[3] Before founding the company, self-taught home brewers Bjergsø and Keller experimented on brewing, first by trying to clone existing beers.

After success in blind tastings, the two started creating their own recipes and entered many home brewing competitions in Denmark, eventually winning many of them.

In 2006, encouraged by wider appeal, Bjergsø and Keller founded the Mikkeller brewing company, named after their home brewery operation.

[3] Keller parted ways with the company in 2007, as he was not interested in production and crafting a greater number of beers, while Bjergsø was eager to constantly create new recipes and tastes.

[5] Keller quit brewing in order to pursue his career as a journalist, leaving Bjergsø to oversee the company.

[10] In 2017, Mikkeller partnered with singer Rick Astley, opening two pubs over the following years in Islington and Shoreditch, London.

In July 2013, the first international Mikkeller bar was opened in San Francisco, California, through a licensing agreement with an American retailer.

[20][21] The brand partnered with an already established Thai-based beer distribution company and seeks to capitalise on the higher earning capacity of Thai people, as well as tourists.

At the opening, one of the owners explained: "... and we thought it was about time to elevate the level of craft beer available in Thailand and, hopefully, expand throughout Southeast Asia."

For example, a pale lager called The American Dream has won a RateBeer's golden award in its category since 2012, and an imperial stout called Beer Geek Brunch Weasel has been in top 20 on RateBeer's "Best Beers in the World" chart for six consecutive years, topping at number six in 2009.