Raise a glass to Malayali! The beer, brewed in Poland, is creating a buzz for its smoothness and aftertaste just months after its launch in November 2022.
Chandramohan Nallur and Sargheve Sukumaran, marketing wizards behind the brand, say necessity had them brainstorming on how to use five containers (about 20,000 kilogram) of parboiled rice flakes that had been imported by Varanasi-based KS Global in Uttar Pradesh. The war between Russia and Ukraine was making it difficult to find buyers for the rice flakes that was to be used to make cereal.
Malayali lager was brewed in Poland with Indian parboiled rice flakes and European hops | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Speaking over phone from Warsaw, Chandramohan, the first Malayali director of the Indo-Polish Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Poland, says he wanted to help the exporter with the stock.
Initially, he wondered if it could be turned into pet food, which has a huge market in the country. “The stringent conditions for testing in government-authorised laboratories would have taken time and that would have been disastrous for the rice flakes. That is when I recalled Komban, a beer made by Vivek Pillai, a Malayali in the UK, which was doing well. We decided to see if we could replicate his success with a hybrid beer made of rice flakes and hops from Germany and Denmark.”
Chandramohan, a teetotaler, reached out to his friend Sargheve, an expert in product design. The two contacted fellow Malayali, Lijo Philip, who had launched a brand of beer called Kalikut 1498. Lijo put them in touch with a master brewer who agreed to come up with a brew for the enthusiastic friends.
In high spirits
Kerala is famous as tipplers’ own place in India. Over the years, many Malayalis expats have gone on to make different kinds of lager, gin, toddy and so on.
Vivek Pillai developed Komban,a beer, which sells in the UK
Ireland-based Maharani Gin’s founders are Robert Barret and Bhagya Barret. Bhagya hails from Kollam in Kerala.
Lijo Philip’s Kalikut 1498, a beer made in Poland, refers to the year Portuguese sailor and explorer Vasco da Gama landed in Kozhikode (Calicut) in 1498.
Abish Cheriyan, Elias Cheriyan and Sareesh Kunjappan, from Ernakulam district, launched ‘Mandakini’, an upmarket version of arrack, which is made of unaged sugarcane spirit in Canada.
Chandramohan was clear that the lager had to be a hybrid that used the rice flakes and hops from Europe. As he points out, Japanese rice beer with Japanese hops was already available in Europe.
“The first attempt was a complete failure. It did not taste good and we decided to go for a second trial. On November 13, 2022, we tasted success with the third one. It also happened to be my 38th birthday. The beer was light and smooth and had a fantastic aftertaste,” says Chandramohan.
Sargheve adds that their master brewer had crafted a beer with a unique and delicious blend of flavours. “The European hops provide a crisp and refreshing taste, while the Indian rice flakes add a subtle sweetness and smoothness to the finish. The unique flavors make it perfect to pair with a wide range of food, ranging from cheese platters, toasted vegetables and spicy curries to grilled seafood and meat.”
After the beer was crafted, came the naming ceremony. The decided to call it Malayali as a tribute to the Keralites who had flocked to help Indian students stranded at the border of Poland after war broke out in Ukraine.
The logo of Malayali beer was developed by Sargheve Sukumaran. It showcases the pair of Aviators and moustache sported by actor Mohanlal in cult classic Malayalam film Spadikam. | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
The logo designed by Sargheve features a man wearing the headgear of a Kathakali artiste, a traditional theatre-dance form of Kerala, with a pair of Aviators and a moustache sported by actor Mohanlal’s character Aadu Thoma in cult classic Malayalam film, Spadikam.
They decided that the beer would be sold as a premium beer in green bottles along the lines of top brands such as Heineken and Carlsberg.
“The brewery insisted that we needed a minimum order of 2,000 litres (around 4,000 bottles). We had to find customers for the beer. We hit upon an idea of serving made-to-order bottling services for wedding planners. That proved to be a hit and some of the guests took the bottles as souvenirs,” says Chandramohan.
As a marketing technique, Malayali lager bottles are served with customised stickers at weddings | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
They customised the stickers on the bottles with the name of the bride and the bridegroom, suitable messages and soon the bespoke bottles had many takers in Poland.
In addition, they were able to strike a deal with Little India Group, one of the largest suppliers of Asian groceries in Europe, to supply the lager.
Malayali, the beer that was brewed in Poland | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Says Chandramohan: “Malayali Spirits, the company we set up, has decided to license out the sales to brewers who can use our recipe and the brand to brew Malayali. Thus, we hope to accelerate our growth in the European market.”
Chandramohan says that just two months after its launch, over 50,000 bottles have been sold.
They plan to market the beer in Kerala too. “If a beer called Malayali is not sold in Kerala, then what is the point? As in Europe, we plan to license the trademark and recipe to a brewer for sales in India,” says Chandramohan
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