Efes Beverage Group
Encyclopedia
Efes Beer Group was founded in Turkey
in 1969, and today consists of sixteen breweries
in Turkey, Russia, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Georgia and Serbia, with headquarters in Istanbul
. Named after the ancient Greek city of Ephesus
(Turkish
, "Efes") located near the İzmir
brewery, the company is a subsidiary of Anadolu Group. The group is market leader in Turkey, in Moldova and in Georgia, has second rank in Kazakhstan, third rank in Serbia and fourth rank in Russia. The group has serious market share in Belarus and began production in Germany under license recently.
As the 8th most popular European brand by sales volume and the 5th largest European brewer on combined production basis, the company owns a cumulative capacity of 34 million hectoliters, and six maltings with a combined capacity of 236,500 tonne
s. The group is 12th rank in the world beer market.
The flagship product, Efes Pilsen (called "Efes Pilsener" in English
) gets its unique taste from rice
added into the ingredients at brewing stage. The 5.0% ABV
beer
has been described to have a "tangy malt
and hops
aroma, rich malt in the mouth, and a bitter-sweet finish that becomes dry and hoppy", and has won more than a dozen awards through the years, starting with the 1981 Monde Selection
Bruxelles Gold Medal; the 1979 Golden Caralious 19th Caralious Gold Medal; the 1973 Sélection Mondiale Paris Gold Medal; and the 1972 12th Annual World Beer and Non-Alcoholic Drinks Selection Gold and Silver Medals for Dark Beer
and White Beer, respectively.
The Efes Beverage Group is the primary sponsor of its namesake Turkish basketball
team, Efes Pilsen S.K., currently one of two teams in Istanbul and 14 across Europe that receive automatic berths in the Regular Season phase of the continent's principal club competition, the Euroleague. Efes Pilsen is also the name sponsor of the first Turkish Futsal
League organised by the Turkish Football Federation.
, Efes also produces several other beers, including Efes Dark (double-roasted malt lager with 6.5% alcohol and hints of caramel), Efes Light (a 122.7-calorie and 3.0% ABV take on the original), Efes Xtra (a hoppier, 8.0% ABV lager), Efes Ice (a softer, more aromatic, ice-brewed version with 4.2% alcohol), and Efes Dark Brown (a 6.1% ABV double-roasted malt lager with a distinct coffee
and chocolate
bouquet
). All Efes products sold in Turkey use High Fructose Corn Syrup
.
Other brands under the Efes Beverage Group are Gusta (5.0% ABV), the company's wheat beer
brand; Mariachi, under which the lime
or agave
-flavored beers Mariachi (4.2% ABV) and Mariachi Black (6.0% ABV) are produced; Marmara, under which the strong-beers Marmara Kırmızı (6.1% ABV) and Marmara Gold (4.1% ABV) are produced; and Ritmix, the company's line of fruit-flavored, non-alcoholic malt drinks.
Various international brands have been brewed, marketed and distributed in Turkey
through Efes Beer Group in recent years, including Miller Genuine Draft as of 2000, Beck's
as of May 2002, and Foster's Lager
as of March 2005.
In international markets, in addition to the aforementioned Efes product line, the company offers a wide variety of local brands with different tastes and appeal. Currently, these are Stary Melnik, Bely Medved, Gold Mine Beer, Sokol, Krasny Vostok, Vostochnaya Bavaria, Zhigulevskoe, Polniy Nokaut, Green Beer, Dolce Iris, Sib-Beer, Yantarnoe, Solodov, Ershistoe, Barkhatnoe, Bogemskoe svetloe, Ak Bars, in Russia
; Karagandinskoe in Kazakhstan
; Chisinau, Vitanta Premium Classic in Moldova
; Weifert, Weifert Belo, Pils Plus, Zajecarsko Pivo and Standard in Serbia & Montenegro. Such local brands continue to contribute to the company's international revenue stream.
Efes Beverage group further produces German Warsteiner, Dutch Bavaria Premium and Amsterdam Navigator
, Czech Zlatopramen and Mexican Sol
under licence in Russia.
, where it currently has 82% market share, Efes exports to over 50 markets in the Middle East
, Europe
, Africa
and North America
, including the United States
, Canada
, United Kingdom
, Israel
, Iraqi Kurdistan
, France
, Germany
, The Netherlands, New Zealand
, Australia
, Russia
and South Africa
. In the UK
it is sold by the Wetherspoons
pub chain.
Efes is also the largest local shareholder of the Coca-Cola
franchise in Turkey and produces a range of soft drink
s. Muhtar Kent
, named to assume the post of CEO
of the Coca-Cola Company on July 1, 2008, was the top executive of Efes Beverage Group from 1999 through 2005. The current president of the group is Alejandro Jimenez, who also has worked at Coca-Cola and their subsidiary company Panamco
between 1973 and 2001.
Efes brand, the flagship of Efes Beer Group (EBG), decided to renew its logo as well as its label and bottle design in April 2009.
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
in 1969, and today consists of sixteen breweries
Brewery
A brewery is a dedicated building for the making of beer, though beer can be made at home, and has been for much of beer's history. A company which makes beer is called either a brewery or a brewing company....
in Turkey, Russia, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Georgia and Serbia, with headquarters in Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
. Named after the ancient Greek city of Ephesus
Ephesus
Ephesus was an ancient Greek city, and later a major Roman city, on the west coast of Asia Minor, near present-day Selçuk, Izmir Province, Turkey. It was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League during the Classical Greek era...
(Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
, "Efes") located near the İzmir
Izmir
Izmir is a large metropolis in the western extremity of Anatolia. The metropolitan area in the entire Izmir Province had a population of 3.35 million as of 2010, making the city third most populous in Turkey...
brewery, the company is a subsidiary of Anadolu Group. The group is market leader in Turkey, in Moldova and in Georgia, has second rank in Kazakhstan, third rank in Serbia and fourth rank in Russia. The group has serious market share in Belarus and began production in Germany under license recently.
As the 8th most popular European brand by sales volume and the 5th largest European brewer on combined production basis, the company owns a cumulative capacity of 34 million hectoliters, and six maltings with a combined capacity of 236,500 tonne
Tonne
The tonne, known as the metric ton in the US , often put pleonastically as "metric tonne" to avoid confusion with ton, is a metric system unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. The tonne is not an International System of Units unit, but is accepted for use with the SI...
s. The group is 12th rank in the world beer market.
The flagship product, Efes Pilsen (called "Efes Pilsener" in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
) gets its unique taste from rice
Rice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
added into the ingredients at brewing stage. The 5.0% ABV
Alcohol by volume
Alcohol by volume is a standard measure of how much alcohol is contained in an alcoholic beverage .The ABV standard is used worldwide....
beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
has been described to have a "tangy malt
Malt
Malt is germinated cereal grains that have been dried in a process known as "malting". The grains are made to germinate by soaking in water, and are then halted from germinating further by drying with hot air...
and hops
Hops
Hops are the female flower clusters , of a hop species, Humulus lupulus. They are used primarily as a flavoring and stability agent in beer, to which they impart a bitter, tangy flavor, though hops are also used for various purposes in other beverages and herbal medicine...
aroma, rich malt in the mouth, and a bitter-sweet finish that becomes dry and hoppy", and has won more than a dozen awards through the years, starting with the 1981 Monde Selection
Monde Selection
Monde Selection, created in 1961, is an international and independent quality institute located in Brussels, that tastes and tests consumer products in order to grant them a renowned Quality Label...
Bruxelles Gold Medal; the 1979 Golden Caralious 19th Caralious Gold Medal; the 1973 Sélection Mondiale Paris Gold Medal; and the 1972 12th Annual World Beer and Non-Alcoholic Drinks Selection Gold and Silver Medals for Dark Beer
Stout
Stout is a dark beer made using roasted malt or barley, hops, water and yeast. Stouts were traditionally the generic term for the strongest or stoutest porters, typically 7% or 8%, produced by a brewery....
and White Beer, respectively.
The Efes Beverage Group is the primary sponsor of its namesake Turkish basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
team, Efes Pilsen S.K., currently one of two teams in Istanbul and 14 across Europe that receive automatic berths in the Regular Season phase of the continent's principal club competition, the Euroleague. Efes Pilsen is also the name sponsor of the first Turkish Futsal
Futsal
Futsal is a variant of association football that is played on a smaller pitch and mainly played indoors. Its name is a portmanteau of the Portuguese futebol de salão and the Spanish fútbol de salón , which can be translated as "hall football" or "indoor football"...
League organised by the Turkish Football Federation.
Product line
In addition to its flagship PilsenerPilsener
Pilsner is a type of pale lager. It takes its name from the city of Pilsen , Bohemia, in today's Czech Republic, where it has been developed since 1842, when a bottom-fermented beer was first produced. The original Pilsner Urquell beer is produced there today.-Origin:Until the mid-1840s, most ...
, Efes also produces several other beers, including Efes Dark (double-roasted malt lager with 6.5% alcohol and hints of caramel), Efes Light (a 122.7-calorie and 3.0% ABV take on the original), Efes Xtra (a hoppier, 8.0% ABV lager), Efes Ice (a softer, more aromatic, ice-brewed version with 4.2% alcohol), and Efes Dark Brown (a 6.1% ABV double-roasted malt lager with a distinct coffee
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
and chocolate
Chocolate
Chocolate is a raw or processed food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Mexico, Central and South America. Its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC...
bouquet
Odor
An odor or odour is caused by one or more volatilized chemical compounds, generally at a very low concentration, that humans or other animals perceive by the sense of olfaction. Odors are also commonly called scents, which can refer to both pleasant and unpleasant odors...
). All Efes products sold in Turkey use High Fructose Corn Syrup
High fructose corn syrup
High-fructose corn syrup — also called glucose-fructose syrup in the UK, glucose/fructose in Canada, and high-fructose maize syrup in other countries — comprises any of a group of corn syrups that has undergone enzymatic processing to convert some of its glucose into fructose to produce...
.
Other brands under the Efes Beverage Group are Gusta (5.0% ABV), the company's wheat beer
Wheat beer
Wheat beer is a beer that is brewed with a large proportion of wheat. Wheat beers often also contain a significant proportion of malted barley. Wheat beers are usually top-fermented...
brand; Mariachi, under which the lime
Lime (fruit)
Lime is a term referring to a number of different citrus fruits, both species and hybrids, which are typically round, green to yellow in color, 3–6 cm in diameter, and containing sour and acidic pulp. Limes are a good source of vitamin C. Limes are often used to accent the flavors of foods and...
or agave
Agave
Agave is a genus of monocots. The plants are perennial, but each rosette flowers once and then dies ; they are commonly known as the century plant....
-flavored beers Mariachi (4.2% ABV) and Mariachi Black (6.0% ABV) are produced; Marmara, under which the strong-beers Marmara Kırmızı (6.1% ABV) and Marmara Gold (4.1% ABV) are produced; and Ritmix, the company's line of fruit-flavored, non-alcoholic malt drinks.
Various international brands have been brewed, marketed and distributed in Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
through Efes Beer Group in recent years, including Miller Genuine Draft as of 2000, Beck's
Beck's
Brauerei Beck & Co is a German brewery in the north German city of Bremen. Owned by local families until February 2002, it was then sold to Interbrew for 1.8 billion euros. The brewery was formed under the name Kaiserbrauerei Beck & May o.H.G. in 1873 by Lüder Rutenberg, Heinrich Beck and Thomas...
as of May 2002, and Foster's Lager
Foster's Lager
Foster's Lager is an internationally distributed Australian brand of 5.0% abv pale lager, It is a product of Foster's Group brewed under licence in several countries, including the U.S. and Russia...
as of March 2005.
In international markets, in addition to the aforementioned Efes product line, the company offers a wide variety of local brands with different tastes and appeal. Currently, these are Stary Melnik, Bely Medved, Gold Mine Beer, Sokol, Krasny Vostok, Vostochnaya Bavaria, Zhigulevskoe, Polniy Nokaut, Green Beer, Dolce Iris, Sib-Beer, Yantarnoe, Solodov, Ershistoe, Barkhatnoe, Bogemskoe svetloe, Ak Bars, in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
; Karagandinskoe in Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
; Chisinau, Vitanta Premium Classic in Moldova
Moldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
; Weifert, Weifert Belo, Pils Plus, Zajecarsko Pivo and Standard in Serbia & Montenegro. Such local brands continue to contribute to the company's international revenue stream.
Efes Beverage group further produces German Warsteiner, Dutch Bavaria Premium and Amsterdam Navigator
Grolsch Brewery
Grolsch Brewery , known simply as Grolsch , is a Dutch brewery founded in 1615 by Willem Neerfeldt in Groenlo. In 1895 the De Groen family bought the brewery. They had started their own brewery in Cuijk the Netherlands in early 1800. It held a significant stake until November 2007...
, Czech Zlatopramen and Mexican Sol
Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma Brewery
Cuauhtémoc-Moctezuma Brewery is a major brewery based in Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico, founded in 1890...
under licence in Russia.
Market reach
Aside from its domestic market in TurkeyTurkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, where it currently has 82% market share, Efes exports to over 50 markets in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
and North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, including the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, Iraqi Kurdistan
Iraqi Kurdistan
Iraqi Kurdistan or Kurdistan Region is an autonomous region of Iraq. It borders Iran to the east, Turkey to the north, Syria to the west and the rest of Iraq to the south. The regional capital is Arbil, known in Kurdish as Hewlêr...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, The Netherlands, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. In the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
it is sold by the Wetherspoons
Wetherspoons
J D Wetherspoon plc is a British pub chain based in Watford. Founded as a single pub in 1979 by Tim Martin, the company now owns 815 outlets. The chain champions cask ale, low prices, long opening hours, and no music. The company also operates the Lloyds No...
pub chain.
Efes is also the largest local shareholder of the Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
franchise in Turkey and produces a range of soft drink
Soft drink
A soft drink is a non-alcoholic beverage that typically contains water , a sweetener, and a flavoring agent...
s. Muhtar Kent
Muhtar Kent
Muhtar Kent is a Turkish business executive. He is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Coca-Cola Company. He was appointed to assume the position of Chief Operating Officer of the Company in 2008.-Early life:...
, named to assume the post of CEO
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
of the Coca-Cola Company on July 1, 2008, was the top executive of Efes Beverage Group from 1999 through 2005. The current president of the group is Alejandro Jimenez, who also has worked at Coca-Cola and their subsidiary company Panamco
Panamco
Main article: Coca-Cola FEMSAPanamerican Beverage Panamco merged with Coca-Cola FEMSA effective May 6, 2003.Prior to the merger, Panamco was 25% owned by The Coca-Cola Company.Main article: Criticism of Coca-Cola#Colombia...
between 1973 and 2001.
Efes brand, the flagship of Efes Beer Group (EBG), decided to renew its logo as well as its label and bottle design in April 2009.
External links
- Efes Beverage Group
- Efes Pilsener
- Fosters/Efes Agreement Article on Foster's Lager distribution
- Lindo/Efes Agreement Article on the Efes-Lindo relationship