Nils Oscar Brewery - Nils Oscar Background

Nils Oscar Background

The brewery takes its name from Nils Oscar.

Nils Oscar was born in 1865 in a small village called Brändön in the very Nordic parts of Sweden. This is where the woods grew big and good place for agriculture was offered along the coast and rivers. But times were rough and Nils Oscar’s family led a poor life (he was one of eight brothers and sisters). In 1882 a ticket to America was sent to him. The sender was an emigrant relative who owned a farm in America. So he left for the big country over there. During the long trip (at the time travelling over the Atlantic Ocean was made by boat so one can only imagine), he worked in the kitchen to earn his stay. He had to work at the relative’s farm with no compensation for six months in order to pay his ticket back. He learned the basics of agriculture. Nils Oscar left the farm for new adventures and finally became a tenant.

During the 18 years that Nils Oscar stayed in America, not only did he learn to manage agriculture, he studied Business English at the Bryant and Stratton Business College in Chicago, Illinois. A quote from the note, written by the Principal of the English Department says ”to whom it may concern … Never in our history have we had a more earnest, hardworking, energetic student than he has proven him to be. Honest at all times. Never afraid to do his duty”. We could not have expressed it better ourselves.

In the year 1900 Nils Oscar came back to Sweden. He met Ida, whom he married. He immediately started to rebuild the agriculture at the family farm. They had four sons. Still Nils Oscar was attracted to the big continent in the west. He returned to America three more times, where every period lasted for two to three years. During the stays in America he worked as a farmer.

Ida, however, never joined him on his trips to America. Nils Oscar really tried to convince her and the children to come along, but this was one of the few things he never succeeded in doing. Ida was a woman with a will of steel, and maybe that is why he loved her so. She managed to bring up the sons and run the farm by herself during the time Nils Oscar spent in America.

In 1914 Nils Oscar returned to Sweden for good.

Today, the agriculture, and other work at Tärnö Manor, is managed by Nils Oscar's descendants. They still work with the same ambition, competence and vision as Nils Oscar did. That is why the products from Tärnö are sold under the name Nils Oscar.

The Nils Oscar products are born on the fields and grown in the soil at the estate Tärnö Manor located 140 km south of Stockholm. Oat, wheat, barley and rye are cultivated and then malted in the malting plant at Tärnö Manor. After this process the malt is transported to Tärnö Brewery & Distillery in order to be transformed into beer and spirits. By working this way, controlling the whole chain from birth to completed product, one can have an influence on the taste development, from cultivation, malting, mashing, distillation, filtration and seasoning to bottling. As mentioned before, the product roots go deep in the Swedish tradition but the manufacturing process bears the stamp of new thinking and innovation. FROM GRAIN TO BOTTLE.