Żywiec Brewery (pronounced ; ) is one of the largest

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 bee ...

and beer producers in Poland. Founded in 1856 in the town of Żywiec, the brewery manufactures pale lager with a 5.6% alcohol volume. Grupa Żywiec S.A. consists of five main breweries: Żywiec Brewery, Elbrewery, Leżajsk, Warka Brewery and Browar Namysłów. Currently, the Dutch Heineken Group (Heineken International Beheer B.V.), with a 65% shareholding, has control over its major operations. Harbin B.V. has 35% shareholding. The brewery has the capacity of producing 5 million hls a year, making it the largest brewery in Grupa Żywiec.

History

The brewery started operating in 1856 in the town of Żywiec, which was then part of Austrian Poland. "Żywiec" entry in It was owned by the

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

Imperial Family until its confiscation by the post-WWII Communist government of Poland. At the beginning of the 1990s a court case was started by the descendants of the original owners, who sued the Polish government demanding $77 million Radio Free Europe report, 14 December 1999 compensation for the nationalisation and the use of the Habsburg family name and coat of arms for marketing purposes. The case was settled out of court on undisclosed terms in December 2005.http://miasta.gazeta.pl/katowice/1,35019,3054465.html Żywiec Brewery began distribution to other towns of the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

in 1913. In the 1990s, the brewery was acquired and modernized by Heineken International.

Beers

The brewery produces several brands of beer, usually pale lagers ranging from 5.6% to 9.5% abv, including ''Żywiec Jasne Pełne'' or ''Żywiec Beer'', a 5.6% abv pale lager, which has been brewed in the town of Żywiec, Poland for almost 150 years, and ''Żywiec Porter'', a dark porter once brewed in

Cieszyn Brewery The Cieszyn Brewery is a historic brewery in Poland and belongs to the Felix Investments. It is the longest continuously operating brewery in Poland. The brewery is located in the border town of Cieszyn, on the Castle Hill in the Classicist pal ...

. ''Żywiec Beer'' is sold by the 1pt. can, 1pt. bottles and by the keg. In the United States, it is sold by 12-pack and 6-pack bottles (330 ml / US 11.2 oz.) as well as 500ml cans and bottles. It is still brewed by means of traditional methods using all-natural ingredients and mountain spring water.

Logo

The Żywiec logo includes all of the most important historical symbols of the brewery and Poland itself. Żywiec Beer’s prominent front label displays a man and woman, who dance the Krakowiak, a traditional dance of the area of Kraków in historic Lesser Poland. This dancing couple is dressed in classic Polish folk dancing clothes. Kraków’s coat of arms is represented with the crown in the middle of the couple. The coat of arms is also represented by the three

spruce A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' (), a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal (taiga) regions of the Earth. ''Picea'' is the sole genus in the subfami ...

trees displayed on the bottom of the label and the year 1856 on top underneath the crown. The name Żywiec is placed on the red sash across the middle of the label with the golden trimming. The Żywiec logo is the most famous mark and brand of beer in Poland and the trademark of the entire brewery.

References

External links

Żywiec Official Website

Żywiec Group

Brewery Museum

at the Żywiec branch of Katowice State Archive. {{DEFAULTSORT:Zywiec Brewery Zywiec Brewery Zywiec Brewery Zywiec Brewery Brewery Heineken brands Buildings and structures in Żywiec 1856 establishments in Poland

History

Beers

Logo

See also

References

External links