Artisanal beer from the Navarre Pyrenees
- The summer environment arrives and the terraces begin to fill, so there is no lack of beer in most of the tables. And on the part of the large beer companies of all ages, more and more possibilities of craft beer are seen in shops and bars, as evidenced by the small beer productions that have been created in many parts of Euskal Herria. In the Navarro Pyrenees, in Burgui, two partners founded the company Xorta about five years ago, but in January they have given a change of ownership and five young people from the region have entered the project. Its aim is to raise the livelihood of production as sustainably as possible. In short, the Xorta project is a commitment to work and life in the Pyrenees.
Although there are five partners, at the moment there are two employees. “My sister-in-law and I were unemployed and instead of someone waiting for us to be hired, we thought we would get something going,” explains Jox Ubau Galartza. Instead of beer, the young man claims that it could have been another project, as it gave them no sense to produce cheese, eggs, snails or anything else. But because they were beer lovers and they knew that the companions who had left intended to quit, they didn't think it was a bad idea to dedicate themselves to it.
“Our beer is entirely handmade, the only thing we lack is that we produce barley and hops,” says the brewer. The whole process is done by themselves in the area they have in the polygon of Burgui and they try to get the raw materials up close. “For example, we take hops from a young Olite and bring the bottles of Mendavia,” he says. The young man recognizes that it is more difficult to get local barley, but if there are small businesses in Euskal Herria, the intention is to start consuming it gradually. “We are still producing as the old partners did, but what we have in mind is that everything or at least most is done with close issues,” he adds.
Production and consumption in the Pyrenees
Due to the pandemic, the activity of bars and restaurants has remained closed during these months. However, as the "normalcy" recovers, the intention is to produce about 700 litres per week. “It sells beer in bottles and barrels, especially here, in the valleys of Roncal and Salazar, but also in some parts of Pamplona.” The members of Xorta also go to fairs and have a terrace with cannons that open on weekends in the polygon of Burgui. The young people complain about the rental of the ship, because they have it rented through a service of the Government of Navarra and the prices are similar to those of Pamplona. “If young people want to stay here, they should help more,” says Ubau.
At the moment, seven types of beer are being produced: yellow, roasted, type APA (American Pale Ale) and IPA (Indian Pale Ale) and black. “Craft beers are becoming more and more famous and people’s languages are getting used to it little by little. In the end, beers are always dead. What do I mean by that? They're always the same, as yeasts, they don't change. The craftsmen, yes, are live beers,” he concluded.
