Discovering Lesster Brewery: our interview

The Birrificio Lesster is the independent craft brewery from Lessinia, the mountain area north of Verona in Veneto, that produces genuine and fresh products, made with love for good taste. Founded in 2012 by a group of friends with a passion for good beer and small craft breweries, the brewery's goal is to bring a genuine, healthy, and fresh product to everyone’s table, crafted with ingredients from the Lessini mountains area in Verona.

Craft beer is born not only from raw materials but also from passion. To produce their beers, Birrificio Lesster selects raw materials based on analytical criteria and quality controls, striving to make the most of them.
The brewery's philosophy is rooted not only in its love for the territory but also for the raw materials: the hops, which have undergone extensive research to find the best possible expression for each variety.

We love these artisans, these producers of unique, certified, and award-winning delicacies: they are real treasures embedded in our Peninsula between seas and mountains and in the most remote paths of villages and countryside. We don’t just stop to enjoy their products; we want to discover more about the protagonists of this brand. That's why we sent a few questions to those who handle communication with us.

Stay with us to learn about Birrificio Lesster: read the answers!
 

• Who are we talking to?
  Fosco Conti, brewer and partner of the Lesster brewery in Verona.
   
• Is the company family-run? In which year was the company founded, and who was the founder?
  The company is a limited liability company founded in 2012, whose shares are owned by multiple partners. Currently, the company employs 3 employees, two of whom are brewers involved in the production process, and one person who handles commercial and managerial aspects. Adjacent to the production site, there is also a shop with a tap room managed by 2 on-call staff members. 
   
• Who was the founder, and what was their training or background if different from the current one?
  The founding partners were about ten friends who shared a passion for beer and artisanal production. The founding partners mainly acted as financiers, while the only employee and manager has been myself, Fosco Conti, who previously managed a restaurant.
   
• What is the true reason or triggering event behind the birth of this company, and when did it happen?
  The company was born during a period when Valpantena, our valley, was going through a serious economic crisis. The valley was an important district in the stone industry, and competition from developing countries led to the closure of many factories and related workshops. This resulted in the loss of many jobs, and some of our partners, who were part of an association formed to respond to this emergency, asked themselves what they could concretely do to create new employment. Around those evenings at a table with a few glasses of beer, the idea of founding a craft brewery was born, considering that, in addition to the passion for this wonderful drink, there was a certain growth in this sector in Italy.
   
• What is your relationship with your land of origin and its uniqueness? And why do you want to tell its story through your products?
  We are very attached to our territory, which is Lessinia, this magnificent geographical area of the Prealps in Veneto mostly located in the province of Verona and partially in the provinces of Vicenza and Trento. Lesster indeed means Lessinia Land. We strive to characterize our products with the values and flavors of the territory, using pure spring water and, for some beers, certain grains (rye) and hops cultivated in the Lessinia area. 
   
• What was the first product you created?
  The first product born in the Lesster house was the Fosca, an amber lager with a rich body and delicate flavor. A beer with a reddish color, but that generally satisfies all palates. Since its birth, we like to call it “the pearl of Lessinia.” 
   
• What is the product that you consider your “flagship” today?
  The product we cherish the most, also because of the beautiful story that accompanies it, is the Valmarisa. This is a blond beer in the Dortmund export style which we make with water sourced from a volcanic well in a small valley called Valmarisa. The idea to use that water was given to us by a geologist from Verona who conducted studies on those volcanic chimneys from which truly special water flowed. The analyses we then conducted confirmed the excellent organoleptic characteristics suitable for creating a unique beer.
   
• And what is the product that has most embodied the beating heart, philosophy, and soul of the company throughout its history?
  All of our products carry our philosophy and soul. Heart and passion are poured into all our creations; we can say that Valmarisa, as already mentioned, has given us a beautiful push in our growth.
   
• Speaking of today: how much has the company grown since its inception? Can we have some numbers?
  Today, as previously stated, the company employs 5 staff members, of which 3 are full-time and 2 provide support when needed. The production we estimate for the current year is 850 hectoliters.
   
• Right now: more tradition or more innovation?
  We hold tradition in high regard, but I would say that today the scale tips more towards innovation. 
   
• What has been the most important evolution of the company that has brought it to what it is today?
  The company began with twelve partners but then opened its doors to more partners because we believe that to build something important, which is our aim, there needs to be adequate financial support that affords stability even in difficult times like those we are currently experiencing with Covid. We are finalizing a capital strengthening in these days to be ready for a strong restart post-pandemic. 
   
• Talking about the future: what kind of tomorrow awaits the company? Are there plans for any changes or new evolutionary processes?
  Our goal is to grow but without losing the values and principles with which we started. We aim to develop the brand in our territory and become the leader in our city, but we are also getting excellent feedback nationally.
   
• Are you planning to create new products?
  Certainly. We are always looking to improve existing products and create new ones that meet market demands. At the moment, we are working on beers with a certain body that we refine in wooden barrels previously used for robust wines or important spirits like whisky.
   
• Having focused on Spaghetti & Mandolino, how important is online sales for you, how was your relationship with this sales channel in the past, and how do you see it in the future?
  The web is a great market that allows you to bring your product potentially worldwide. There are already more established companies than us that bring their beers to the tables of restaurants in New York or Tokyo. This opportunity was almost unthinkable in the past. We believe in it very much and are proud to have focused on Spaghetti & Mandolino because it will allow us to achieve great satisfactions. Already in 2020 during the lockdown, we understood how important it is to have a foothold in this market, and for the future, we are working to better develop this channel.
   
• Value: what has been, what is today, and what will it be in the future for your company?
  In every civilization, or context, one of the important values is culture. If there is culture, there are also the prerequisites for growth and strong development. Therefore, in order to educate consumers about what today’s craft beer means, we established the Lesster Academy. A lab strongly desired to organize tasting courses, collaborations with restaurants or hospitality schools to elevate the understanding of brewing culture and food pairings.

S&M