Bakunin is a St. Petersburg company known for its original craft beer. Its founders started almost from scratch, but in just a few years they managed to reach the second place in Russia in terms of craft beer production.
Historical reference. In his youth, Alexander Romanenko worked as a bartender in Murmansk. Then he moved to St. Petersburg, got a job as a cider sales manager at the Apple Spas company. Visiting pubs, Alexander noticed the shortcomings of service, a meager assortment. In the end, the young man decided to open the perfect beer bar, where everything would be arranged according to his taste.
The place for the institution was chosen on the 2nd Sovetskaya, not far from Bakunin Avenue. In 2013, Romanenko founded almost the first beer bar-boutique Bakunin in St. Petersburg, where craft beer was served. This boutique has one of the best beer collections in Russia.
The novice entrepreneur posted a report on the opening on the VKontakte network, and after a few days, amateur brewer Yuri Mitin contacted him and offered to supply his ale. The owner of the bar liked the beer, but it turned out that the manufacturer cannot fulfill a large order, since he brews ale in his kitchen.
Romanenko and Mitin went to look for a brewery that could produce a large batch of beer according to Yuri’s recipe. At one of the presentations the friends got acquainted with the technologist Vladimir Naumkin. Soon the three partners founded the Bakunin firm.
Entrepreneurs had very limited funds, so their own brewery was out of the question. The company placed orders with third-party factories. From the very beginning, the owners of Bakunin made very high demands on the contractor’s compliance with sanitary standards.
Already in October 2013, the partners presented their first beer to the public – the American pale ale Laughing Sam. The drink made a splash among the regulars of the bar. For the next 3 years, it was the most popular product of the company. In 2016, the Russian imperial stout “Eclipse” was included in the top ten beers at the international beer festival in Tallinn. In the same year, the company took second place at the Belgian Borefts Beer Festival, which is held annually by the De Molen brewery.
Most of the company’s assortment is ales, lager is still the only one: in the absence of its own production, the quality of bottom-fermented beer is difficult to control. But the leadership of Bakunin does not hide its love for Belgian ales. Vladimir Naumkin is especially good at farmhouse ale – saison. The attempt to create the most mysterious variety of farm ale, the recipe of which brewers around the world are trying to restore, was also crowned with success – grisette.
The company’s policy is constant experimentation and creation of new, original sorts of beer. The most diverse and unexpected ingredients are used: raspberries, sea buckthorn, grapes, elderberries, even pepper.
Today, Bakunin draft beer is produced at 3 Russian factories, and bottled beer is produced at the Latvian company Latgales Alus. However, a pleasant surprise awaits fans of Bakunin soon. In 2017, the company acquired a large plot of land in Estonia to build its own brewery, so we can expect the company’s product range to become even richer.
Types of beer “Bakunin”
It is almost impossible to list all types of Bakunin beer, as their number is increasing literally day by day. Most popular:
Laughing Sam is an American Pale Ale (APA) with 5,6% ABV and 13% gravity. Thanks to the use of special hops, the drink acquired a lemon-floral aroma. Citrus notes on the palate conceal a delicate bitterness.
The Hand of God is an English Pale Ale with a 4,5% ABV and 12% gravity. Beer with a light citrus aroma was made for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
“Eclipse” – Russian imperial stout with milk sugar, vanilla and Colombian cocoa. Fortress – 11,5%, density – 27%.
Sunsets & Corvettes is an American (California) pale ale with 4,5% ABV and 12% gravity.
Red Maniac – smoked beer with the addition of bird’s eye pepper, strength – 6,8%, density – 16%. Pepper is felt quite strongly, so the drink is usually served with meat dishes.
Berliner mauer is a wheat beer with 4,5% ABV and 10% gravity. Wheat sour taste harmonizes with citrus tones of American hops. One keg of the drink was shipped to Australia, marking the first time that a draft craft beer produced in Russia has been exported.
HEMI Notorious IPA³ is a triple Indian Pale Ale with 11,2% ABV and 24% gravity. The drink was created in collaboration with one of the most famous Oregon breweries Boneyard Beer Co. American hops have been replaced with Australian and New Zealand hops. As a result, the beer smells of mango and other exotic fruits.
Zvon is a pink milky pale ale, 4,5% ABV, 12% gravity. The combination of lactose and raspberry puree gives the drink a taste of wild berries, which is in harmony with the delicate bitterness of Citra and Mosaic hops.
Batch No. 10 – saison with a tropical fruit aroma and a soft, refreshing taste with a pleasant sourness. Fortress – 5,8%, density – 14%.
Moloko+ is a stout with milk sugar (lactose) that adds a touch of toffee to the taste. Thick black drink smells like chocolate. Fortress – 6,8%, density – 19%.
Amphiprion – saison with sea buckthorn, fortress – 6%, density – 14%.
Du Soleil is a classic Belgian wheat beer with orange peel and coriander. For greater density, oatmeal is added to the wort. Fortress – 6%, density – 16,5%.
“Night in Manila” stout with raspberries, oatmeal and lactose. Fortress – 6,8%.
“Leningradets” – barley wine with oatmeal, fragrant with lilacs. Fortress – 13,2%, density – 28%.
