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BrewDog opens its first bar in Estonia to continue global bar expansion

BrewDog continues to grow its bar division with the launch of one of the first dedicated craft beer bars in Estonia, upping the ante for the country’s craft beer revolution

Independent Scottish craft brewery, BrewDog, this week launches a new bar in Estonia’s capital city, Tallinn. The milestone launch marks one of thefirst dedicated craft beer bars in the country.

Since BrewDog’s iconic Punk IPA became the first craft beer to be sold in the country back in 2011, Estonia’s craft beer movement has been gaining momentum, and this new bar will be a huge leap forward for the country’s beer fans.

BrewDog Tallinn is located at Rotermanni 2, 10111 Tallinn, between the city’s old town and the 10th Century harbour. The bar has been built inside a restored Estonian grain elevator, previously used for storing grains in the 1900s.

The bar serves the brewer’s signature headliner beers, including Punk IPA and Dead Pony Club on draft, as well as championing both Estonian and international brewers across its 12 taps. Local beers on offer include Prentzlauer Berg from Põhjala, Mosaiik from Pühaste and Metsik from Õllenaut. The bar’s extensive range of international craft beers includes Beer Geek Dessert from Mikkeller and Anagram Maple from Omnipollo. This week BrewDog Tallinn also became the first venue in Estonia to serve Cantillon’s Gueuze on draft, a small Belgian family-brewed beer and a firm favourite amongst beer fans.

The interior has been designed by Raul Titus, one of Estonia’s most famous interiors architects, and has four preserved grain hoppers which hang from the ceiling, establishing a new cathedral of craft for beer fans to enjoy.

James Watt, co-founder of BrewDog, commented:

“This new bar is a momentous milestone in the craft beer revolution in Estonia. Since Punk IPA helped kick start it all back in 2011, becoming the first craft beer that fans could get their hands on in the country, the beer scene has been slowly gaining momentum. Our supporters have been crying out for a bar for years now, and we can finally make that a reality. Not only will we be able to share our own beers with the city, but the bar will act as a platform to celebrate Estonia’s other awesome craft breweries.”

Continued expansion

The opening is hot off the heels of BrewDog’s AGM, where the brewer announced significant international expansion plans, including new bar locations across Europe, starting with a flagship Paris location. The brewer also announced that TSG Consumer Partners - a San Francisco-based, leading strategic equity investor in high-growth consumer brands - has acquired approximately 23% of the company, in a £213 million transaction. This involved £100 million to fund BrewDog’s continued global expansion, and the balance of proceeds to provide for early shareholder liquidity. The transaction values BrewDog plc at approximately £1 billion enterprise value and is designed to deliver long-term capital with a 10-year time horizon.

BrewDog’s founders, James Watt and Martin Dickie, also revealed that the company’s bars division now accounts for over £20 million of its total £75 million revenue and will continue to grow in 2017. Following Tallinn, the brewer will be opening a second site in Edinburgh as well as a third site in Glasgow within the coming months.

Tallinn marks the next stage in BrewDog’s European expansion, and plans are in place to establish a separate distribution network in Germany to grow its presence and promote craft beer across the continent.

James Watt continued:

“It’s always exciting to launch a new bar, but now feels like a particularly pertinent time. We nearly doubled our UK sales last year, which gives us a solid platform to expand our international reach even further. We’ve been building our presence on the continent since day one and by adding Tallinn to our list of European bars we’re reaching even more craft beer fans in the Baltic states. Tallinn is an incredibly exciting city, with a very keen craft beer community. This bar will help bring more exciting craft beers from around the world to this awesome, emerging beer scene.”

The brewer is also establishing itself in the US, where it has built its first international brewery in Columbus, Ohio, due to officially open later this year. In 2016 BrewDog launched its first US bar, DogTap in Columbus, and will continue to expand its bar division in the country by opening two more venues in Columbus before the end of the year.

BrewDog now exports to over 60 countries globally, and operates 16 international bars, as it continues its mission to make people as passionate about great craft beer as they are.

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About BrewDog plc

Since 2007 BrewDog has been on a mission to make other people as passionate about great craft beer as we are. From the Headliner series, which includes bold, uncompromising pack leaders like the flagship Punk IPA, to the Amplified range (beer, but turned up to 11), BrewDog creates beer that blows people’s minds and has kick-started a revolution.

Cofounders James Watt and Martin Dickie shook up the business world in 2010 with the launch of pioneering crowdfunding initiative Equity for Punks, an initiative that has seen the company raise £40m since 2009, taking more money through crowdfunding than any other on record. The funds, and the army of punk shareholders (56,000) enabled the Scottish craft brewery to scale up without selling out.

With almost 50 global bar launches, export into 60 countries, and a brand new brewery in Ohio opening in 2017, BrewDog continues to take the craft beer revolution stratospheric, whilst continuing to push the boundaries, invest in people, put the beer first, and champion other small breweries in its venues.

For more information, please contact:

Aaron Maughan & Elly Barham-Marsh

t: 0203 1379 270

m: 07718 5781 76

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