A beer mix usually refers to an
alcoholic beverage
Drinks containing alcohol (drug), alcohol are typically divided into three classes—beers, wines, and Distilled beverage, spirits—with alcohol content typically between 3% and 50%. Drinks with less than 0.5% are sometimes considered Non-al ...
which includes one or more additional ingredients. Typically, the beer mix is 40-70%
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 ...
. Popular mix-ins include
cola
Cola is a Carbonation, carbonated soft drink flavored with vanilla, cinnamon, citrus essential oil, oils, and other flavorings. Cola became popular worldwide after the American pharmacist John Stith Pemberton invented Coca-Cola, a trademarked br ...
, lemon, and other fruit juices.
Today, beer mixes are an established part of German drinking culture and are available in a wide range of flavors and varieties, including
non-alcoholic versions. Though marketed primarily towards young adults, they can be enjoyed by consumers of all ages.
History
Beer mixes have been available in Germany since early 20th century. The “
Radler
Shandy is beer or cider mixed with a lemon flavoured beverage, usually half lemonade and half beer or cider, resulting in a lower ABV for the finished drink. Shandies are popular in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the Caribbean, ...
" beer mix, which is still popular today, is seen as the pioneer of the market. The drink originated from the summer of 1922, when a
Munich
Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
inn was so busy with cyclists that there was the threat of a beer shortage. In order to stretch the remaining beer supply,
lemonade
Lemonade is a sweetened lemon-flavored drink.
There are many varieties of lemonade found throughout the world.
In some parts of the world, lemonade refers to an un-carbonated, traditionally, homemade drink, using lemon juice, water, and a sw ...
was added, creating the Radler. Further variants followed, e.g., cola-beer and wheat beer mixes. Up until 1993, it was only permitted to sell freshly prepared beer mixes due to legal requirements.
[Cf. http://www.brauer-bund.de/bier-ist-genuss/biersorten-im-portraet/biermischgetraenke.html, Biermischgetränke setzen junge Akzente, 29.05.2015, 10:37 am.]
In 1995, the mid-sized German
Karlsberg Brewery
Karlsberg () is one of the largest breweries in Germany; the Karlsberg Group also owns various other beer brands. It is called Karlsbräu outside of Germany to differentiate it from the Danish brewing company Carlsberg.
History
Established 187 ...
in
Homburg (Saar)
Homburg (; , ; ) is a town in Saarland, Germany and the administrative seat of the Saarpfalz-Kreis, Saarpfalz district. With a population of 43,029 inhabitants (2022), it is the third largest town in the state. The city offers over 30,000 workpl ...
was the first brewery to use an amendment to the beer tax law which enabled the production and sale of ready-mixed beer mixes in bottles or tins.
"MiXery Beer + Cola + X” was therefore one of the first ready-mixed cola and beer drinks. This innovation was initially met with considerable criticism from the beer industry, but the first competitors appeared on the market in 2001 and the market subsequently saw a continuous increase in sales volume.
Further variants, which differed in the type of beer they contained as base, followed. Schöfferhofer Grapefruit is a pioneer in the wheat beer mixes and was launched on the market in 2007 by the Binding Brauerei Brewery.
A further variant and innovation in the beer mix market followed in 2014 with the introduction of so-called "MiXery Beer-Cocktails" by the Karlsberg Brewery. These are available in the varieties
Caipirinha
Caipirinha () is a Brazilian cocktail, of São Paulo (state), São Paulo origin, with cachaça (sugarcane hard liquor), sugar, Lime (fruit), lime, and ice. The drink is prepared by mixing the fruit and the sugar together, then adding the liquor. ...
,
Mojito
Mojito (; ) is a traditional Cuba, Cuban punch. The cocktail often consists of five ingredients: Light rum, white rum, sugar (traditionally sugar cane juice), lime juice, Carbonated water, soda water, and Mentha, mint. Its combination of sweetn ...
and
Sex on the Beach.
[Cf. http://www.mixery.de/de/mixerybeercocktail , MiXery Beer-Cocktails, 03.06.2015, 09:38 am.]
Alongside the alcoholic beer mix segment which accounts for the majority of the market, the non-alcoholic sector is also increasing; a growing number of alcohol-free beer mix products are also available.
The current leader of the German alcoholic beer mix market is still the MiXery brand with "MiXery Beer + Cola + X" followed by
Krombacher Radler, Oettinger Radler, Beck’s Green Lemon, Schöfferhofer Grapefruit and MiXery Nastrov Flavour iced blue.
[Cf. The Nielsen Company, 2015] Krombacher is the non-alcoholic beer mix leader.
Top 40 beer mix brands in German retail
Descending according to turnover.
See also
*
Beer cocktail
A beer cocktail is a cocktail that is made by mixing beer with other ingredients (such as a distilled beverage) or another style of beer.
In this type of cocktail, the primary ingredient is usually beer.
List of beer cocktails
* Black and ...
*
Bierlikör
References
{{Reflist
Beer
Cocktails with beer