The island of Kythira officially opened its first microbrewery in April 2026, under the name «Kakia Melissa.» According to the in-depth report by Financialreport.gr, after three years of preparation, the founders of the project, Eleni Fatsa and Giannakos Kominos, inaugurated their state-of-the-art facilities in the village Alexandrades, in the center of the island. At the same time, visitors can get a sense of the microbrewery’s facilities and philosophy through the video presentation that was recently posted on Facebook.
Watch the video here: https://www.facebook.com/share/v/18P7Nd86ud/
The key points of the project:
- The Investment: The project cost half a million euros, combining a 200,000-euro grant from the Leader program with an equal amount of private funding.
- Training: The idea began in 2023 as a home-brewing project, with Mr. Kominos going on to complete professional training and earn an official brewer’s certification.
- Production: With an emphasis on quality rather than mass production, the brewery bottles approximately 1,000 bottles per week. Greek malt from the Macedonia-Thrace Brewery (Vergina) is used in the brewing process.
- Distribution: «The Bad Bee» will be released exclusively in the local market of Kythira, and will be available primarily through restaurants and select local supermarkets.
With the opening of «Kakia Melissa,» Kythira has now firmly established itself on the map of Greek island microbreweries, offering its own fresh and authentic beer.
