By Jerina Zaloshnja
“No, no, don’t tell me this is a beer factory. This is a real beer cathedral!” That is how an Italian businessman G.V. has written in the guestbook after visiting Birra Korca factory located somewhere in the suburbs of Korca city, 180 kilometers southeast of Tirana. Of the same opinion, according to myself, would be all who would visit that new factory. That is how happened with me.
At the entrance of the factory, the same place as the former well-known factory of Korca beer (which culminated its success in the 1980s) you are surrounded by a somewhat mystic spirit. This is not a newly built modern factory but a construction with mixed ancient and modern elements, the work of great masters of stone, ceramic and carving productions. Yes, yes, it is precisely a little cathedral, designed with small ceramic and carvings, red ones, hung along the walls which are also carved with reliefs and include some lines on drinking pleasures by the Scottish poet Robert Burns.
The factory ceilings are all carved stones, as are the walls and floor. The small carved stones replacing the tiles make you happy and it seems as if you have put your feet in a little small town painted in red where everything goes okay! The pavilions of the just-rehabilitated factory resemble small rooms where nothing makes a sound but the computers monitoring the production and a few employees. Some two or three architects and an interior designer are giving the last touches to the factory’s museum, which, in fact, will be a museum for the city of Korca itself, its citizens and the famous history of the beer brought for the first time to the country by an Italian in the 1920s. A restaurant for friends and VIPs on top of the terrace of the Birra Korca will soon be completed. Those who know about the extraordinary nature before your eyes can relax and observe nature while you have dinner with the local characteristic dishes. You will not have left Tirana only to have a look at the beer factory.
Factory… That is not solely an investment by the Albania businessman Irfan Hysenbelliu. That is the first example of Albania’s economic tourism.
Italian Umberto who showed Beer to the Albanians
There is a history associated with the beer factory in Korca. That is the FIRST BEER factory in Albania. Construction began in 1928 by an Italian investor known to by the name of Umberto Umberti. He chose Korca simply because it completed the parameters some other cities in Albania did not. He started to build the factory in Shkodra, he took the raw material there, but there were two different reasons which made him turn to Korca. The first reason was that the water had better elements than that in Shkodra and, the second, in the Korca-Pogradec region there was planted and grew a very aromatic plant known as lupolo, which is a very important element for the beer yeast. Construction was completed in 1932 and that was the first beer sold in Korca. The Italian owner distributed it in barrels to every bar and restaurant and also gave it for free to the citizens so that they got used to that. After liberation at the end of World War II the factory became a public property until 1990. From 1994 to 2004 it was owned by some former Korca shareholders that sold it that year to businessman Irfan Hysenbelliu.
During 2004 -2006 the factory was totally transformed. Some 80 years of work had to be totally revamped. Nothing but the great name of the factory had remained, a name that had also faded with the passing of years. During the first stage of investment the old technology was removed and all the old buildings surrounding the old main building were pulled down. Now the technology is contemporary, installed in 2005 and totally automatic. “It was thought the technology should be Czech because they are a strong name in beer production,” Birra Korca manager Besnik Duda told the Tirana Times.
The company businessman Irfan Hysenbelliu is linked with has a 135-year old history of experience. That company has been installing technology for beer factories for that many years. Experts of the Czech company have been working in Korca’s new beer factory for a year and a half. Some 28 experts of the Czech company have installed the new line of production and now there are some 34 technology experts taking care of the production. “The new line bought from the Czech company has quadrupled the capacity compared to the best year of production of Birra Korca in the 1980s. The investment of the first stage to put in the factory in operation has reached 14 million euro,” said Duka. In two or three years the owner has plans to build a second factory with a 500-,000 to one million hectoliters annual capacity. Now the capacity is 100-120,000 hectoliters per year. The investment of businessman Hysenbelliu will employee around 200 people.
“Our beer is original”
“Birra Korca factory produces market beer, real and original. The beer market has two kinds of beers commercial and original, we have tried to preserve the old taste of beer and very soon we’ll produce black beer, which was exclusive for Birra Korca in past years,” says the manager. The installation stage has been completed and the first stage of beer production has already started. The raw material for beer production will be imported from Austria from the Pilsen company. Birra Korca entered the market in the first days of August.
