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The new brew-plant, formerly Baladin

Birra del Borgo is an Italian renowned beer brand, both for the quality of its beers and for the ubiquity with which it is present in Italy (and beyond). After Baladin can rightly be considered the most important national microbrewery, thanks to the skills and successful intuitions of its creator and head-brewer, Leonardo Di Vincenzo. Today Birra del Borgo is a reliable firm, known abroad and involved in a series of parallel projects. Has experienced an impressive ascent, considering that it all started only five years ago.

Despite this short period of time, it seems centuries since Leonardo decided to give up a promising post-university career to launch himself headlong into this venture. The beginnings were very “handmade”  but the first beers (ReAle and Duchessa) were already small gems: a hint of a bright future.

So bright that today their first plant no longer meets their needs. The growing success led Leonardo to find new accommodation for its Birra del Borgo, so that the brewery has recently changed venue and production plant. The inaugural batch was held on February 15th – I hope I remember correctly – so, as soon as I had the opportunity I left, in the company of my friend Giaguarino, to discover the new Birra del Borgo.

Leonardo and the first ReAle brewed in the new plant

Let’s make it clear immediately: Birra del Borgo is still “the beer of the village”, Borgorose precisely. The new facility is still in the small town near Rieti, but in the industrial area nearby. However this is just a few kilometers away and you will not have to change much your old route. It was easy to find the shed that houses the new plant, where we found a busy as ever Leonardo and where we have been reached soon by Giacu, Valeria and Andrea.

Those accustomed to the old brewery will remain speechless. Access reveals a large storage room, impressive when compared to the spaces in the previous building. You will also find an office still under construction and a tap room, which is a very welcome news for all the thirsty pilgrims who will reach Birra del Borgo.

The large storage room

Passed this first big room you enter in the actual brewing area. If you were accustomed to the old 5 hl plant you’ll left astounded by the new 25 hl, able to reach 10.000 hl of maximum production. The narrow spaces of the past are history. The space is huge and there is room for brewing, for the aging vessels, for the bottling and labeling devices, for raw materials and even a tank for the optimized management of water. This is all the equipment once used by Baladin.

Tap room under construction

The impact of this new venue is really sensational and perhaps it is the only element that currently allows us to understand the size of the success achieved by the brewery in so few years. For the record, the old plant will not be discarded, but will continue to work for occasional collaborations or special productions. There we finished our trip to Borgorose, where Leonardo has uncorked a few bottles, including a new creation that will be presented shortly.

There are no special wishes to make to the Birra del Borgo, if not to continue to follow this road of success, of course washed down with its wonderful beers.