Beer in

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

existed since its first introduction in

West Asia West Asia (also called Western Asia or Southwest Asia) is the westernmost region of Asia. As defined by most academics, UN bodies and other institutions, the subregion consists of Anatolia, the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Mesopotamia, the Armenian ...

thousands of years ago and is a popular alcoholic beverage, mostly

lager Lager (; ) is a Type of beer, style of beer brewed and Brewing#Conditioning, conditioned at low temperature. Lagers can be Pale lager, pale, Amber lager, amber, or Dark lager, dark. Pale lager is the most widely consumed and commercially availab ...

type beers.

History

Beer has existed as a beverage in Anatolia since the Sumerian civilization. Archaeological findings have shown that

Sumer Sumer () is the earliest known civilization, located in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia (now south-central Iraq), emerging during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age, early Bronze Ages between the sixth and fifth millennium BC. ...

people knew how to ferment beer. Early Turks in Anatolia fermented

boza Boza, also bosa, is a fermented beverage originating from Central Asia and made in parts of the Balkans, Turkey, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and North Africa. It is a malt drink made by fermenting various grains: maize (corn) and wheat in Turkey ...

, which was much like

kvass Kvass is a fermented, cereal-based, low-alcoholic beverage of cloudy appearance and sweet-sour taste. Kvass originates from northeastern Europe, where grain production was considered insufficient for beer to become a daily drink. The first wr ...

. The modern history of beer in Turkey started with the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. During certain periods of the Ottoman Empire, drinking alcoholic beverages was forbidden in some cities, but many small producers in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

made boza with a high alcohol level, like beer. Beer was first produced and served at

Erzurum Erzurum (; ) is a List of cities in Turkey, city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010. It is the site of an ...

by some small Armenian producers in "beer gardens" (). The first modern production of beer in Turkey started with the Bomonti beer factory in Istanbul in 1894 by the Swiss Bomonti brothers. There were many pubs and bars in Istanbul, Izmir, and Thessaloniki. Production of beer in the Ottoman Empire was 1.2 billion liters in 1894. This increased to 9.9 billion liters in 1913–1914.'' Osmanlı’da Bira''
, BirayaDair.com Atatürk, the first president of the Turkish Republic, founded an

ale Ale is a style of beer, brewed using a warm fermentation method. In medieval England, the term referred to a drink brewed without hops. As with most beers, ale typically has a bittering agent to balance the malt and act as a preservative. Ale ...

factory in Ankara.

İsmet İnönü Mustafa İsmet İnönü (24 September 1884 – 25 December 1973) was a Turkish politician and military officer who served as the second List of Presidents of Turkey, president of Turkey from 1938 to 1950, and as its Prime Minister of Turkey, pr ...

, the first prime minister of Turkey, worked to improve the old Bomonti Beer Company. This created the first beer competition in Turkey.

Industry

The Turkish beer market experienced 20% growth from 2001 to 2005, with many international brands gaining popularity.

Efes Beverage Group Anadolu Efes Biracılık ve Malt Sanayii A.Ş.'' (lit. Anadolu Efes Brewery and Malt Industries)'' produces and markets beer and malt and non-alcoholic beverages in Turkey, the United States, Russia, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), E ...

, a subsidiary of Anadolu Group, is the largest producer of beer in Turkey, with approximately 80% of the market. Their main product line is called

Efes Pilsen Anadolu Efes Biracılık ve Malt Sanayii A.Ş.'' (lit. Anadolu Efes Brewery and Malt Industries)'' produces and markets beer and malt and non-alcoholic beverages in Turkey, the United States, Russia, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), E ...

(5.0%

ABV Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as alc/vol or ABV) is a common measure of the amount of alcohol contained in a given alcoholic beverage. It is defined as the volume the ethanol in the liquid would take if separated from the rest of the solution, ...

), after the Turkish name for the ancient city of

Ephesus Ephesus (; ; ; may ultimately derive from ) was an Ancient Greece, ancient Greek city on the coast of Ionia, in present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in the 10th century BC on the site of Apasa, the former Arzawan capital ...

near the

İzmir İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...

brewery. Efes also produces Efes Dark, Efes Light, Efes Extra, Bomonti and Marmara. Also, as of March 2005,

Foster's Lager Foster's Lager is an internationally distributed brand of Australian lager. It is owned by the Japanese brewing group Asahi Group Holdings, and is brewed under licence in a number of countries, including its biggest market, the UK, where t ...

has been brewed, marketed and distributed in Turkey through Efes Beverage Group. Efes exports to markets in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

region, the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

, and

South-east Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Australian mainland, which is part of Oceania. Southeast Asia i ...

. Efes also produce a Hefe Weiss and a Hefe Weiss Dunkel under the Gusta label. A further addition is the Efes Dark Brown, which is flavored with coffee. Türk Tuborg, a former subsidiary of the Danish

Carlsberg Carlsberg may refer to: Places * Carlsberg (district), a district in Copenhagen, Denmark ** Carlsberg station, its train station * Carlsberg, Germany, a municipality in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany * Carlsberg Fjord, Greenland Other uses * Carlsbe ...

Tuborg Tuborg is a Danish brewing company founded in 1873 on a harbour in Hellerup, to the north of Copenhagen, Denmark. Since 1970 it has been part of the Carlsberg Group. The brewery's flagship, the Tuborg pilsner, was brewed for the first time in ...

group, also brews beer in Turkey under the Tuborg name, but is now owned by the Israeli (CBC). Danish Carlsberg is also popular in Turkey, among other brands found internationally. Another major brand,

Tekel Birası Tekel Birası is a Turkish beer brand. Having first been brewed in Bomonti, Istanbul in 1890, it is known as the oldest brewery brand in the country. Tekel Birası was a state monopoly brand until 2004. Following the privatisation, the era of Te ...

, is known as the oldest producer of beer in Turkey (founded in 1890). It was a

state monopoly In economics, a government monopoly or public monopoly is a form of coercive monopoly in which a government agency or government corporation is the sole provider of a particular good or service and competition is prohibited by law. It is a monopoly ...

brand until 2004. There is also Perge Pilsner managed by the Sural Group.

Independent Craft Breweries

There is an emerging craft beer market in Turkey for the last 10 years. The brands are listed in alphabetic order below. * Asante Brewery, Adana * Khoffner Brewery, Antalya * 3 Kafadar, Istanbul. * Anthiocs, Hatay. * Cunda Bira, Ayvalık. * Dasbira Brewing Co., Kırklareli. * Feliz Kulpa, İzmir. * Gara Guzu Brewery, Muğla. * Knidos Brewery, Istanbul. * Pablo Brewery, Bodrum. * Red Tower Brewery, Alanya. * Torch Brewery, Istanbul. * Trokya, Edirne.

Brands

* Atatürk's Forest Farm Ale (inactive) * Becks, by Efes * Bremen 1827, by Efes * Bomonti (first beer company in Turkey; nationalized by

TEKEL Tekel A.Ş. ( Turkish, literally ''single-hand'' or ''monopoly'' and generally capitalised as TEKEL) was a Turkish tobacco and alcoholic beverages company. It was nationalised in 1925 from a parastatal (government owned/controlled) company, the ...

, it was rebranded as

; now produced by Efes Pilsener with the original recipe) * Carlsberg, by Turk-Tuborg (Carlsberg Group) * Efes Pilsener * Gara Guzu * Löwenbrau (once) * Tuborg (Carlsberg Group) * Marmara Kırmızı (Red) (high ABV) * Miller, by Efes Pilsener * Pera * Perge Pilsner, by Sural Group * Vole (once)

References

* Robert Joseph, Roger Protz, Dave Broom. ''The Complete Encyclopedia of Wine Beer and Spirits''. Carlton Books.New York: 2000.

External links