Kung
Kung
Åbro Bryggeri is the oldest family brewery in Sweden and at the same time one of the most modern in Europe. It was founded in 1856 in Vimmerby in Småland by Lieutenant Per W. Luthander, who wanted to settle in the idyllic region between two military assignments and built up the brewery together with a German master brewer. The name comes from the bridge over the river Stångån, which flows past the brewery, and the site on the outskirts of Vimmerby has been the same since the founding. The start was bumpy, as the master brewer left the company after just a year, and Anders Andersson took over the post first and later, when Luthander was again on military assignment, the brewery as well, which also had to survive the turbulent years of the Swedish alcohol debates and rationing.
In 1898 Axel Herman Johansson took over the brewery, and since then the same family, known today under the name Dunge, has led the company through all crises and upheavals, now in the fourth generation under Henrik Dunge. Under Per Dunge, who took over management after the death of his father Axel in 1953, the workforce grew from 40 to 175 employees, and the company celebrated a hundred years of brewing tradition in Vimmerby. The brewing water still comes from the same source as at the founding in 1856, and in recent years the brewery has invested almost a billion kronor in automation and water-saving measures as well as in one of the most modern filling halls in Scandinavia.
Today Åbro employs around 265 people, produces over 100 million litres of beverages per year and sells its products in 23 countries. Since 2015 the brewery has been run entirely on fossil-free energy, with electricity from solar cells and hydropower as well as district heating from wood chips. The range includes the flagship Åbro Original, the premium series Bryggmästarens and the pale full-malt lager Kung, which has been among the best-selling beers at the Swedish Systembolaget since 2011. With its combination of family continuity, artisanal tradition and modern technology, the brewery stands for a piece of Swedish brewing history that has been written in Vimmerby for more than 160 years.