A transatlantic collaboration between Ukrainian craft brewery MOVA and Brooklyn-based 18th Ward Brewing has brought a limited-edition batch of Ukrainian Golden Ale to New York. The partnership, forged in the midst of ongoing conflict in Ukraine, underscores a shared commitment to preserving cultural heritage through craft beer.
Based in the eastern Ukrainian city of Dnipro, MOVA shipped authentic Ukrainian coriander to the United States to ensure the brew retained its traditional spicy flavor. The two breweries co-developed the beer using MOVA’s original recipe, adapting it with locally sourced hops and malt while preserving its signature ingredient.
The collaboration yielded approximately 4,000 cans of Ukrainian Golden Ale. The beer is currently available at 18th Ward Brewing’s taprooms in Brooklyn and New Rochelle, as well as at Umbra, a Brooklyn-based bar and music venue affiliated with the brewery. Distribution is expected to expand to other bars throughout the New York area. Each can bears the label of a joint brew between the Ukrainian and American partners.
Described as a light-colored beer with floral-citrus aromas, a gentle malt backbone, and a hint of caramel sweetness, Ukrainian Golden Ale is distinguished by the unique spice of coriander cultivated in Ukraine’s agricultural heartland. The variety used in the collaboration was shipped across the Atlantic specifically for this project.
Bohdan Tochka, MOVA’s co-founder and head brewer, emphasized the symbolic importance of the ingredient’s journey: “It’s deeply symbolic that coriander harvested in Ukraine traveled across the ocean to brew Ukrainian beer in America. These collaborations help keep Ukrainian culture alive during these difficult times.”
Ukrainian Golden Ale is recognized as the world’s first officially designated Ukrainian beer style, having been added to the European Beer Consumers’ Union’s style guidelines in 2023. First developed by Ukrainian brewers in 2009, international promotion of the style began in earnest in 2021. Today, it is brewed on every continent.
Tochka noted that the collaboration with 18th Ward Brewing is part of a broader effort to popularize the beer style globally. “The more collaborations with breweries worldwide, the better,” he said. “It would be great if all breweries brewed Ukrainian Golden Ale, like Czech lager or Belgian blonde.”
MOVA continues to operate from Dnipro, a strategic industrial hub that has endured frequent missile strikes since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. Despite wartime challenges, the brewery has sustained production and exports to several European countries, including Norway, Denmark, Poland, and the Netherlands. Plans for expanding its international presence are already underway.
In 2025, MOVA achieved a milestone when its non-alcoholic beer varieties earned gold and bronze medals at the World Alcohol-Free Awards, marking the first such victory for a Ukrainian brewery at the prestigious competition.
18th Ward Brewing, a family-owned business founded in 2019, has established itself in New York’s craft beer scene with locations in Brooklyn and New Rochelle. The brewery has received multiple accolades from the New York State Craft Beer Competition and has been featured in The New York Times.
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