Vin- och ölkultur i Uzbekistan

Guest writer: Jonathan Gharbi de Maré

You might not think of beer and wine culture when you think of Uzbekistan. In the previous article on Uzbekistan we got an insight into what the country looks like in general, so here we get to see what the drinking culture looks like.

Wine has long been cultivated in Uzbekistan and was exported to the region's neighbours earlier in the 20th century. However, wine culture came to an abrupt halt during the Gorbachev regime as he tried to curb the widespread abuse of alcohol in the Soviet Union.

Vineyards were closed and logs were pulled up in the mid-80s, all in a blind search for scapegoats. As a result, all wine producers gave up and there was a hiatus of several years. Vodka and beer continued to flow, so the effect was simply to restart the wine industry.

Vines taking off, Uzumfermer's vineyard outside Tashkent.

At the Uzumfermer winery outside the capital Tashkent they tell us about the struggle to start up a vineyard after Gorbachev's rampage. The family that owns the vineyard took over the old land in the 80s and found the occasional log that survived but it did not help much so they had to start over.

There are also two other wineries near Tashkent, Mehnat Group and Chateau Hamkor that are worth visiting. Uzumfermer began by planting both local grapes like Bayan-Shirey, Rkatsiteli, Hindongna and Soyaki but also classics like Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Riesling and Pinot Noir.

Some of Uzumfermer's wines. Riesling is often highlighted as it does very well outside Tashkent.

Uzumfermer's production is small, around 100,000 litres are produced annually from the 20 or so hectares, five outside Tashkent and the remaining 15 up in Parkent. The summer in Tashkent is too hot so the best grapes come from Parkent, four miles away but much higher up.

Vineyard with a few hectares of grapes, a small park and a hotel

View of the vineyard, a few acres of wines to stroll through

People often talk about the old and new world. The classics France, Germany, Spain and others are what we call the old. Australia, Chile and Argentina are referred to as the new countries.

But countries like Armenia and Uzbekistan should perhaps be called the new-new world or should we say newborn. It may not be very important with those terms, but it still gives perspective on how unique and new the wine culture in Uzbekistan is.

A French wine connoisseur might fall off his chair if you say Uzbekistan, but the wine experience is amazing. When you sit in the vineyard in Uzbekistan at sunset and look out over the mountains, there is a magical feeling.

The wine cellar at Uzumfermer, relatively small and young but there are some wines that would benefit from a few years of ageing.

Plate of local cheeses, nuts, honey and fruit, matched with Uzumfermer wines.

Craft beer in Uzbekistan

Things are happening here, kegs galore adorn the walls of Tashkent's craft beer pubs. The Uzbeks have just started tasting ale, ipa, porter and various kinder craft beers. No one seems to have a problem with the country being Muslim, but it's up to each individual to decide. Some drink, some don't; after all, the country is secular, a legacy of the Soviet Union, where the influence of religion was limited.

Pelikan Craft beer store in Tashkent with over 30 beers on tap

In some bars you can find almost 40 different beers on tap, but most of them are specialised lagers. It has a bit more flavour and character and costs around 20 SEK per glass. There are two chains in the city that serve 20-40 beers on tap, Pelikan Craft beer and Beerkovich, which together have five locations in Tashkent. They also sell imported craft beer in bottles and have some local spirits for those who need to get rid of a sore throat.

There are also some larger microbreweries that make German-style beers, lagers, wheat beers and a darker coloured beer with a light-bodied character. There are a lot of microbreweries and beer bars, both large and small, so just be curious and look around and you'll find them.

Bier Regen is a huge German beer hall where they brew a handful of their own beers.

The beer shop Khmelnoy only serves Uzbek and Kazakh beer in growlers, pet bottles filled with beer for take away.

After scouting around Tashkent for a couple of days, I managed to find the source of the best beer and it was a fantastic experience that I wish more people could experience. Taxi 14 kilometres took around 25 minutes and cost 35 SEK so don't let the map fool you. It is outside the city in an industrial area but they have a good restaurant and lots of good beer. If you visit Chinni Market, it is natural to also visit the Craft Brewing Company as they are on the same side of town.

Craft brewing co, the restaurant is located a few metres from the brewery itself and the menu consists of a lot of sausages and meat, perfect for beer.

The craft brewing company has already produced 50 different beers and enthusiasm is high at Uzbekistan's leading craft brewery. They always have around 20 beers available on tap and in bottles, with new ones being added all the time. Watch a short video from the brewery here:

They are not under pressure to brew only best sellers, but experiment a lot with different beers.

Some of the beers bottled by Craft Brewing Co, cherry, honey and apricot are some of the local ingredients used.

Brewer Albert Musin is proud of his beers and says his favourite is Belgian beer and that more beer styles are on the way. Most people still think that simple lagers and ales can have almost too much flavour, so these are more modest beers with a little less strength and flavour compared to Swedish craft beer. But they also brew some experimental beers, a Belgian triple of 14 % and a quadruppel of 15 % are among the strongest varieties.

Brewer Albert Musin pours a fresh beer straight from the yeast tank.

From left Jonathan, Sergey Pak and Albert Musin.

They have been brewing beer for five years and have expanded with more fermentation tanks and more people working. Demand is high among Uzbeks as well as tourists and foreigners from the region who have settled in the country in the last year. A lot is happening in the Uzbek beer industry and the pioneers are the Craft Brewing Company, if you have a chance to visit them, do it and don't forget to say hello from me.

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Jonathan Gharbi De Maré

Jonathan runs the start-up abudhabibeer.com about beer both in the UAE with offshoots in neighbouring regions. Jonathan opened the first craft brewery in Burkina Faso and wrote the book Beer guide to Vietnam. He is a regular writer for the beer magazine Maltesen. In addition to beer, he has a keen interest in nature and more unusual travel destinations. He has written articles for a variety of newspapers and magazines.