Monteith's Brewery Company was originally a family-owned brewing company until it was bought by DB Breweries

DB Breweries

DB Breweries is a Singaporean and Dutch brewing company operating in New Zealand. It was founded in 1930 by Sir Henry Kelliher and W Joseph Coutts with the purchase of Levers and Co. and the Waitemata Brewery Co. in Otahuhu. The company mainly produces pale lager...

. It continued to brew its beers on the West Coast

West Coast, New Zealand

The West Coast is one of the administrative regions of New Zealand, located on the west coast of the South Island, and is one of the more remote and most sparsely populated areas of the country. It is made up of three districts: Buller, Grey and Westland...

 of New Zealand until DB decided that the cost of keeping production there was no longer viable. The Greymouth

Greymouth

Greymouth is the largest town in the West Coast region in the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the Grey District Council. The population of the whole Grey District is , which accounts for % of the West Coast's inhabitants...

 brewery was closed on 22 March 2001, but reopened four days later following a public outcry.

The beers are now produced in Auckland

Auckland

The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...

, and Timaru

Timaru

TimaruUrban AreaPopulation:27,200Extent:Former Timaru City CouncilTerritorial AuthorityName:Timaru District CouncilPopulation:42,867 Land area:2,736.54 km² Mayor:Janie AnnearWebsite:...

 as well as Greymouth

Greymouth

Greymouth is the largest town in the West Coast region in the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the Grey District Council. The population of the whole Grey District is , which accounts for % of the West Coast's inhabitants...

.

Controversy

DB Breweries attracted controversy during a legal battle over the exclusive use of the name Radler

Radler

The Radler is a Biermischgetränk with a long history in German-speaking regions. Consisting of a 50%/50% or 60%/40% mixture of various types of beer and German-style soda pop or lemonade, the invention of the Radler has been widely attributed to the Munich gastronomer Franz Xaver Kugler in 1922...

. Radler is a style of beer, in the same way that Pilsner or Stout

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....

 are. However, DB has trademarked the term "Radler" since 2001.

The Society of Beer Advocates asked the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (IPoNZ) for the brewery's Radler trademark revoked. The issues of this trademark were brought to public attention when a small independent brewery (Green Man) in Dunedin

Dunedin

Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...

, Otago

Otago

Otago is a region of New Zealand in the south of the South Island. The region covers an area of approximately making it the country's second largest region. The population of Otago is...

released its own Radler (since renamed to Cyclist).

IPoNZ handed down its decision on 14th of July 2011. The trademark has been upheld, citing the fact that the term "Radler" was not well known in New Zealand at the time the trademark was taken out.

Products

• Celtic Beer
• Golden Lager
• Original Ale
• Pilsner Beer
• Radler Bier
• New Zealand Lager
• Summer Ale
• Winter Ale
• Bock Bier
• Doppelbock Bier
• Porter Dark Ale
• Saison Biere
• Dortmunder Bier
• Kristall Wiezen Bier
• Oud Bruin Bier
• West Coast 140 Pale Ale
• Crushed Apple Cider
• Crushed Pear Cider

External links

• Monteith's Brewery Company
• http://www.stuff.co.nz/marlborough-express/news/2596069
• http://www.odt.co.nz/lifestyle/food-wine/65220/beer-reviews-radler-trademark-saga-continues
• http://www.3news.co.nz/Video/Law-firm-takes-DB-on-over-Radler-trademark/tabid/367/articleID/102005/cat/52/Default.aspx