DOOLALLY- FOR THE LOVE OF BEER

Doolally situated in the marvelous Corinthian Boutique Hotel near NIBM Road, Kondhwa is Pune’s very first micro brewery. Brainchild of Suketu Talekar and Prateek Chaturvedi two ex IIM entrepreneurs and accompanied by Oliver, a German ‘Brew-Meister’ (The Beer Specialist).

When you enter the place you feel like you have travelled back in time to the late 19th century. Wall finishes are open brick walls; colours are on the brighter side but still muted. The whole place has a beer theme ubiquitous in every nook and corner, be it the paintings, beer facts or related history on the walls.

The story behind the name is just as interesting as the place. Doolally means going completely berserk and is named after a place located near Nashik called Deolali. In the early period of the British Raj it was a transit camp for the British soldiers. When the soldiers used to finish their tour of duty and were about to be sent home, their uniforms and weapons used to be taken away from them to be unloaded in Deolali. They were told that when the ships come from Bombay their belongings would be transported home.

Typically the time span between the dumping of clothes and the ships coming to Bombay was about four months. So this bunch of soldiers sitting there in the peak of Indian summer with absolutely nothing to do went a little loony. Therefore, Deolali Taap became Doolally Tap later coining the phrase “Going Doolally”. Talekar said, “We wanted to make beer that reflected that period yet uniquely Indian. When we came across this interesting story and since we are crazy about beer, the name Doolally seemed apt.”

The beer made in this micro brewery is literally handcrafted by a person; hence it is called Craft beer. Talekar explains, “The final product is a reflection of the person who makes it and not of the recipe from which the beer is made.”

Being a small set up the typical batch size of beer brewed here is small, which is why they have the flexibility to brew a vast array of beer styles. They started out with 4 styles- pale lager, dark lager, wheat beer, cider beer and soon to join the list is the rye beer. “Our objective is to make a product that truly delights a beer lover.” claims Talekar and therefore they intend to introduce two fresh styles every month.

The raw material used to brew beer in Doolally is all imported. The malts used are imported from Germany and made by a company that has specialized in making malt from the last 175 years.  The flowers used to give the aroma to the beer are imported from the Czech Republic and the yeast is imported from a laboratory in Germany.

Talekar says, “There are two ways to make beer, either you make beer to make money or you make beer because you love beer. We do it for the love of it and make this product for the people who love it as much as we do.”

The pub is created in such a way that you end up having a highly immersed beer drinking experience. By the bar, they have huge taps serving an assortment of freshly brewed beer. Customers are given the privilege to sample the assortment of brews before placing their order either in the form of a pint or in the form of a pitcher.

Doolally is a true haven for beer drinkers as there is no place in the city where you can sit in a brewery and drink beer along with some snacks. Undoubtedly a unique place to visit with fellow beer fans.

More articles by Ishna Nerurkar

• Pay homage to the war heroes at the National War Memorial - January 13th, 2010
• Rajni-kant take Can’t! He is the Boss! - January 4th, 2010
• Green Christmas - December 22nd, 2009
• Spirit of Christmas - December 21st, 2009
• Sketching and Painting Workshop at Aperture India - December 10th, 2009

Also see:

• October 21, 2009 -- City boy stands 8th in international equestrian event (0)
• August 4, 2009 -- Two city students impress at Mathematics Olympiad in Germany (2)
• August 4, 2009 -- Sale of beer increase for the delay of monsoon (0)
• July 29, 2009 -- Hybrid racing car by UoP students will be displayed in Germany exhibition (0)
• July 17, 2009 -- Wine is gaining popularity among Pune women (0)