Beer in Hungary has been brewed for well over a thousand years and the country has a significant history of commercial beer production.
Etymology
The Hungarian word for beer is ''sör'', which sounds almost like the English word ''sure''. The word itself is of
Oghuric origin. The word was most probably borrowed by the Hungarians in the era before the
conquest of Hungary.
History
The first commercial brewery in Hungary was established in
Buda
Buda (, ) is the part of Budapest, the capital city of Hungary, that lies on the western bank of the Danube. Historically, “Buda” referred only to the royal walled city on Castle Hill (), which was constructed by Béla IV between 1247 and ...
in 1845 by Peter Schmidt. During the heyday of the
Austro-Hungarian Empire
Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military and diplomatic alliance, it consist ...
, the
Kőbánya
Kőbánya (, , ) is the 10th district of Budapest () and one of the largest by territory. It is located in southeast Pest (city), Pest, easily accessible from the downtown by Budapest Metro, Metro 3, whose Terminal station, terminus is named ' ...
district of Budapest became the centre of Hungary's brewing industry. The Dreher brewery is named after
Anton Dreher, the creator of the
Vienna lager style. He created the brewery in Budapest in 1862 and it came to dominate the Hungarian market before the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
.
Breweries
Today, Hungary has four large commercial brewers which produce mainly light
lagers () and German-style dark beers (
bocks, ).
Lately, some microbreweries have also set up in Hungary, such as Fóti, Legenda, Monyó, Csupor or Mad Scientist. In the 2010s, a lively
craft beer
Craft beer is beer manufactured by craft breweries, which typically produce smaller amounts of beer than larger "macro" breweries and are often independently owned. Such breweries are generally perceived and marketed as emphasising enthusiasm, ne ...
scene evolved, with numerous local breweries, festivals and bottleshops.
Economy
In the 1980s, beer consumption was roughly 100 litres per person, but since then it has declined to nearer seventy.
Pale lager
Pale lager is a pale-to- golden lager beer with a well- attenuated body and a varying degree of noble hop bitterness.
In the mid-19th century, Gabriel Sedlmayr took British pale ale brewing and malt making techniques back to the Spaten Bre ...
has about 90% of sales.
Culture
In Hungary, people traditionally do not clink their glasses or mugs when drinking beer. There is an urban legend in Hungarian culture that Austrian generals clinked their beer glasses to celebrate the execution of
the 13 Martyrs of Arad in 1849. Many people still follow the tradition, although younger people often disavow it, citing that the vow was only meant to last 150 years.
See also
*
Beer and breweries by region
This is a list of articles and categories dealing with beer and breweries by region: the breweries and beers in various regions. Beer is the world's most widely consumed alcoholic drink, and is the third-most popular drink overall, after water and ...
*
National symbols of Hungary
The national symbols of Hungary are flags, icons or cultural expressions that are emblematic, representative or otherwise characteristic of Hungary or culture of Hungary, Hungarian culture. The highly valued special Hungarian products and sym ...
References
External links
{{Hungary articles
Beer
Beer is an alcoholic beverage produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches from cereal grain—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats are also used. The grain is mashed to convert starch in the ...