Topchi : The craft beer rebellion brewing in Wine Capital of India..

Topchi, a legacy, a folklore, a person or a act or a place is a multi use word with no known origin but has been used since Pre Independence era of Indian armed forces. Not many know but Nashik has the biggest and oldest Artillery centre of Asia and every officer or gunner trained to operate these guns is a graduate of the academy here.

The word if split correctly will be easy to decipher for someone from Hindi speaking belt as,  Top-chi, or Toph (Artillery Gun) operator which in Artillery terms means 'Gunner'. Also, in Marathi it can mean Top-chi which means Topmost or Best. The word though means a lot more than just a 'Gunner', because in our neck of the woods it's not just a profession but a way of life.  Till date almost everyone in and around Artillery centre don't have English as their first language and words like gunning or shelling are difficult which is easily substituted by 'Topchi'. So 'Topchi' is now referred more as an activity than a person and you'll hear people fondly saying "Topchi ho rahi hai kya?" 

For a few decades the livelihood of many on the other side of firing range of this artillery centre was to collect and sell the metal from ammunition in scrap market. You would get the best pick if you are closest to the action so many have lost a limb or a life in this pursuit. We say there's a part of Topchi in many houses around Nashik as this metal, majorly brass was reused by artisans in famous lane of Nashik, Tambat (Metal) lane to make small statues, deity frames and all other accessories required for daily prayers in Maharashtrian house. 

Why we picked this name is also equally important like why we picked beer over wine in Wine capital of India. Our brewery is built on the other side of this firing range and you'll casually here a salvo during the day when there's someone practising on the Artillery premises. In evenings you'll see a flare lighting up the sky above the beer garden on brewery premises and then suddenly hear a repetition of explosion, once at firing and other when it hits the target. The ground will tremble a bit and there will be ripple in your glass and for a split second you'll just hope that they don't miss or over shoot those targets. 

Also, like a gunner it's a rebel spirit of being standing out and be always on the line of fire. Why would you care if you are sitting behind a 1000 pound gun but that's exactly you should be careful as everyone is looking for you from the enemy side. We picked beer as a mission to make Indian beers a style to be reckoned around the world the same way Indian wines are, which majorly are from Nashik. 

P.S. This has nothing to do with us having an accomplished winemaker as a co-founder who's bored of making wine once a year post harvest and now likes the excitement of making a new batch of beer every week throughout the year. 

Topchi Brewing is the first craft beer company of Nashik which started in 2018, by making beers in rented facility and shipping to Nashik and eventually starting its own production facility on the outskirts of Wine capital of India. We are not just a Microbrewery that brews beer, but we also take great pride serving it at our taproom and various bars. You can visit the Microbrewery at Vilholi for tours and tasting and if you are in middle of Nashik city then drop by the taproom, Topchi Outpost for some delicious brews and bites. 

We are on a mission to challenge the status quo of drinking beers through tasting, food pairing and overall experience that goes well with our World class beers. We have also started working on creating a plethora of products like wine, cider, mead, kombucha, coffee and lot more. The efforts in the food are the same and every made used in Taproom is made in house at the bakery on the brewery premises. The plan is honing the skills to do all things fermentation, beverages and food in house. 

Join us to understand how we are Gunning from India for some great beers and also around here why we are known craft brewing some crazy ales and conversations. 

Cheers!