Heineken N.V. is a Dutch brewer which owns a worldwide portfolio of over 170 beer brands, mainly pale lager, though some other beer styles are produced. The two largest brands are Heineken and Tecate; though the portfolio includes Amstel, Fosters (in Europe and Vietnam), Sagres, Cruzcampo, Skopsko, Affligem, Żywiec, Starobrno, Zagorka, Zlatý Bažant, Laško and Birra Moretti.
Heineken
Heineken Lager Beer is the company's flagship product. It is a 5% abv pale lager that was first brewed in 1868. It is produced by 40 breweries in 39 countries around the world. In 2006, 2.58 billion litres of Heineken was produced. Since 1975, most Heineken beer is brewed in the Heineken brewery in Zoeterwoude, Netherlands.
Other beers produced under the Heineken brand name include: Heineken Dark Heineken Oud Bruin Heineken Premium Light Heineken Tarwebok
Buckler Buckler is a low alcohol (0.5% abv) pale lager. It was launched in the summer of 1988. There was a recall in 2004 due to a fault in the pasteurising process, and Buckler is no longer available in the Netherlands (Heineken's home market) after the brand's image declined following Dutch comedian Youp van 't Hek mocking the brand (and its consumers) in a show in 1989.
Buckler was the beverage of choice for then US Vice President Joe Biden at the "Beer Summit" with Henry Louis Gates, James Crowley and President Barack Obama. The event was the result of the controversial arrest of Henry Louis Gates, which gained national attention regarding law enforcement racial profiling. Biden acknowledged that his choice of beer was “mostly ironic".
Former US President George W. Bush, who gave up drinking alcoholic beverages after turning 40, drank Buckler while relaxing with Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister Tony Blair on 8 June 2007 during a break in the G8 summit.*
Subsidiaries' brands
Europe
Heineken Italy Heineken's Italian operation began in 1974 with the acquisition of the Dreher brewery. In 1996 it added the Moretti brewery. Heineken Italy has six brewing plants producing over 575 million litres of beer, and employs over 1,000 people. Its plants are: Pollein (AO), Massafra (TA), Messina, Comun Nuovo (BG), Assemini (CA).
Birra Dreher Birra Dreher was founded in Trieste in 1896. It was bought by Heineken in 1974.
Birra Ichnusa Heineken also purchased Birra Ichnusa, a brewery founded in 1912 in Assemini, a town near the Sardinian capital Cagliari. It is named after the Latinized ancient name Sardinia, Hyknusa.
Birra Moretti
Birra Moretti was founded in Udine in 1859 by Luigi Moretti. Heineken acquired the company in 1996, selling the brewing plant to the new Castello beer company. There are eight beers under the Birra Moretti brand. Birra Moretti is the main brand, a 4.6% abv pale lager launched in 1859, followed by La Rossa is a 7.2% strong dark lager or dunkel. Other brands include Doppio Malto, Baffo d'Oro, and Sans Souci. It also has a number of bottled beers named after regions of Italy, such as Piemontese, a 5.5%ABV fruit beer.
Affligem Brewery The Op-Ale brewery in Opwijk, Belgium was licensed by the Affligem Abbey to brew beers under the Affligem Abbey brand name, along with their own Op-Ale, as well as beers under the brand name of the Postel Abbey. Affligem was taken over by Heineken who renamed it the Affligem brewery.
The brewery produces a range of beers, including Affligem Blonde, a 6.8% pale ale; Affligem Dubbel, a 7% dubbel, Affligem Tripel, a 9.5% tripel and Affligem Patersvat, a 6.8% belgian ale.
Athenian Brewery Amstel, Heineken, Athenian, Alfa Hellenic, Fischer, Marathon, Zorbas Athenian Brewery S.A. is one of the most important beer producers and traders in Greece. It was established in 1963 by a group of Greek entrepreneurs and is a member of Heineken Group N. V. In 1965, the first plant started its operation in Athens, producing Amstel beer. The second plant was inaugurated in 1974 in Thessaloniki, expanding the production, whereas Amstel became one of the most famous beers in the Greek market, just like it still is today.
In 1981, Athenian Brewery started Heineken beer's production in Greece, while a third plant started operating in Patra.
Amstel Brewery
The Amstel brewery was founded in 1870 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It was taken over by Heineken in 1968, and the brewing plant closed down in 1972, with production moving to the main Heineken plant at Zoeterwoude.
Heineken offer several beers under the Amstel brand. Amstel Lager uses predominantly pilsener malt, although some Vienna malt is also used. It is sold in 75 countries. Amstel Light is a 3.5% abv pale lager. Amstel 1870 is a slightly dark 5% abv lager. In France a beer called Amstel Free, with minimal alcohol content – about 1% abv, is produced.
Beamish and Crawford Beamish & Crawford in Cork brews both an Irish stout and a red ale. It has been part of Heineken since 2009.
Botchkarev Brewery Botchkarev (Russian: Бочкарев) is a Russian brewery that started as a soft drinks company called Bravo, opening a brewery in St Petersburg in 1988.
In 1993 a group of Icelandic businessmen founded a bottling plant in Saint Petersburg, which was later sold to Pepsi. Since 1995 the company named "Bravo International" launched production of alcoholic long drinks and lemonades under "Bravo" brand at its new site.
In 1998 "Bravo International" started construction of a brewery in Saint Petersburg, where in February 1999, "Botchkarev" beer was first brewed. The "Botchkarov" brand of beer was created by Bravo's American marketing director, Brian Kean. The name and marketing message revived Russian beer-drinking traditions. Botchkarov is a Russian surname-- "botchka" which means barrel in Russian; and then linked it to the "proper" rules for beer consumption.
In 2002 Bravo sold its brewing business to Heineken. Since 2004 Bochkarev is brewed also under license in Almaty brewery Tian Shan; since 2006 its production started at a newly acquired PIT brewery in Kaliningrad. On top of that the beer has been available for export mainly in CIS countries and those with a notable number of Russian expats.
The assortment range includes the following beer types: Botchkarev lager (Botchkarev svetloye) Botchkarev classic (Botchkarev klassicheskoye) Botchkarev extra (Botchkarev krepkoye) Botchkarev without alcohol (Botchkarev bezalkogolnoye)
Brand Brewery Brand Brewery is a Dutch brewery founded in 1871 by the Brand family in Wijlre. The name comes from the Brand family which in 1871 purchased the Netherlands' oldest brewery (originally founded in 1340) and remained in management after its acquisition by Heineken.
The brewery produces eight beers. Brand Pils is a 5.0% abv pale lager made since 1902. It is sold in the United States as Royal Brand Beer; Brand Urtyp is a 5.5% abv pale lager introduced in 1952 and claimed to be based on the Pilsener recipe from 1842 – Urtyp stands for "original"; Brand Oud Bruin (Brand Old Brown) is a 3.5% abv brown ale; Brand Cuvée a 5.5% abv top fermenting pale lager; Brand Imperator (since 1949) – 6.5% abv – amber colored, full malted premium beer; Brand Meibock (since 1994) a 6.5% abv goldbrown Spring seasonal beer; Brand Dubbelbock (since 1987) a 7.5% abv Autumn seasonal beer; Brand Sylvester (since 1984) a 7.5% abv Winter seasonal beer.
Caledonian Brewery
Caledonian Brewery is a Scottish brewery founded in 1869 in Edinburgh, primarily specialising in Scottish ale. Between 2004 and 2008, the brewery was bought by Scottish and Newcastle.
Central de Cervejas brewery
Sociedade Central de Cervejas (SCC) is a Portuguese brewery, founded in 1934, that produces a range of beers, mainly pale lagers. Its main output is the Sagres brand of beers. The company has been controlled since April 2008 by Heineken.
The Sagres brand was created in 1940 to represent Sociedade Central de Cervejas at the Portuguese World Exhibition, and is named after a town of the same name. It was the first beer to be exported by SCC, arriving first in Gibraltar before being exported to the Azores and the various Portuguese Overseas Territories across the world.
Sagres beers made: Sagres Sagres Preta Sagres Bohemia Sagres Radler Sagres sem Álcool Sagres sem Álcool Preta Sagres Special Editions
Cruzcampo Brewery Founded in 1904 by Roberto Osborne and Agustín Osborne in Seville, takes the name of La Cruz del Campo (The Cross of the Field), which used to be a cross in the middle of the field, which still stands today next to the brewery in Seville.
Nowadays it is part of the Heineken corporation who bought it from Guinness. Cruzcampo can be found anywhere in Spain, but it is in Andalusia where it is most consumed. It has breweries in Seville, Madrid, Valencia, Jaén and Arano. The logo since 1926 has been the figure of Gambrinus, a legendary creator of beer. Cruzcampo is the sponsor of the Spain national football team.
Beers also made: Cruzcampo Pilsen 4.8% ABV Cruzcampo "Gran Reserva" 6.4% ABV strong lager, winner of the 2009 World Beer Awards. Shandy Cruzcampo 0.9% ABV. Cruzcampo Export. Cruzcampo Sin, Alcohol Free. Cruzcampo Navidad (Brewed only in Christmas) Cruzcampo Light, 2.4% ABV Cruzcampo Pilsner, sin Gluten Big Cruzcampo. El León. Krone Lager. Spieler Pils.
De Ridder Brewery The De Ridder brewery in Maastricht was taken over by Heineken and closed in 2002. Wieckse Witte, a 5% abv white beer, was introduced in 1988.
Fürstenberg Brewery
The Princely Fürstenberg Brewery (Fürstlich Fürstenbergische Brauerei KG) was founded in Donaueschingen, Germany in 1283 by the Princely House of Fürstenberg. Heineken acquired the brewery in October 2004 through their Brau Holding International AG company which is co-owned by Schörghuber.
The brewery produces Fürstenberg Gold, and Qowaz, a drink made from a mix of wheat beer, cola and lemongrass.
Karlovačko Brewery The Karlovačko Brewery (hr: Karlovačka pivovara, shortform Karlovačko) is a Croatian brewery, founded in 1854 by local landowner Baron Nikola Vranyczany in the town of Karlovac. In 2003, Heineken International acquired a majority stake.
As of December 2006, the following beers are brewed regularly by Karlovačko:
Karlovačko pivo (lager) Karlovačko Radler lemon (radler) Karlovačko Radler grapefruit (radler) Karlovačko crno (dark lager) Karlovačko Rally (non-alcoholic beer) Heineken Gösser Dark Kaiser Edelweiss Snowfresh Desperados
Krušovice Brewery
The Royal Brewery of Krušovice (, shortform Krušovice) is a Czech brewery, established in 1581 by Jiří Birka in the village of Krušovice. The brewery gained a contract to provide beer to Emperor Rudolf II in 1583, allowing them to use the Imperial Crown of Austria as part of the company's logo. The company was acquired by Heineken in July 2007.
As of December 2023, the following beers are brewed regularly by Krušovice: Krušovice Originál 10° Krušovice Mušketýr 11° Krušovice Ležák 12° Krušovice Královský Ležák Krušovice černé
Laško Brewery
Murphy's Brewery
Murphy's brewery was founded in Cork, Ireland in 1856. It was known as Lady's Well Brewery until it was purchased by Heineken in 1983, when the name changed to Murphy Heineken Brewery Ireland Ltd.
The two most notable brands are Murphy's Irish Stout, a 4.3% Irish stout, and Murphy's Irish Red, a 5% Irish ale.
France Ancre Fischer Tradition Fischer Réserve Ambrée Fischer Blanche Fischer La Belle Strasbourgeoise Pêcheur Adelscott Desperados Edelweiss
Brasserie Pelforth (Pelforth brewery)
Pelforth is a French brewery founded in 1914 in Mons-en-Barœul by three Lillois brewers. It was originally called Pelican, after a dance popular at the time. Production was stopped during World War II, restarting in 1950. The brewery name was changed in 1972 to Pelforth. It was bought by Français de Brasserie in 1986, which was acquired by Heineken International in 1988.
The brewery produces the Pelforth brand of beers: