Finland already has its “NATO” beer with a “taste of security” and a “touch of freedom”

A small brewery in Finland launched a beer named “NATO” to celebrate the Nordic nation’s request to join the Western military alliance with Sweden.

NATO beer from Olaf Brewing featuring a blue label with a cartoon version of a medieval knight drinking beer in metal armor decorated with the NATO compass symbol.

The name beer is a play on the Finnish expression “Otan olutta”What does this mean “I’ll get a beer” and the French abbreviation for NATO, as opposed to NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization).

Chief Executive Officer Petteri Vanttinen told The Associated Press on Thursday that the craft brewer’s ad hoc decision last weekend to start brewing beer was motivated by “Concerns about the war in Ukraine” and its consequences for Finland.

He described the new lager as “included a taste of securitywith the a touch of freedom“.

Finland and Sweden on Wednesday submitted an application to join NATO at the alliance’s headquarters in Brussels.

Just a few steps from the Russian border

Olaf Brewing said his new beer also pays tribute to the city of Savonlinnain eastern Finland, the beer base is located a few dozen kilometers from the Finnish border with Russia.

Savonlinna is known for Saint Olaf Castle, a medieval structure 1475 which serves as the venue for the annual international opera festival.

“Our small town, Savonlinna, has always been on the border between east and west. Many battles were fought in the city area and in St. Louis. Olafs Castle, ”the brewery said in a Twitter post.

Finland has a borderand 1,340 kilometers (830 miles) along Russia, the longest of any member of the European Union.

Associated Press

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