students, who started their own brewery, To Øl, in 2010. Mikkeller and To Øl have now joined forces and are opening up a very special bar in Nørrebro, Copenhagen.
“We’ve become friends and thought it would be fun to open a bar together, but at the same time, the opening of the bar is a way to promote To Øl and make it an even stronger brand,” explains Mikkeller’s owner, Mikkel Borg Bjergsø, who recently became a partner in To Øl, when he made a capital contribution to the company.
Bar of the year
Mikkel Borg Bjergsø already owns the beer bar Mikkeller located on Viktoriagade, Vesterbro. The bar was elected ‘Bar of the Year’ by Politiken, the Danish daily newspaper, and was recognised by The Sundays Times as one of the top 50 best bars in the world. The popularity of the bar has made it difficult for the bar staff to give the service and guidance they wish for.
“The new bar is supposed to take some of the pressure from the Viktoriagade bar, but at the same time we, of course, have the intention of creating something new and crazier. Once again we aim to serve the world’s best beer in the best possible manner in the best possible surroundings,” says Mikkel Borg Bjergsø.
The new bar is called Mikkeller & Friends and opens on March 16. It is three times as big as the existing bar and will have an adjoining bottle shop.
Moreover Mikkeller & Friends has an exclusive cooperation with the U.S. brewery Three Floyds making it the only place outside of the U.S. serving Three Floyd’s draught beer. The Chicago-based brewery has been hailed as ‘The Best Brewery in the World’ on the internationally acclaimed beer site ratebeer.com four times during the last six years, and its exclusive, legendary beer ‘Dark Lord’ – just like the brewery – has attained cult status among beer nerds all around the world.
Forty taps
All in all the selection of beer on offer will be something out of the ordinary with no less than forty taps, which is twice as many as the bar on Viktoriagade. There will also be an impressive selection of bottled beer on the menu. Moreover the bar offers special gourmet sausages and cheese to enjoy with the beer.
Mikkeller has hired a team of interior decorators to create the perfect surroundings for the beer, which will be far from the well-known brown pub interiors with sports on a flat screen.
“We have the ambition of creating a modern kind of bierstube with lots of raw and masculine details and different areas to sit and stand that will make it possible for the guest to create their own intimate space without being isolated from the rest of the bar,” says interior decorator Karsten Lüllof, who along with carpenter and designer Kristian Lillellund, is responsible for the interior.
To take care of the daily running of the bar, Mikkeller has hired the Swedish wine and beer sommelier Fredrik Johansen, one of the most competent beer experts in Northern Europe.
About Mikkeller
- Started up in 2003 as a hobby project inbrewer and physics/math teacher Mikkel Bjergsø’s kitchen in Vesterbro, Copenhagen.
- Was elected ‘Brewery of the year’ in 2006, 2008 and 2009 by the Association of Danish Beer Enthusiasts.
- Is placed among the world’s best breweries on the leading beer site Ratebeer.com
- Is the most exported Danish brewery with export to over forty countries around the world
- Has made collaboration beers on microbreweries all over the world – from Belgian and USA to Russia, China and Brazil.
- Has brewed the house beer for Michelin star restaurants Noma og Kiin Kiin (Copenhagen) and Alinea (Chicago) and a row of other gourmet restaurants.
For further information go to www.mikkeller.dk
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