Kronenbourg Brewery (,

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

: ''Kronenbourg Brauerei'', ) is a

brewery A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of b ...

founded in 1664 by Geronimus Hatt in the Free Imperial City of Straßburg,

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

(today

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

). The name comes from the area where the brewery relocated in 1850. The company is owned by the Danish multinational

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 ...

. The premium brand (and the one sold in the greatest volumes outside France) is ''

Kronenbourg 1664 Kronenbourg 1664 is a golden pale lager with an alcohol by volume (ABV) of 5.5% in continental Europe and 5.0% and 4.6% for the UK market. It was first brewed in 1664 by Kronenbourg Brewery, Canon Brewery in Alsace, France, by master brewer Gero ...

'', a 5.5%

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, ...

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 ...

History

Geronimus Hatt, who obtained his Master Brewer's certificate in 1649, started up the Canon Brewery in the Place du Corbeau in

. His son Claude (born November 1665), succeeded his father in the trade in 1683. However, the frequent flooding of the River

Ill ILL, or Ill, or ill may refer to: Places * Ill (France), a river in Alsace, France, tributary of the Rhine * Ill (Vorarlberg), a river in Vorarlberg, Austria, tributary of the Rhine * Ill (Saarland), a river of Saarland, Germany, tributary o ...

compelled in 1850 a move to the higher terrain of Cronenbourg, an area of Strasbourg. In 1922, the Hatt Brewery changed its name to Tigre Bock, the most well-known brand of the Tiger Brewery it had acquired to become the leading brewer in

Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

. Following 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 ...

, Kronenbourg became the name of the company, and began international expansion. In 1970, it was acquired by industrial group BSN (now

Groupe Danone Danone S.A. () is a French multinational food-products corporation based in Paris. It was founded in 1919 in Barcelona, Spain. It is listed on Euronext Paris, where it is a component of the CAC 40 stock market index. Some of the company's produ ...

), along with the Société Européenne de Brasseries (Kanterbräu). In 1986, Kronenbourg merged with Kanterbräu. In 1953, Kronenbourg was sold in the UK for the first time in honour of the coronation of

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

In 1970, the brewer was acquired by Boussois-Souchon-Neuvesel (BSN), a glass-making conglomerate, which added

Evian Evian (, ; , stylized as evian) is a French brand that bottles mineral water from several sources near Évian-les-Bains, on the south shore of Lake Geneva. Evian is owned by Danone, a French multinational corporation. In addition to the miner ...

to its list of mergers in the same year. In 1973 BSN itself would merge and form BSN-Gervais Danone. In 2000, Kronenbourg was acquired from Danone by British company

Scottish & Newcastle Scottish & Newcastle plc was a brewing company headquartered in Edinburgh, Scotland, which expanded from its home base to become an international business with beer volumes growing almost tenfold. The company was listed on the London Stock Exc ...

for £1.7 billion. In April 2008, Scottish & Newcastle's operations were sold to

Heineken Heineken Lager Beer (), or simply Heineken (), is a Dutch pale lager beer with 5% alcohol by volume produced by the Dutch brewing company Heineken N.V. Heineken beer is sold in a green bottle with a red star. History On 15 February 1864, ...

and

, the latter acquiring Kronenbourg. Its main

breweries A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of be ...

are in

Obernai Obernai (Alsatian language, Alsatian: ''Owernah''; ) is Communes of France, commune in the Bas-Rhin Departments of France, department in Alsace in north-eastern France. It lies on the eastern slopes of the Vosges mountains. Obernai is a rapidly g ...

and in

Champigneulles Champigneulles () is a commune in the Meurthe-et-Moselle department in north-eastern France. left, Arboretum de Bellefontaine. It is home to L' Arboretum de Bellefontaine. The Champigneulles brewery, founded on 20 June 1897, was for a long ...

, although the Champigneulles site is now up for sale. On 2 April 2015, Brasseries Kronenbourg launched a new corporate identity which it will use in corporate communications. It was designed by Carré Noir, which has been the brewery's design agency for several years. According to a press release, the new logo reaffirms Kronenbourg's identity as a French brewer with 350 years of history.Press Release

Beers

Kanterbräu

Kanterbräu is a 4.2% pale lager.

1664

is a 5.5%

first brewed in 1952. A small amount of the Strisselspalt hop, a French aroma hop from Alsace, is used. The main Kronenbourg 1664 brewery (where Kronenbourg also produces almost 300 other beer brands) is in Obernai (France), but the brand is also brewed in the UK by Heineken at its

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

brewery, in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

by Coopers, as well as in

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

by Carlsberg.

Other beers

Other brands include: 1664 Brune; Single Malt (French name Malt d'Exception), 6.1% abv; Kronenbourg Blanc, a fruity

wheat beer Wheat beer is a top-fermented beer which is brewed with a large proportion of wheat relative to the amount of malted barley. The two main varieties are German and Belgian ; other types include Lambic (made with wild yeast), Berliner Weisse (a c ...

with citrus notes; Kronenbourg Premier Cru 6.0% abv; Kronenbourg Cold Premier 5.0%, a super chilled variant on 1664, draught only, UK; and Kronenbourg Red 4.2%

References

External links

* {{Authority control Carlsberg brands Breweries of France Beer brands of France French brands Companies established in 1664 Food and drink companies established in the 17th century French subsidiaries of foreign companies 1664 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire History of Strasbourg