Beer in Bulgaria

Beer in Bulgaria
A bottle of Bulgarian beer in a traditional restaurant

The modern history of beer in Bulgaria (Bulgarian: пиво, pivo or бира, bira) dates back to the 19th century, when it was introduced to the country by foreigners (from Austria-Hungary, France and Switzerland) shortly before the Liberation of Bulgaria. Until then, beer was practically unknown in what used to be a mainly rakia and wine-drinking country. Today, Bulgaria ranks 25th by beer consumption per capita, with 59.5 litres a year.

Contents

History

The Hungarian exiles in Shumen, led by Lajos Kossuth after the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, brewed beer and are thought to have found followers among the locals. However, their stay in the city was short and they could not manage to introduce beer to the masses. The Frenchman Ducorp, who worked as a railway engineer near Sofia between 1873 and 1876, opened a small brewery in Knyazhevo. The Czech Jiří Prošek, who first came to Bulgaria in 1873 to work on the same railway line, noted that the local Shopi had the custom to brew primitive beer at harvest time. They soaked barley, leaving it to germinate, drying it, adding hot water and wild hops, with natural fermentation and cooling.

Bulgaria's earliest commercial brewery was established in Plovdiv by the Swiss Germans Rudolf Frick and Friedrich Sulzer in 1876. It became a large and modern factory in 1879–1881 with the help of another Swiss expert, Christian August Bomanti. Production began in 1882 in the Kamenitsa area near the city and continues today, its successor being the Kamenitza brewery. The first brewery in Varna dates back to 1884, when the contractors Kasabov and Vtichev opened up a small factory.

The professional Czech brewer Franz-František Milde established the Shumensko beer factory in Shumen in 1882, and helped found the Bulgarian Brewing Association the same year. Jiří Prošek and his brothers founded the Vitosha brewery in Sofia in 1884; they also bought Ducorp's small brewery and owned the Dalbok Zimnik cellar. Today, the Vitosha brewery is known as Ariana.

In 1899, Milde's Bulgarian partners tried to deceive him, so he bought the Austrian Johann Habermann's brewery in Rousse (established in 1876) and started producing beer there. Fearing his competition, his partners quickly paid their debts and Milde returned to Shumen, leaving his brother Sebastian as the Rousse factory's manager.

In the late 19th and early 20th century, beer rapidly grew in popularity among the Bulgarian middle class, and a large number of beer houses were established in most big cities. After World War I, there were already 18 breweries in Bulgaria. Besides those already mentioned, these included the Stara Zagora factory of Dr. Kozhuharov (since 1902), the Czechs Malotin and Hozman's factory in Lom, the Habermann and St Petka breweries in Rousse, the German Moritz Ratt's Cherven Rak factory in Pleven, W. Ollinger's in Koshava, others in Veliko Tarnovo and Gorna Oryahovitsa, etc.

Following World War II, as Bulgaria became part of the Eastern Bloc, all breweries were nationalized. Since the democratic reforms in 1989, the Bulgarian beer market has been dominated by some of the world's largest multinational beer companies who privatized the local breweries and produce both locally and internationally branded beer. Numerous beer festivals (birfest) are organized yearly in the major cities all around the country, for example in Sofia, Plovdiv, Pleven, Gabrovo, Sevlievo, Bansko, Vidin, etc.

The most popular form of packaging is the glass bottle, closely followed by the PET bottle, which, in 2008, accounted for 41% of beer packaging. Some Eastern European countries are showing a trend towards purchasing lager in large PET packs, for Bulgaria this trend is mainly confined to standard and economy brands of pale lager.[1]

Economy

The domestic beer market produces 582 million litres annually. Standard pale lager has been the traditional beer choice for Bulgarians, but with Heineken, InBev and Carlsberg buying up local breweries, the choice for beer drinkers in the premium and economy segments has expanded. Beer imports and exports have started to diverge - exports climbed in 2007 to 8.4 million litres, compared to imports declining to 4.6 million litres. Bulgaria exports mainly to neighbouring countries, such as Macedonia, Romania or Serbia, and to countries where there is an expatriate population, such as the US, UK and Spain.[1]

Breweries

There are thirteen breweries in Bulgaria, four of which are owned by InBev, two by Carlsberg and two by Heineken.[2] Local breweries include Bolyarka, which makes a range of lagers,[3] and distributes the Warsteiner brand in Bulgaria.[4]


InBev brands

Heineken brands

  • Zagorka
  • Ariana
  • Stolichno

Carlsberg brands


In addition, international beer brands have a large market share and are, in many cases (e.g. Stella Artois, Beck's, Heineken, Staropramen, Tuborg, Amstel), brewed locally.

Brands

Bulgaria, while being quite a small country in Eastern Europe, has quite a number of beer brands. The most popular breweries (all producing namesake lagers) are Kamenitza (produced in the city of Plovdiv), Zagorka (produced mainly in Stara Zagora) and AstikA (Produced in city of Haskovo). Other remarkable brands are Stolichno (bock beer produced by Zagorka), Shumensko (both lager and red ale, produced in the city of Shumen), Burgasko (produced in the city of Burgas), MM (produced in the city of Varna), Pirinsko (brewed in the city of Blagoevgrad), and Plevensko (produced in the city of Pleven). Most of the Bulgarian breweries are currently owned by foreign breweries, such as Heineken (Zagorka) and Interbrew (AstikA and Kamenitza).

References

Notes

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Beer in Africa — Beer in Africa, especially lager, is produced commercially in most African countries, and varieties of beer are also made by indigenous tribes. Beer is served in a range of locales, from neighbourhood shebeens to upscale bars. Many countries have …   Wikipedia

  • Beer in New Zealand — Beer is the most popular alcoholic drink in New Zealand, accounting for 63% of available alcohol for sale.[1] New Zealand is ranked 19th in beer consumption per capita, at around 75.5 litres per person per annum. The vast majority of beer… …   Wikipedia

  • Beer in India — has been an import since the early 18th century and brewed natively since the late 1820s. Contents 1 History 2 Industry 3 Consolidation 4 References …   Wikipedia

  • Beer in the Philippines — is managed by two breweries: San Miguel Corporation, which produces San Miguel Pale Pilsen, the most popular beer in the country and Asia Brewery, the second largest brewery in the country. Beer is the most consumed alcoholic beverage in the… …   Wikipedia

  • Beer Hall Putsch — Marienplatz in Munich during the Beer Hall Putsch …   Wikipedia

  • Beer in Hungary — has been brewed for well over a thousand years, but in the modern age, most beer is mass produced. Beer has been made there for around a thousand years and the country has a significant history of commercial beer production.[citation needed]… …   Wikipedia

  • Beer in Romania — comes from the long tradition of Romanian brewing, being introduced in Transylvania by the German colonists (Transylvanian Saxons) and in Moldavia by cultural connections with Poland. A national association of beer with mititei came into… …   Wikipedia

  • Beer in South Africa — has a long history, with a corporate history dating back to the early 20th century. Contents 1 History 2 Modern day 3 Homebrewing Culture 4 See also …   Wikipedia

  • Beer in Korea — Korean name Hangul 맥주 Ha …   Wikipedia

  • Beer in Portugal — has a long history, going as far back as the time of the ancient Roman province of Lusitania, where beer was commonly made and drunk. Portugal is among the 11 largest beer producers in Europe, and is the 7th largest European exporter of the… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”