Pilsner Urquell’s success in Italy

Pilsner Urquell comes together with high cuisine

In the last 12 months, Italian Pilsner Urquell sales grew by six percent and reached a volume of 23,000 hectolitres. This growth was achieved despite the fact that the Italian beer market is stagnating. Pilsner Urquell is regarded in Italy as a super premium lager and is able to successfully penetrate even famous Italian cuisine. Last year the brand concluded an agreement with Gambero Rosso, a renowned gastronomic company, which introduces the Italian connoisseurs to the Pilsner beer with beer tasting events and also recipes combining Italian cuisine and Pilsner Urquell.

Last year the sales of Pilsner Urquell grew, both in bottles (+7.2%) and on draught (+6.1%). Pilsner Urquell is most successful in Northern Italy, especially in the Venice Region. This year you can even see a special Pilsner Urquell Beer bar at the Venice airport.

“At the Italian market Pilsner Urquell is profiled as a high premium brand and so we focussed many of our activities on quality cuisine, this distinguishes us from our competition. Our cook book with recipes in combination with our beer or its directed tasting was also very popular,” says Roberta Graziosi, the Italian Pilsner Urquell Brand Manager.

Contact Person:
Jiri Marecek
Spokesperson
+ 420 724 617 219

• With total sales of over 10.9 million hectolitres in the calendar year 2007 and exports to more than 55 countries around the world, Plzensky Prazdroj, a. s., is a major beer producer in the region and the largest exporter of Czech beer. The major brands in the Czech Republic include Pilsner Urquell, Gambrinus, Radegast, Velkopopovický Kozel and the non-alcoholic brand Radegast Birell.
• The beer is brewed in three breweries in the Czech Republic – in the Pilsen brewers, the Radegast brewery and the Velké Popovice brewery.
• The Plzeňský Prazdroj, a.s. company is fully aware of its responsibility towards the environment and has adopted a policy of environmental protection as one of its business principles. This involves above all the care of water sources, wastewater treatment, minimization of its carbon footprint, recycling, energy conservation and increased transport efficiency.
• Plzensky Prazdroj, a. s. is a member of the global group SABMiller plc., the world’s second largest brewer, with brewing interests or distribution agreements in over 60 countries across six continents. Pilsner Urquell is the international flagship of the SABMiller brand portfolio.

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