Mid Summer Festival

The Mid Summer Festival sahti ("stone sahti" from Hollola).

In Finland there is a party called Mid Summer Festival (juhannus). In Lapland the sun shines 24 hours per day. In Southern Finland there is a sunset but it is not really dark by night.

The Mid Summer Festival is a good - and s traditional - reason to brew (laborous) sahti.

Home brewed "stone sahti" from in Hollola. In brewing very hot stones has been used. Sahti is served chilled.

Commerially brewed Tiinan sahti made in Sysmä (home fermentated).

The scenary in Lake Päijänne, Mid Finland. The home of sahti.

Wedding sahti in Kuhmoinen

Wedding is one of the best reasons to brew sahti. Here you can see a special wedding sahti brewed in June 2008 in Kuhmoinen (Mid Finland by lake Päijänne).

The colour is very light as seen and the taste is full, a little bit sweat but not too sweat.

Most probably this sahti would not have a success in a competitions because of the colour. People are so used to darker colour. But I would say this sahti defenitely belongs to the first class. As other beers also sahti has differences with colours.

The second sahti pot in a garden.

Third vice pot in a corner... You can't miss sahti in a good wedding! And you will not run out of it.

In 9thAugust 2008 an annual sahti competition is competed in Kuhmoinen. Go and taste!

http://www.sahti.org/smkilpailu.htm

Sahti is going strong!

The Best Beer of the Year 2008 Lammi's Sahti in Lahti Harbour (Sahtimessi).

At the moment there is nothing but good news! Sahti won an annual competition of the best beer in Finland. There was even more than 150 competitors. Lammi's sahti was the number one!

Second, in May the Urho's Pub in downtown in Helsinki had a sahti week. In practise it was a heaven for sahti lovers. Many alternatives e.g. from Helsinki (! brewer was Esa Mustonen from St. Urho's Pub), Hartola, Joutsa (personally I would rank this as a number one), Pori and Lammi were in a selection. Finlandia Strong from Lammi won the best commercial sahti of the year competition. Unfortunately there had been some problems in making "stone sahti" in Hollola (Hollolan Hirvi) and it was not sold.

http://www.botta.fi/ST-URHO-S-PUB.14.0.html?&L=1

Third, finally you can buy sahti from Alkos (liquer store in Finland) easier than ever. It took some time but now even in Sysmä you can have an excellent, ready made sahti straight from Alko.

Thanks for the media which has noticed the sahti and its beauty!

P.S. In early May I visited Savonlinna . Unfortunately sahti is still unknown in East Finland. Even if there is a Master of Sahti (year 2000) as a brewer, sahti did not include in a selection as nobody buys it. Maybe in summer time...

http://www.panimoravintolahuvila.fi/oluttehdas/sahti_e.php

Sahti from Hartola saved the Easter

Thank you Hartola and Alko in Hartola. It took 40 extra kilometres but it was worth coming. We bought both "basic" and strong Finlandia Sahti. Easter Celebration was possible. As a Easter present a bottle of good sahti really delighted.

Two (cold) new plastic bottles of Finlandia Sahti.

The Easter is coming - how to buy sahti?

A week ago Finfood News (http://www.finfood.fi/) reminded about a becoming Easter. The news told how perfectly sahti suits such a festival. These news also told that sahti can be bought in many restaurants and from some Alkos.

Straight away I contacted Alko's service department to ask would they (finally) sell sahti in Sysmä's Alko. I will visit this sahti village in the Easter. The answer was "No". I could though order it (delivery time 1 week). Ok, but I just don't have an idea how many bottles would buy. And it is far from simpliness to order food or drinks in advance.

Then I called some of my friends and relatives in Sysmä and in neighbouring villages. They confirmed the same: you still can't buy sahti in Sysmä - not even in restaurants. I asked would they buy sahti, if it was sold. The answer was instant "Yes, of course!", "It would be great!", "It would be so nice to have a bottle of sahti in a weekend" and "Wish we could buy it, then we would also offer it to our guests instead of wine". Then I asked why don't you order it? "Hmph, I won't. Too complicated. I don't have to order wine..."

Alko's service department told me that ordering system helps sahti brewers. It makes planning easier or something. I deeply doubt. It just makes buying complicated. To have success in buying is a synonym for Finnish marketing.

http://www.finfood.fi/finfood/finnfoo1.nsf/uutisetetusivulle/193B1896F125DC9BC225740500263121?opendocument

Link to Alko's ordering site:
http://www.alko.fi/tilattavat
...quick and easy?

The new plastic bottle!

Finlandia Sahti is now sold in a plastic bottle! Classic transparent glass bottle seems to be history.
Lammin Sahti is still sold in a beautiful, dark brown bottle with an old times bottle top.

At first I was shocked when I saw this new bottle but it took about 5 seconds to realize it's not THAT bad. Actually this new bottle is a handy alternative. Light, durable and lower. This new bottle suits even in my fridge! Because of the yeast sahti bottle must be stored upright. It was surprising to notice the capacity is still 0,75 l. I would have been ready to bet it is less, 0,5 l.

At the moment there is only one (!) Alko in Helsinki selling sahti. Both Finlandia Sahties (traditional and strong) and Lammin Sahti are included in a selection. You can also order 3 litres container of Joutsan Sahti. The delivery time is one week.

Yesterday I visited this sahti selling Alko. Infront of me in a queue there was a man buying (many) bottles of sahti. Looked like a beer loving tourist. If he had asked help from the personnel he probably would have been told not to buy sahti as it may BLOW in a suitcase. That's what personnel told me. Would it really blow? ...I guess I have to try...

Sahti in a film "Heavy Metal"

Young director Zaida Bergroth has included sahti in her film Heavy metal (Finland, 2007). Heavy metal is a story about teens living in Sysmä 1989.

In a story it is shooted how sahti is drunk out of the disco straight from a five litres container.

Sysmä is located in mid Finland. It is a traditional sahti village - even if nowadays it is demanding to buy sahti there.

Thanks to Zaida! It was a wonderful idea to have sahti in a film.


http://www.hiff.fi/elokuvat/elokuva.html?elokuva_id=140