Addictive Brewing

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Location: Oradea
Open since: July 2019
Brewer: Horia Ciocan
Output in 2019: 70 hectolitres

General Information:

Addictive Brewing opened in the city of Oradea after almost a decade worth of passionate research and homebrewing. The city’s second craft brewery saw its humble beginnings with Horia, a Logic and Philosophy university professor with a training in law. Initially, he had been rather partial to wine tasting, until a fateful encounter with Michael Jackson’s (not the singer) books on beer made him contemplate the intricacies of the layman’s drink of choice.

In 2010, after compiling a list of must-try beers, he took a trip to Germany, and returned with a stash of brews which him and his wife both enjoyed tremendously. It wasn’t long before his wife prompted him to start brewing his own, and in 2012, he did just that: he brewed an Irish black. As he fondly remembers it, the beer was atrocious, but then again, most first attempts are. He persevered in this endeavor, and by 2015 he had already brewed 42 homemade batches. With the help of his wife, he upgraded his equipment to improve the yield, and in 2016, his homebrew was being sampled at private venues in Oradea, as well as winning prizes in Romanian homebrewing competitions, for his Pale Ale and Saison, and even homebrewing events in London, in 2018. It wasn’t long that commercial brewing started looming on the horizon, and in July 2018, we started hearing rumours about a brewery being set up in the city.

When not pottering about with his custom made homebrewing kit and delving deep into the subtleties of yeast strains and hop additions, Horia has spent a long time being very involved in the country’s homebrewing community. His advice towards beginners, beer reviews, as well as his participation in homebrewing contests as a judge have given him quite a great deal of reputation. Therefore, his launch at the Cluj Craft Beer Festival has definitely been one of the most anticipated brewery openings in 2019.

While his homebrew was somewhat on the experimental side, featuring styles such as Kriek lambics and even ales soured with local wild yeasts, his official repertoire focused on the tamer side of ales. However, in November 2019, Horia decided it was time to return the roots and local terroir, and sours finally made it on the list of releases. We’re curious to see where his future brewing endeavours will take him, as his beers take over the country.

Check out how it’s made: Young Europa batch 1

Products:

  • Magus – Belgian IPA – 8% ABV
  • Loner – Rye IPA – 6.7% ABV
  • Haunted – IPA – 6.5% ABV
  • Sinner – Wheat Beer – 4.5% ABV
  • Volver – IPA – 6.5% ABV
  • Bosco – Blackcurrant Wild Ale – 6% ABV
  • King Loco – Kölsch – 6.6% ABV
  • Falling Heads – Cabernet Sauvignon Wild Ale – 6.7% ABV
  • MadLayne – Saison (coupage of an old and a young saison) – 6% ABV
  • Young Europa – Session IPA – 5.5% ABV

For reviews, check Untappd, RateBeer and Universitatea de Bere.

Contact details:

Str. Ion Vidu, nr. 26, Oradea
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Addictive-Brewing/
Web: www.addictivebrewing.com/