News / New lager to celebrate isles’ Nordic links
A NEW beer will go on sale during this year’s Bergen to Shetland yacht race to celebrate the links between the isles and Norway.
Lerwick Brewery has joined forces with the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) to develop the golden lager Kjøl, which means ‘keel of a boat’ in Norwegian.
This year’s race takes place between June 24-29 and the beer will go on sale during the festivities. It is anticipated the product will later go on sale throughout the country.
The UHI’s Centre for Nordic Studies teamed up with staff from the brewery to provide assistance on feasibility and branding.
The development of the beer is part of a wider project between Lerwick Brewery and the university to create a line of drinks inspired by popular Shetland events.
It has received support from Scottish Funding Council’s innovation voucher scheme, which invites higher education organisations to work with small to medium-sized companies to develop new products.
Lerwick Brewery manager Rhanna Turberville was unable to disclose the exact level of funding received, but she did confirm to Shetland News that the cost of “researching the project” was covered by the organisation.
Around 1,200 bottles of the beer will be made on this run, with the product expected to go on sale in a “number of shops, restaurants and bars around Shetland, including key sailing places like the Lerwick Boating Club”.
It is also hoped that the collaboration with the Centre of Nordic Studies will support the brewery in “exploring the Norwegian market as a potential export market”.
Turberville added in a statement that Kjøl has been created to “exemplify the closeness” between Shetland and Norway.
“Made with cluster hops and Shetlandic water, Kjøl will be a bright golden lager with floral and fruit notes,” she added.
“We hope the beer will provide the competitors with a refreshing taste of the north after a hard day at sea and we’re looking forward to working with the Centre for Nordic Studies to create more innovative products.”
Project leader Silke Reeploeg, a staff researcher based at Shetland College UHI from the Centre for Nordic Studies, said the aim was to reflect the isles’ marine heritage.
“Centre staff have a history of sharing our knowledge to support inward investment and business growth,” she said.
“For this project, we’re keen to help Shetland’s youngest brewery explore the potential of expanding its market with a new range of niche cultural products which will be of interest to local, national and international markets.
“We saw the race as a great opportunity to develop the first new product. We wanted the branding to reflect the shared maritime culture of the Northern Isles and Scandinavia.
“Members of the race organising committee and Lerwick Boating Club put forward suggestions for the name and we decided on Kjøl, the Norwegian word for the keel of a boat. We wanted something nautical that would relate to the ‘Norwegian-ness’ of the event and Kjøl worked on all these levels.”
The Bergen to Yacht race, now in its 29th year, is expected to bring around 200 competitors in up to 40 boats across the North Sea from Norway to Lerwick.
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