With the Cervecería Kunstmann, the VLB has been able to win an ambitious and aspiring brewery from Chile as a member. The company with German roots is particularly successful in the craft and specialty beers segment in Chile.
4500 km long, maximum 400 km wide, Andean peaks with more than 6000 m altitude and 20 million inhabitants, that are the core data of Chile so far. With the highest per capita income in Latin America, the country is internationally known for its mineral resources, agricultural products and wine. Chile, however, is also a country with a beer tradition: Numerous immigrants from Europe also brought beer from the mid-19th century and founded breweries in the Andean state. This tradition inspired Armin Kunstmann Telge, a Chilean with German roots, to found his brewery in Valdivia in the south of Chile in 1991.
In the following years, Cervecería Kunstmann did not developed to the largest, but to the most innovative brewery in Chile. Started as a local brewery, Kunstmann is now successful all over Chile. The beers are characterized in particular by constant innovation and high quality. The basic portfolio includes 13 different beers and is complemented by two seasonal beers. Especially remarkable are the main brand "Torobayo", or the special beers with honey and cranberry. In addition, there is an experimental product line that is constantly changing and presents new tastes to the Kunstmann lovers.
Cervecería Kunstmann is currently brewing around 150,000 hl of beer per year and is also present with its products beyond Chile in various South American countries. A success factor of the brewery (claim: "Cervercería Kunstmann ... das gute Bier") is the clear commitment to innovation with high and continuous quality. In this context, the connection to Berlin came to pass. For example, founder and brewery director Armin Kunstmann has now had two of his sons, Patricio Kunstmann (2010) and Alejandro Kunstmann (2018), trained as VLB Certified Brewmasters in Berlin.
"Our membership in the VLB Berlin enables us to further optimize our work and continuously improve the quality of our beers”, says Alejandro Kunstmann, Commercial Director of Cervecería Kunstmann. "We see in the combination of our creativity and the high-class brewing knowledge of the VLB an excellent basis for the successful development of our brewery in the future."
A first project of this new collaboration was a seminar on-site in which VLB expert Roberto Biurrun trained the local Kunstmann team on topics such as quality of process and product. "We are proud to welcome Cervecería Kunstmann as a new VLB member from South America and we look forward to a long-term, successful collaboration," said Biurrun.
See also the report on the website of Cerverceía Kunstmann.
Successful training on-site: VLB coach Roberto Biurrun and the Cerveceriá Kunstmann team
Handing over the certificate of membership: Alejandro Kunstmann (l) and Roberto Biurrun (VLB)