ThessVentures, a humble contribution to the discovery of the Greek craft beer

Hello everyone! Those of you who already follow us on Instagram may have noticed something new on our page. That’s right — besides continuing to share our usual beer adventures and a few stories along the way, I decided to get a little more hands-on. As I explained in the first post of this blog, the beer bug kept stirring inside me, and I was eager to do something more professionally connected to it or at least give it a try. Moving to a new country makes any entrepreneurial move quite complicated — something I realized while living in Portugal. Some acquaintances from Brazil moved there with ready-made business ideas without really experiencing the local reality first. Honestly, I can’t remember any of them succeeding, and many ended up not even starting after realizing that the reality was very different from what they had imagined.

ThessVentures dominating our feed on Instagram.

With those lessons in mind, I found myself here in Greece — without speaking the local language, but with a strong desire to contribute to the craft beer scene. As I reflected on alternative paths and lifestyles, the idea of creating a beer tour here started to take shape. Now, I’ll admit: because I have a knack for self-sabotage, this idea stayed simmering on the back burner longer than it should have. For a while, I thought I would need some sort of certification to act as a tour guide. Tourism is taken very seriously here in Greece, and to become a certified guide, you need extensive knowledge of Greek history — almost the equivalent of earning a university degree. Since I only wanted to talk about beer, I quickly ruled out that option. Instead, I dove deeper into the world of beer itself: I earned the "Level 2 Award in Beer" from WSET with distinction, and I also studied for and took the BJCP exam this March. And finally, after talking to the pioneers behind Greece’s first beer tours (Bonnie & Clyde Urban Tours), I realized that I could actually run a beer tour — because it could be classified as a non-touristic activity. (Believe it or not!)

Of course, after that, thousands of ideas started bubbling up in my mind: adding Greek food to the beer tour, exploring bars outside the city center, even visiting local microbreweries. Everything felt like natural next steps. But with the help of my "consultant" (aka my brother), we decided to stick to a simple business model for now — building around the concept of a Minimal Viable Product. ThessVentures became the proof of concept we needed to launch the project. We focused on keeping costs low, minimizing risks, and maximizing the value we could offer future clients.

The next step was thinking about the kind of message I wanted to convey — and selecting the right bars to help tell that story. This meant countless bar visits (what a tough job, right? haha) until we finalized the first version of the tour. The bar selection was based on a few simple but important criteria: the route had to be walkable (no drink and drive!), and the bars had to serve Greek craft beer on tap — not just in bottles. At first, I thought four bars would be ideal. But when one of the candidates turned out not to have local beers on draft, I decided to stick with three. And after a few trial runs, three bars really did seem like the magic number — allowing us to start around 6 PM and wrap up by 8:30 or 9 PM, just in time for a proper Greek dinner.

Two bars immediately stood out: "The Hoppy Pub" and "Utopia Taproom". As a lover of fresh beer, these two had already given me some of the best beer experiences during my informal explorations. And they’re quite different from each other. "Hoppy" is a traditional pub that’s been around for over a decade, deeply rooted in the local community. It’s a bar that grew alongside the Greek craft beer scene and today proudly offers local brews side-by-side with legends like Ayinger and Cantillon across 18 taps. On the other hand, "Utopia" is a modern taproom — the dream project of a former gypsy brewery — now thriving in its own space, serving its creations and many others. It has become a meeting point for Thessaloniki’s beer community and an active player for the rebirth of the Mavilis’ square. It has 12 taps and carefully curated DJ sets that make every beer tasting session even more special. The third bar, "Rehab Pub", had been on my radar for a while. I’d been following them on Instagram (even without understanding a word! haha) and finally paid them a visit once the tour idea had taken shape. One visit was enough to know: "Rehab" was the perfect fit for our second stop. With a name like rehab, you already get a sense of the owner's humor — and that friendly vibe was key to their inclusion. The bar has been a lively part of the community for almost a decade, organizing events and creating a welcoming atmosphere. Plus, the good music, friendly energy, and great local beers on tap sealed the deal.

Merely ilustrative images from "The Hoppy Pub"(left), "Rehab Pub"(center) and "Utopia Taproom"(right). The ‘merely ilustrative’ is needed cause these images do not reflect the good energy that we feel in a big night of pints at any ot these spots.

But in the end, it wasn’t the number of taps or the decor that truly inspired ThessVentures. It was the stories behind these bars and the passion of the people who run them — their genuine commitment to offering the freshest, best beers they can. Greece is a tourist magnet, but Greek craft beer still flies under the radar for most visitors. Seeing guests on the tour completely amazed by the variety and quality of Greek beers has been incredibly rewarding. And for now, that’s my mission: sharing this hidden gem with as many people as possible. That’s where I’ll stop the spoilers — because the only way to experience it all is by joining the tour! ThessVentures was created with a lot of love and care, and it’s officially open for bookings through this link.

Of course, I see this as just the beginning — a starting point. I have plenty of ideas for future developments. But for now, I’m taking it step by step. It will be good to confirm that this is truly what I want to do, to see if people are genuinely interested on the project, and finally, to ensure it’s financially viable. What I do know is this: my passion for beer shows no sign of fading. These past months, dedicating myself almost entirely to beer-related activities, have brought me immense joy. But passion alone doesn’t pay the bills — so yes, I’m working hard to build something sustainable. I can promise you this: I’ll be thinking every day about how to improve the experience, deliver real value to everyone who joins the tour, and strike the right balance between your expectations and mine. Any feedback is more than welcome — feel free to message me with tips or suggestions. Thanks for reading, and see you at the next pint!