We’ve got our very first gourmet microbrewery on the team as we’ve signed a sponsorship with Italian gourmet brewery 32 Via dei Birrai. The beer is just as much for the hard working staff as it is for the riders, who very rarely drink alcohol.

Living and working in the rolling circus of a Grand Tour like Giro d’Italia or Tour de France is like being inside a wonderful but hectic bobble for three weeks in a row. Riders and staff in cycling are the monks of the sporting world – we follow our routines and are cut off from our daily lives back home for weeks.

So when we received the first shipment of the gourmet beer, 32 Via dei Birrai, we were naturally excited. And the 32 Curmi – the top-fermented spelt and barley malt bottle-conditioned version – was put to the test immediately and gained instant approval by the staff, who had gathered in the Tinkoff-Saxo kitchen truck. For a moment, the beer worked it’s magic and took us out of our cycling-bobbles.

“You recognize good quality when you taste it. Italy is known for its wine, but 32 Via dei Birrai definitely puts Italy on the beer-map. During the Giro and Dauphiné we’ve found out that sharing a bottle of 32 Via dei Birrai became some kind of a rallying point for the staff in the late hours after finishing the preparations ahead of the next day’s stage”, says Team Chef Hannah Grant.

We have selected 32 Via dei Birrai because of their renowned quality as a member of SlowBrewing association and their engagement in the sport. Loreno Michielin is Manager at the brewery and with his passion for cycling he’s excited about the sponsorship.

“There has to be room for pleasure once in a while, also on a WorldTour team. That’s why we wanted to support Tinkoff-Saxo. Our brewery is situated in the heart of Italian cycling-country and we follow the sport closely”, says Loreno while he explains 32 Via dei Birrai’s unique taste.

“We are a slow brewing company and take our time to produce the exact flavors and tastes that we want the beer to have. Quality is about care and patience and we follow every single bottle in the process”, concludes Loreno.