Czechs like 11° beer more and more; in 2010, Kozel served 20 percent more of it

The increase in VAT in 2010 also influenced the consumption of beer on tap. Based on data provided by the Czech Beer and Malt Association, consumers drank 4 percent less beer last year, which resulted in more than an 8 percent decrease in production. However the 11° beer from Popovice is doing well. „An increase in consumption of Kozel Medium on tap corresponds to the demands of consumers who showed increased interest in the beer and thereby increased the market share of the beer,“ explains the manager of the Velkopopovický Kozel brand, Vladimír Vaněk.

The growing preference for Velkopopovický Kozel, which has been steadily increasing in the past 11 years, confirms the results from the Zlatý pohár Pivex (Pivex Gold Cup) – Pivo (Beer) 2011. The newest of the beers from Popovice, Kozel Medium, got the highest score as the best 11° beer in the most prestigious category of light lagers, leaving behind 14 competitors.

Kozel Medium is a light lager that complements other variations such as Light, Premium and Dark. The 11° beer is typified by its strong flavour, which marries tones of malt with a light bitterness of hops. The 11° beer is served in bottles, cans, 30–litre and 50–litre kegs, and 10–hectolitre tanks.

Notes to editors:

• The first batch was brewed in the Velké Popovice brewery on December 15, 1874, and only a year later the brewery brewed and sold 18,000 hectolitres of beer. After only a few years, the brewery became the third-largest brewery in the country. It was famous mainly for the production of strong, dark beer. In 2004, with an increase in production capacity to approximately 1.5 million hectolitres, the Velké Popovice brewery became the third–largest in the Czech Republic.
• In 2010, more than 19,000 visitors came to the brewery, a 40 percent increase in comparison with 2009.
• With total sales of close to 10 million hectolitres in the 2010 calendar year (including licensed production abroad) and with export to more than 50 countries, Plzeňský Prazdroj a. s. is the leading producer of beer in the region and the biggest exporter of Czech beer.
• Plzeňský Prazdroj, a. s., is a member of the SABMiller PLC. Pilsner Urquell is an international flagship of SABMiller brands.

More information:
David Frodl
Ogilvy Public Relations
phone: +420 221 998 410, +420 724 244 473
email:

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