How To Open A Microbrewery In India – Complete Business Plan,Machinery Details – Discover Food Tech

A microbrewery or craft brewery is a brewery that produces small amounts of beer, typically much smaller than large-scale corporate breweries, and is independently owned. Such breweries are generally characterised by their emphasis on quality, flavour and brewing technique. Lets See How To Open A Microbrewery In India.

In India, Microbrewery is not to so popular due to culture and traditions of the nation and even due to strange laws and regulations. But nowadays, these microbreweries are gaining popularity as several state Governments are allowing permissions for starting microbreweries. These microbreweries are essentially resto-bars where one can consume fresh-off-the-tap beer that has been brewed in-house. The concept is new and now trending in our country. With substantial capital investment and strategic planning, one can start and operate this business successfully.

Overall, a microbrewery is not an easy business at all. The business is highly capital intensive. It is advisable, not to start the business with a stringent budget. Therefore, you must consider some important aspects carefully.

Analyse the structure and size of your target market and their purchasing power.
Identify what all kinds of Beer are available and popular in your target market.
What kind of Beer people prefer in your target area.
Income groups and price range of your target market.
What are the distributive trade practices, restrictions, preferences?
Regulatory requirements, local approvals, product approvals etc.
Identify the right location for your brewpub business.
Choose the right form of business an organisation. Whether it’d be proprietary, partnership, Pvt Ltd or Ltd company.
Business plan with financial inputs.
Identify your potential competitors and how you will compete with them. Simply write down your marketing plan.

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Table of Contents:

Business Compliance for Microbrewery Business

For this, you have to apply for several licenses and permissions. However, anit hugely varies state to state. Therefore, you must check your state law carefully. Generally, the state excise government issues the microbrewery or brewpub license. It allows the company to start operations in its microbrewery for commercial use. The price for this license in Rupees 25000/- per month. The amount may vary state to state. Additionally, you have to obtain a separate bar license too. In addition, you have to obtain following licenses and permissions.

Commercial Electricity line
Commercial water line- Municipality/underground bore water
Land registration/ Lease sanction
Company registration
Waste water disposal certificate from pollution control board
Fabricated equipment quality certificate from third party inspection.
Water quality testing certificate from quality control labs.
Quality Control (QC) certificate of finished beer from govt. approved QC labs, on random inspection basis.

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Microbrewery Business Setup & Machinery Equipment

First of all, you can start the brewpub with the bar and restaurant setup. However, if you already have a hotel or restaurant, you can add a microbrewery with the existing infrastructure. In that case, you must have the space for it.

List of the most important microbrewery equiment:

Mashing Tuns & Kettles
Refrigeration machine
Lauter Tuns
Fermenters
PHEs (Physical Heat Exchangers)
Electric Cabinet with all controls
PLC touch type process controller
Beer Filters
Boiler
Distribution Tanks
Serving System

It is important to purchase the machinery from the reliable suppliers. Ask for customer feedbacks before placing your final order. Additionally, ask for detailed equipment list and technical specifications of materials and physical technical specifications. Additionally, if the water supply does not meet standards, you will need to have RO system.

Beer Production or Brewing Process

Beer is a mild alcoholic beverage. The strength of beer is usually around 4% to 6% alcohol by volume.You can produce it from Barley malt, hops, yeast, water and other adjuncts such as maize, rice, sugar, wheat etc.

Production Process:

1.Weight the barley malt. Mill it to get a powder form.

2.Mix the malt with other ground ingredients as per the specific recipe. Add the treated water. Then put the whole mixture for Mashing.

3.During mashing the enzymes of the malt degrade the starch and proteins as per specific demands of the recipe for the style of beer and bring the sugars, amino acids and minerals into solution. Here, you will get WORT.

4.Then separate the WORT from the waste solid matter through a process of filtration called lautering. After Lautering, transfer the “WORT” to the kettle for WORT Boiling. Finally, send the solution to a Whirlpool wherein the WORT is swirled so as to precipitate the suspended matter and make it clear.

5.Finally, chill the WORT in a Plate Heat Exchanger from 100 °C to about 10 °C in an hour. Add the yeast into the Fermenters. In the fermenters, the yeast converts the fermentable sugars in the WORT to alcohol and Carbon Dioxide and this takes place for about 5-7 days at about 10 °C.

6.Soon after the maturation, pass the beer through a Filter. Finally, send the clear beer to the beer tanks. The beer is now ready to be dispensed fresh to the customer.