Chopería Mastra - Mastra Craft Beer Bar

Mastra is a craft beer brand produced in Uruguay. Although it has been in the market for quite some time (mostly served at other beer bars and bottled in some specialized markets), it wasn’t until 2013 that its owners decided it was time for a bar of their own.

Chopería Mastra

The re-opening of a landmark for the city of Montevideo, such as the historic “Mercado Agrícola de Montevideo” [Montevideo Agricultural Market], after undergoing extensive renovation work, seemed like the perfect setting for the Chopería Mastra. “Chopería” refers to the “chopp”, which is a type of draft beer; the name derives from the word “schopp,” a 300ml volume measurement in German. So, Chopería Mastra would become the perfect place to enjoy a pint of one of the different varieties of craft beer offered.

Detail.

The design by architect Carolina Gazzaneo needed to merge two different visions for the space: first, to provide an attractive solution for a beer bar within the context of the Market, which boasts a varied culinary offering. Second, to offer support to educational activities aimed at familiarizing the audience with the processes and ingredients involved in the making of a craft beer.

Detail.

The traditional notion of beer bar was then reinterpreted to suit the needs of a contemporary craft brand. While at most bars chalk boards are usually used as stand-alone elements, at the Chopería Mastra, the volume which houses the inner workings of beer-serving is painted entirely in blackboard paint, allowing to modify messages as new varieties are introduced, and to announce certain events, such as soccer matches (soccer is the Uruguayan sport par excellence). Two recesses in the volume (both clad in white tiling) interact with different areas in the space, and refer to different phases of the production process. The first gives place to the wall-mounted draft pipe, which, holding 12 faucets, becomes the longest “chopera” in the country, and is the first point of contact between the glass and the guest. The second recess houses the sink, marking the return of the empty glass back to the bar, as it gets ready to serve a new guest.

The L-shaped bar.

The L-shaped counter is in itself an element of communication: designed to support the new brand posters, its configuration marks the transition between the “outside” and the “inside” of the bar, as one of its sides limits with the market’s wide hallway and the other faces the rest of the space. Educational activities take place around the second main element: a wooden communal table doubles as storage space for the four ingredients used in the production process, which can be viewed, touched and smelled just by pulling on one of the drawers.