Let’s take a look at some local Montenegrin beers!
A small introduction to my beer notes. While sipping the beautiful nectar that is beer, I write the first thoughts that come to my head. These may make sense, or they may not. They may be way off from the official tasting notes, or they may be bang on. My point is, they’re very personal, like a diary, and I don’t write them for anyone other than myself although I’m now sharing them with you.
Reach out and let me know if you’ve tried these beers, what you make of them, or if you want to understand more about my metaphors/analogies/descriptors!
Disclaimer: This is a blog post about beer and therefore aimed at adults only. Adult content: Alcohol and Adult Language.
The Establishments
My impression of the Montenegro beer scene was that it’s a very new market there. The Nikšićko is the industrial giant and when questioning a barman about the beer, he called it the ‘government beer’. Craft beer is not very known in the country, and those that do exist seem very small, quiet but with a high price tag whacked on them.
Our tour guide was not familiar with any local craft beers, yet he guided myself and my partner to a bar in Budva Old Town he thought might sell them, or know somewhere that did. They knew of no other places in the vicinity but they had two on their menu, and only one available: El Hefe from Fabrika Craft Brewery. While the Blonda from Mala Novska Pivara was a similar price to the industrial Nikšićko, the El Hefe I drank in Budva Old Town and the Nitrox beers we saw in Kotor Old Town had a lot higher price point. To the point I walked away and didn’t even buy any of the Nitrox beer as I felt I couldn’t justify the prices (around 8€+ for a glass smaller than a pint).
There is a beer festival that happens annually I believe and I think the scene will grow over time. That just means I’ll need to check back in a few years’ time… such a shame 😉.
Let me share with you a few of the places where we located and I partook in the consumption of this fine liquid.
Pub Got
I said it in Volume Two and I’ll say it again: Pub Got is a marvellous oasis and well worth a visit. I was telling you about the knick-knacks and pub tankards hanging from the ceilings, well there are old signs and other such decorations plastered around the walls and even a replica phone box painted onto the walls. The barman was super friendly and the service was excellent. He said there had been a pub on those premises pretty much always and they still display the barrel gifted to the owners from the brewery in 1864.
The beer taps were amazing. For the craft beer Mala Novska Pivara – Blonda, they had somehow managed to ‘craft’ a beer tap out of… a saxophone! Yes indeedy!
Pivnica
This bar is on the strip of Herceg Novi, next to the seafront. There is plenty of seating space and the bar is up some steps, over some rocks and under a wooden roof. The prices in here were pretty reasonable: my partner could get a vodka and mixer for around about 3€. To the right here you can see some prices, correct as of June 2023. Remember the Wise Words section of Volume One? This will be useful here 😊
This bar was the first place I tried the unfiltered Nikšićko (Nefiltrirano) and I loved it. I do tend to like unfiltered beers and often prefer the unfiltered versions of beer. The staff are pretty friendly, especially when the bar is quieter and you can ask questions about the drinks. When it gets busier, usually later in the evening and night, the staff are rushed off their feet and it’s not as personal service. This is to be expected, of course. There is music, and during the afternoons it’s super chill.
I’d recommend coming here for the Nikšićko Nefiltrirano as it was quite rare in other places.
Casper Bar
Located in a wee corner of the Budva Old Town, our tour guide Vuk led me to this little watering hole in the search of local craft beer. On the day we visited, they only had one available, which was the El Hefe by Fabrika. They usually had one other, however unluckily this was out of stock. I think it was around 5€ for the bottle, perhaps a little more.
It was a nice corner in the sun, with bar stools and some chairs with lower seats. All in all, it seemed fairly popular and it does serve some light meals. We stayed just for the one drink. I didn’t think I was going to enjoy the El Hefe as I think wheat beers can be iffy, and the description really did not endear me to the beer. Nevertheless, I was anxious to try something that wasn’t the ‘industrial’ beer and powered through.
I was not expecting to like this beer as these more modern, fruity colourful numbers like this as usually not my thing. But this was actually a lovely surprise and I did enjoy it. In case you want to visit, click this link to land on the bar’s Instagram page (I’m not affiliated).
The Beer
We’re going to jump right in with, of course, the local Montenegrin beers and then right afterwards, the beers I drank during my holiday but were not brewed in the country itself. To show which I drank on draught and which I drank from bottle or can, we shall use the Montenegrin word Točeno and then either ‘Bottle’ or ‘Can’, whichever is appropriate. If you also read my Volume One, you might remember that Točeno is the Montenegrin for ‘draught’.
Let’s get to the pivo!
Local Montenegrin Beers
- Nikšićko Svijetlo (Točeno):
Smells nice, lagery, decent drink. A fizzy start but not a fizzy finish and it has a nice head. It’s refreshing but a bit bloaty. A good lager, fine for holiday for sure. I can and will drink it.
- Nikšićko Nefiltrirano (Točeno):
Nice head. It’s pretty opaque. It looks nice. It smells a bit smoky maybe? Nice, smooth drink and it’s less fizzy than Svijetlo. It’s got a good, rounded taste and hits the palette right. It’s got a good body. A pretty simple beer and it’s refreshing. My favourite version of Nikšićko by far.
- Nikšićko Tamno 6.2% (Bottle):
Smells dark, chocolatey. Despite being a darker beer, it’s still fizzy. Taste almost like it’s gone off a bit? I am not a fan of this beer. A burnt aftertaste. Naaaaa.
— Sidenote: I’m not a huge fan of darker beers normally anyway but I always try, you never know!
- Fabrika Craft Brewery El Hefe – American Wheat – 4.7% (Bottle):
Very mangoey hue. Fully opaque. It smells fruity but not bad. It’s thick. Honestly, it’s much better than expected. If it is fruity, it’s subtly so. There’s a slow aftertaste but it’s not overpowering. An overall pleasant surprise. Halfway in, there are fruity notes for sure.
- Mala Novska Pivara – Blonda (Točeno):
Smells like heavy, watery lager. Very refreshing after climbing stairs in 31ºC. It’s not too fizzy, and what I consider ‘easy drinking’. It’s simple and good. Brewed in this municipality (Herceg Novi). Lovely to try. It’s very drinkable.
World Beers
- Nectar – 5% (Bottle, Bosnia Herzegovina):
It’s a standard, fizzy lager. It’s a bit shitter than the Nikšićko: thinner but refreshing.
- Lav – 4.5% (Bottle, Serbia):
Standard lager. It’s kind of heavy going down. It smells alright. It’s drinkable but I’m not loving it. Quite fizzy and a bit cheap tasting. Meh.
- Jelen – 4.6% (Can, Serbia):
Simple lager. It’s like a Tennants (Scottish lager) but not as bitter. Quite soft and more rounded aftertaste. Easy drinking and relaxing, although it may be a bit bloaty.
- Ozujsko – 5% (Bottle, Croatia).
Nice bottle design. It’s alright tasting. It would be nice in hot weather. It’s fairly thin but refreshing. It would be good by/in the pool. It’s holiday beer. I wouldn’t say, however, it was a good quality beer to be honest.
— Sidenote: I actually had this in the airport in Croatia on the way back home!
Nikšićko Nefiltrirano
I hope you enjoyed a peek into the local Montenegrin beers, as well as some other neighbouring countries’ cans/bottles. Beer is always subjective and depends very much on the drinker’s tastes for sure and certain. Let me know in the comments if you’ve tried these ones, or if you have others to recommend me!
To read about our travel adventures in Montenegro, check out Mountainous Montenegro: Volume One and Volume Two 😊
