Just beer with me

Hyderabad’s beer culture just got a huge boost, with the club Over The Moon (OTM) launching its microbrewery on Friday night. Already a favourite party destination for the city, the outlet will now serve at least five variants of its own homebrewed beer — from lager to ale and even stout, for those with a taste for it. “Hyderabad is no less than any international city, so it’s time we began serving what the world is offering,” says Sanjay Batla, one of the partners at OTM. He adds, “Microbrewing is like an art and you need to have a passion for it — that’s what my brew master says. Beer brewed in-house is fresh and crispy. Also, when we travel, people always try the local produce and delicacies...now, we have one more destination for Hyderabad!”

Austrian brew master Nikolai Tkatschenko, who has been roped in to make their brews, says that brewing is a scientific process. “For me, India is a challenge, people here do not prefer very bitter beer. They prefer a fruity one, but even in that, there is a certain flavour, a certain experience that they crave for. Also, there is a balance of flavour that must be achieved,” says Nikolai.

Sanjay, meanwhile, hopes that OTM’s new beers — along with the food taster menu they’ve paired with them — will promote the city’s beer culture. He says, “The feedback has been very positive — the beer is fresh, light and not very strong in alcohol content. People do drink beer here, but it will probably be drunk more often now.”