Beer enthusiasts are in for a treat in Manacor, with the recent opening of the town’s first brewpub, Brusca Brewpub. It opened on July the 15th and we made our first (of many, I’m sure) visit last evening.

Brusca Brewpub is located in an 18th-century flour mill, which has been tastefully and carefully renovated to create an appealing venue for a drink and meeting friends. It’s surprisingly spacious as there are several different rooms, as well as a large terrace with tables in front of the microbrewery – where the fermentation tanks are visible.

At the Helm of Brusca

The new brewpub is the project of Miquel Gilbert and his girlfriend Neus Llopis, who are both in their early thirties. Miquel is the son of Manacor winemaker Miquel Gilbert, and is a winemaker too. Neus gained her master’s degree in Biotechnology, Advanced Microbiology, and Fermentation at the University of Tarragona, where she met Miquel. He was studying biotechnology but switched to oenology.

They bought the old windmill in a quiet street (Carrer Ponent) in December 2017. The mill then was in a very poor state, as we saw when Miquel showed us a photo of the interior as it was when they first bought the place; we could only marvel at the amount of work that must have been necessary to create the Brusca we visited last evening. Paperwork, renovations, and Coronavirus meant that the project took a very long time; it has only just opened for business. Miquel and Neus did a lot of the detailed interior work themselves and they’ve created a good-quality product.

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What’s on Offer

Brusca Brewpub has eight beers on tap – of which four are brewed on the premises. Beers on tap are available in 50cl or 25cl glasses. They also offer a gluten-free Toutatis beer and an alcohol-free beer in bottles.

Wines by the glass are also on offer. I was delighted to find two flavours of my favourite brand of kombucha – Brilla, made in Llubí – at 3,50 euros a bottle. Water and a few soft drinks are also available.

You can also snack at Brusca Brewpub, with eight dishes on the board last evening. We shared four good spinach croquettes with mixed salad and a portion of breaded chicken strips with home-made BBQ sauce.

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Our Verdict

We loved Brusca Brewpub! We were there shortly after 6pm, the opening time. It was very quiet at that time – probably because the evening was still young and was very hot and humid. What a relief it was to enter the air-conditioned Brusca and enjoy some tasty drinks and food. We are already looking forward to our next visit.

Good to Know

Brusca Brewpub opens only on Thursday to Sunday evenings from 18:00h.

It’s a short walk from the railway station, its car park, and taxi rank.

Miquel and Neus speak English.

I’ll award a big brownie point for having the drink and food prices on their website. Many of us these days like to have an idea of these before we visit. Find Brusca on Instagram and Facebook too.

Jan Edwards ©2021