There is one thing that Croatia has a lot of! Nope, I am not talking about coffee, I am talking about beer and lagers.
Pivo!
Beer in Croatia is super popular all throughout Croatia.
However, there was a time when commercial Croatia beer and lagers were the only options and totally dominant.
Thankfully, those days are no longer with us and those days are long gone, and the craft-beer revolution has hit Croatia.
These are some of our favorite croatian beer brands.
The trend in cool and hip beer brands has torn through Europe but that is totally fine with us!
Croatia is well and truly on the craft beer playing field offering a bevy of varied beers to suit every taste.
Our Top 3 Croatian Beer Craft Brands
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Medvedgrad
We love these guys and their ingenuity when it comes to Croatia beer.
They have been brewing since 1994 and the beer is named after a medieval town that sits on the Medvednica mountain.
It actually means, โbear townโ, this Zagreb brewery is not only famous for brewing beer, but they also run a series of popular restaurants.
Their flagship venue is situated on the capitalโs iconic Tkalฤiฤeva street.
They are also responsible for brewing the first Croatian black IPA in 2015.
The Garden
There is definitely a touch of class in any of the Croatian beers brewed by The Garden Brewery in Zagreb.
The owner is Nick Colgan, the mastermind behind The Garden Festival, Garden Zaar, and the Tisno festival resort.
Nick certainly has a vast captured audience and his professional team has developed an entire range of beers to cater to outlets and supermarkets.
They have only been around a few years but their reputation is certainly gaining momentum year on year.
Most of the beers are fabulous and the range even features a Citrus IPA.
A big thumbs up from us.
LAB Split
LAB is the first independent craft beer to come out of the city of Split.
They were certainly courageous in opening a specialist beer establishment in a predominantly wine-loving city like Split but it paid off.
Its popularity has grown and you can now find it in many bars, cafes, and establishments all up the coast, as well as in Zagreb and Samobor.
Definitely, one to watch out for.
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Commercial Croatian Beer Picks
Oลพujsko
If you are in Croatia you will certainly not miss Oลพujsko.
It is heavily stocked by all the major supermarkets and outlets and it definitely is the most commercial beer in Croatia.
This is largely due to it also being the oldest, being founded all the way back in 1892.
"Oลพujsko" comes from the Croatian word for March, the last month you can chill and ferment beer.
Today, it is very popular with visitors and tourists.
Definitely a more commercially driven product.
Karlovaฤko
We have to say that out of all the larger, more commercial beers, this is our favorite!
It is also the national beer. Karlovaฤko is the second most popular beer in Croatia.
This is due to the rapid mass marketing of the product after it was released.
The factory is located just outside of the capital Zagreb, in the city of Karlovac, which is where it gets its name from too.
Since 2016, Karlovaฤko it has been owned by Heineken.
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