Egill Skallagrímsson Brewery

Coordinates: 64°07′25″N 21°48′06″W / 64.12361°N 21.80167°W / 64.12361; -21.80167
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Ölgerðin Egill Skallagrímsson
IndustryBeer, non-alcoholic beverages
Founded1913; 111 years ago (1913) in Iceland
FounderTómas Tómasson
HeadquartersReykjavík, Iceland
Key people
Andri Thor Gudmundsson CEO, Okto Einarsson Chairman, Jón Þorsteinn Oddleifsson CFO, Margrét Arnardóttir CTO

Olgerdin (Icelandic: Ölgerðin Egill Skallagrímsson) is an Icelandic brewery and beverage company based in Reykjavík. Established on 17 April 1913, the oldest beer-producing factory in Iceland. Annually, it produces 45 million liters of beverages.[citation needed] The brewery is named for Egill Skallagrímsson, an early inhabitant of Iceland and main character of Egil's Saga.

History[edit]

The company was established on 17 April 1913 by Tómas Tómasson, who began production of a (1% alc/vol) beverage, malt extract. Today it is the oldest beer-producing factory in Iceland; and now it's also a wholesaler of food and beverages. At first, the operations of Ölgerðin Egill Skallagrímsson were based in two bedrooms in the basement of the Þórshamar house at Templarasund in Reykjavík, which Tómas had leased. Today, this house is owned by the Icelandic parliament (Althing). A year later, the company moved to the Thomsen house at Tryggvagata, and with this, the operating area grew significantly.[citation needed]

The scope of operations was not large at first. The brewing boiler was only 65 litres, and bottles were closed by pushing the cap onto the bottle with a flat palm and binding it with wire. During the first production year, Ölgerðin sold around 38 thousand litres, mostly malt extract and white beer.[citation needed] The light beer Egils Pilsner came to market in the same year, as the ban on alcohol was implemented in 1915, after which it was illegal to produce alcoholic beer with more than 2.25% alcohol content.[citation needed] Generally, brewmasters from Germany and Denmark were hired to oversee the beer production. The company also produces soft drinks (e.g. Egils Appelsín).[1]

Tómas Tómasson went to Copenhagen in 1915 to learn brewing at the Bryggeriet Stjernen and then in Germany, where he spent the next two years. Returning home in 1917, he bought his first building on Njálsgata on the crossroads between Njálsgata, Frakkastigur and Grettisgata, which was later renamed "Ölgerðartorfan". The company was located there for much of the 20th century. In the years 1924–1928, both a brewery and a yeast cellar were in use there.[citation needed] He built up a comprehensive brewery, fermentation and bottling facility.[citation needed]

In 1926, Ölgerðin sold a million bottles in one year.[citation needed] In the same year, Danish King Christian X made an official visit to Iceland. Subsequently, Ölgerðin was given the right to call themselves the "royal brewery".[citation needed]

The production of Egils Pilsner began in 1916; while the company claimed 1917 on the bottle for years.[2] The company was the first to receive an exemption for the production of alcoholic beer in Iceland during the war, when it produced the Polar Ale for the British occupation forces.[3] From 1951, Ölgerðin produced the Polar Beer for the US military base in Keflavik and then Export Beer, which the general population called Egils strong.[citation needed] After the beer ban was lifted in 1989, the brewery's main product was Egils Gull.[4]

The production of soda drinks began in 1930, and Ölgerðin bought the soda drink factories Síríus and Kaldá. Ölgerðin was made into a corporation two years later and was merged with Ölgerðin Þór hf., which had been operating for two years. Þór had built a brewery at Rauðarárstígur, but it was closed during the merger.[citation needed] In 1955, Egils Appelsín (orange soda) was introduced. Sigurður Sveinsson, an employee of Ölgerðin created a recipe that was immediately appreciated by locals and has since then surpassed all other such drinks.[citation needed]

After Tómas died in 1978, in his nineties, his sons, Jóhannes and Tómas Agnar ran Ölgerðin Egill Skallagrímsson for almost a quarter of a century. In 2000, they decided to sell the family's share, and an agreement was reached at the end of the year with Íslandsbanki-FBA and the investment company Gilding.[5] There was a change in ownership in April 2002, when Lind ehf., a subsidiary of Danól ehf., bought Ölgerðin.[6] The operations of Lind and Ölgerðin were merged in the beginning of that year, and with this merger, the product availability of Ölgerðin increased substantially. In 2007, Októ Einarsson and Andri Þór Guðmundsson acquired Ölgerðin with Kaupthing bank, which later sold its shares to several bank executives.[citation needed]

Ölgerðin Egill Skallagrímsson produces 45 million litres of beverages every year, of which 10 million litres are brewed in the brewing boiler.[citation needed]

Awards[edit]

Egils Gull earned the "World’s Best Standard Lager" at the World Beer Awards 2011[7] and Bríó won the best German-style Pilsner at the 2012 World Beer Cup.[8]

Year Prize Style Product Competition
2004 Silver Egils Gull Monde Selection
2004 Silver Egils Sterkur Monde Selection
2004 Silver Pilsner 4,5% Monde Selection
2006 Silver Egils Gull Monde Selection[citation needed]
2006 Silver Boli Monde Selection[citation needed]
2006 Gold Gull Lite Monde Selection[citation needed]
2006 Bronze Gull Lite European Beer Star[citation needed]
2006 Silver Boli European Beer Star[citation needed]
2006 Gold American-style low-carbohydrate light lager Gull Lite World Beer Cup[9]
2007 Gold Egils Gull Monde Selection[citation needed]
2007 Gold Boli Monde Selection[citation needed]
2007 Gold Gull Lite Monde Selection[citation needed]
2008 Silver International-Style Lager Egils Gull World Beer Cup
2008 Silver Egils Gull Monde Selection
2008 Gold Boli Monde Selection
2008 Gold Gull Lite Monde Selection
2008 Gold Beers, waters, soft drink & other Non- Alcoholic Beverages Gull Lite World Selection[citation needed]
2008 Silver Lager Brewery Section Gull Lite Australian International Beer Awards[citation needed]
2008 Silver Boli Australian International Beer Awards[citation needed]
2008 Bronze Gull Lite Australian International Beer Awards[citation needed]
2008 Gold Metal Beers, waters, soft drink & other Non- Alcoholic Beverages Boli World Selection[citation needed]
2010 Bronze International-Style Lager Polar Beer World Beer Cup[citation needed]
2011 Gold Floridana Andoxun The InterBev Awards[citation needed]
2011 Gold World's best standard lager Egils Gull World Beer Awards[citation needed]
2012 Gold German-style Pilsener Bríó, Borg Brugghús World Beer Cup
2012 World's Best Pilsner Lager Bríó, Borg Brugghús World Beer Awards[citation needed]
2012 Europe's best IPA Pale Beer Úlfur Nr.3, Borg Brugghús World Beer Awards[citation needed]
2013 Europe's best Flavoured Beer Chocolate & Coffee Myrkvi Nr.13, Borg Brugghús World Beer Awards[citation needed]
2013 Europe's Bronze Lager, German Pale Bríó, Borg Brugghús World Beer Awards[citation needed]
2013 Europe's Silver Pale Beer IPA Úlfur Nr.3, Borg Brugghús World Beer Awards[citation needed]
2013 Europe's Bronze Lager low carb Gull Lite World Beer Awards[citation needed]
2014 Gold Herb and Spice Beer Snorri Nr.10, Borg Brugghús European Beer Star[citation needed]
2014 Silver Imperial Stout Garún Nr.19, Borg Brugghús European Beer Star[citation needed]
2014 Gold India Pale Ale Úlfur Nr.3, Borg Brugghús Global Craft Beer Awards
2014 Gold Imperial Stout Garún Nr.19, Borg Brugghús Global Craft Beer Awards[citation needed]
2014 Gold Pilsener Bríó, Borg Brugghús Global Craft Beer Awards[citation needed]
2014 Silver Chocolate or Coffee Beer Myrkvi Nr.13, Borg Brugghús Global Craft Beer Awards[citation needed]
2014 Europe's Silver Flavoured Beer Chocolate & Coffee Myrkvi Nr.13, Borg Brugghús World Beer Awards[citation needed]
2014 Europe's Silver Stout & Porter Imperial Garún Nr.19, Borg Brugghús World Beer Awards[citation needed]
2014 Silver International -style lager Egils Gull World Beer Awards
2015 Europe's Best Strong Wheat Beer Sólveig Nr.25, Borg Brugghús World Beer Awards[citation needed]
2015 Best beer By country Garún Nr.19, Borg Brugghús Rate Beer
2015 Silver German-Style Festbier Boli European Beer Star
2016 "Certificate of Excellence" Stout/Porter: Baltic Porter Gréta Nr.27, Borg Brugghús Brussel Beer Challenge
2016 Bronze Baltic-style Porter Gréta Nr.27, Borg Brugghús European Beer Star
2016 Gold Strong Smoke Beer Surtur Nr. 30, Borg Brugghús European Beer Star
2016 Gold German-Style Dunkel Bock/Doppelbock Boli Doppelbock Brussels Beer Challenge
2016 Best beer By country Surtur Nr.38, Borg Brugghús Rate Beer
2016 Best Brewery By country Borg Brugghús Rate Beer
2017 Gold World's best Flavoured Beer / World's best Wood Aged Beer Surtur Nr.8.2, Borg Brugghús World Beer Awards
2018 Gold Best can design Ástríkur Nr.51, Borg Brugghús World Beer Awards
2018 Best beer By country Surtur Nr.8.8, Borg Brugghús Rate Beer
2019 Best beer By country Garún Nr.19.3, Borg Brugghús Rate Beer

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Appelsín (500ml)". ShopIcelandic. Archived from the original on 2019-04-28. Retrieved 2017-04-27.
  2. ^ "Pilsnerinn rangt merktur í áraraðir" [The pilsner was wrongly labeled for years]. Archived from the original on 2015-10-16.
  3. ^ "Icelandic beer: Everything you need to know!". wakeupreykjavik.com. Retrieved 2017-04-27.
  4. ^ Icelandic microbrew revolution Iceland magazine
  5. ^ Gengið frá kaupum á Ölgerðinni Agli Skallagrímssyni. Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic)
  6. ^ "History". www.olgerdin.is. Retrieved 2017-04-27.
  7. ^ "Our Export". Ölgerdin. Archived from the original on 19 October 2014. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
  8. ^ "Our Export". Ölgerdin. Archived from the original on 19 October 2014. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
  9. ^ Egils Lite fékk gull. Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic)

External links[edit]

64°07′25″N 21°48′06″W / 64.12361°N 21.80167°W / 64.12361; -21.80167

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