The scene took on a new degree of intensity when, last spring, Evil Twin Brewing honcho Jeppe Jarnit-Bjergsø left his native Copenhagen and relocated with his family to Greenpoint, Brooklyn, to help open Tørst, a neo-Nordic temple to haute beer. The Danish expat’s Scandinavian sensibilities permeate the space, with stylish teak wood tables set along one side of the room and an austere white marble bar along the other. On any given night, about a third of the 21 rotating draft selections—poured from a hi-tech draft system dubbed the “Flux Capacitor”—are dedicated to Evil Twin’s brews, ranging from the evanescent 2.7 percent abv Bikini Beer to the inky, commanding Bourbon barrel–aged imperial stout, Even More Jesus. Other drafts come from acclaimed domestic and international microbrewers, like Vermont’s Hill Farmstead and Cologne’s Freigeist Bierkultur. The expansive bottle list includes rare vintages from the likes of Cantillon, De Dolle and Drie Fonteinen. Luksus, a miniscule restaurant concealed in Tørst’s teeny-tiny back room, is where chef and co-owner Daniel Burns, who put in time at Momofuku Labs and Noma, churns out a $95 five-course tasting menu of ascetic but wildly flavorful Nordic-inspired dishes, paired exclusively with beer.
April 2016 Update: No place in New York takes beer as seriously as Tørst. There’s the custom 21-tap system that ensures the perfect pour with precise temperature and carbonation controls, and there’s the sheer number of beers and ales that Jeppe Jarnit-Bjergsø of Evil Twin Brewing has compiled. The lengthy bottle list includes selections from renowned American breweries like Crooked Stave and Prairie Artisan Ales as well as European ones—check out the Fantôme and De Molen, which are nearly impossible to find elsewhere. Bottle options show off the complexity of Brettanomyces-influenced farmhouse beers, the souring impact of Lactobacillus in aged Belgian lambic and the effects of barrel aging on a wide range of styles. And the team knows the stories behind each beer: where it comes from, the people who made it and why it’s significant. —Zach Siegel
Click here for a recipe from Daniel Burns and Jeppe Jarnit-Bjergsø
April 2017: Tørst takes beer as seriously as any top restaurant takes wine. There’s the custom 21-tap system that ensures precise temperature and carbonation for the perfect pour. The sheer number of beers and ales that Jeppe Jarnit-Bjergsø of Evil Twin Brewing and beverage manager Mike Amidei have compiled make this a haven for beer heads and wine lovers alike. —Zach B. Siegel
615 Manhattan Ave., Brooklyn, New York
Danish
(718) 389-6034
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This story appears in the print issue of April 2014.
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