Reykjavík Grapevine - 02.07.2010, Qupperneq 44

Tannvernd barna
Probably the best pizza
in town
Pizzeria tel. 578 8555 Lækjargata 8 Downtown
150,8x195mm
RESTAURANT- BAR
Vesturgata 3B | 101 Reykjavík
Tel: 551 2344 | www.tapas.is
Try our famous
Icelandic
Gourmet Fiest
» Starts with a shot of the infamous
Icelandic spirit Brennívín
» Smoked puffin with blueberry
“brennivín” sauce
» Icelandic sea-trout with peppers-salsa
» Lobster tails baked in garlic
» Pan-fried monkfish with lobster sauce
» Grilled Icelandic lamb Samfaina
» Minke Whale with cranberry-sauce
» World famous chocolate cake with
berry compoté and whipped cream
The only kitchen
in Reykjavík open
to 23:30 on weekdays
and 01:00 on weekends
5.890 ikr.
27
The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 09 — 2010
Ölstofan serves up a one-of-a-kind tribute beer
The bar Ölstofan located on Veg-
amótastígur is a cosy, laid-back pub
known for a fine array of local and im-
ported brews. They have recently be-
come the only bar in Reykjavík to serve
its own exclusive brand of beer, thanks
to a collaboration with the Borg micro-
brewery. Borg is a small offshoot of Öl-
gerðin, the largest and oldest brewery in
Iceland. Opened one year ago, their first
project was working with the owners of
Ölstofan, Kormákur and Skjöldur, in
creating a one of a kind draft beer to suit
the bar’s collection and reflect the pur-
ported good taste of its owners.
“It started a year ago. Our most
popular beer was Grolsch and it looked
like we wouldn’t have it anymore,” Ko-
rmákur tells us, “Borg had just opened
and they asked us if we would like to cre-
ate our own beer with them.” They taste-
tested a variety of types of beers and
f lavours and landed on a light, German
pilsner with a strong Czech influence to
the f lavour.
The beer also has a shorter life-span
than the average brew, meaning it only
stays good for about three months and
has to be kept and served very cold. Be-
cause of this, Kormákur says the beer is
great to drink when one is very thirsty.
“It’s really refreshing and you can drink
a lot of it,” he chuckles. He also says the
beer appeals to both beer fetishists and
casual beer drinkers alike. “I thought it
was not a ‘girl beer’, but a lot of women
are very satisfied with it,” he goes on. “It
has a fruity taste and it is light enough.”
Being a woman and beer lover my-
self, this Grapevine reporter decided to
head down and try it. I can attest that the
beer is indeed quite enjoyable. The hon-
ey-brown ale has a satisfying edge and
a hint of bitterness that brings out the
hops. The bite is balanced out by light
hints of berry and the super cold tem-
perature at which it is served, making it
extremely pleasant to take nice big sips
of and have a few in a row. It also comes
served in a really beautiful tulip glass
that makes you feel super fancy while
drinking it. Maybe that’s why some la-
dies like it, but I just thought it tasted
damn good.
The brand is named for a close friend
who passed away last autumn. The mon-
iker is drawn from a popular song and
describes a happy-go-lucky person. “Bríó
is a way of life,” says Kormákur, “It’s like
when you have all your grocery bags and
you should go home, but instead you go
to the bar and your wife is calling won-
dering where you are, but that beer was
so good! My friend was named Bríó, so it
is in honour of him.”
He says the beer is now selling so
well that the brewery might have trouble
keeping up with the demand. “I thought
it would be maybe a quarter or one fifth
of our sales,” he continues, “but in the
first week it was 60% of our sales. Every-
one is taking Bríó now. Our regular cus-
tomers love it and we are getting even
more new customers.” They hope to col-
laborate with Borg on making more new
flavours in the future.
Drinking | Beer
The Belle Of The Bar
REBECCA LOUDER
öLSTOFAN
Special | Best Of Reykjavík: Locals
Favourite place to sit down and eat?
Við Tjörnina serves real traditional Ice-
landic food. It's also healthy and stylish.
Best place to grab a coffee? Mokka.
They do great lattes and cappuccinos
that are not made from a machine but
an old authentic coffee grinder. I once
asked them where their coffee beans
were from and they won't tell me. A
family secret apparently.
Best bar? I like the English Pub as it
has a great cultural influence.
Best kept secret? Öskjuhlíð is very
beautiful and you can see the remains
of the WW2 military base.
Egill Spills His Beans
Egill Prunner
Honestly, they did not pay us for publishing
this! We didn't even get one lousy free beer
or anything.