Backus and Johnston (, ''Backus y Johnston'') is the largest
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 bee ...
in
Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = National seal
, national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...
, part of
Bavaria Brewery, which itself is part of the international
AB InBev
Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV, commonly known as AB InBev, is an American-Belgian multinational drink and brewing company based in Leuven, Belgium. AB InBev has a global functional management office in New York City, and regional headquarters ...
group. Its main brewery is located in the
Ate District
Ate, also known as Ate-Vitarte, is a district of the Lima Province in Peru. Located in the eastern part of the province, it is one of the districts that comprise the city of Lima.
History
The ''Ate'' name is of Aymaran origin and denoted a lo ...
of
Lima
Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...
. Backus, as owner of almost all brands of beer available in Peru, enjoys a ''de facto'' monopoly over Peruvian beer consumption. Besides beer, Backus produces soft drinks and bottled water.
History
The Backus and Johnston brewery was founded in 1879 by the Americans Jacob Backus and John Howard Johnston in the
Rímac District
Rímac is a district in the Lima Province, Peru. It lies directly to the north of downtown Lima, to which it is connected by six bridges over the Rímac River. The district also borders the Independencia, San Martín de Porres, and San Juan de ...
in
Lima
Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...
. In 1889, the two founders incorporated "The Backus and Johnston's Brewery Company Ltd" in London, and they transferred all their Peruvian brewery related assets to this new corporation in order to raise investment capital in the joint stock of London to continue their business growth. The founders continued as managing directors of the company until 1898 when Johnston left Peru; Backus died in 1899. The company operated as a British corporation until 1954, when the company management transferred the company assets and incorporation to Peru. At this time, The Backus and Johnston's Brewery Company Ltd was renamed as Cervecería Backus & Johnston S.A. In 1994 Backus and Johnston acquired a controlling interest in its rival on the Peruvian beer market, the National Beer Company (Compañía Nacional de Cerveza S.A.), formed in 1863; owner of the ''Pilsen Callao'' brand. In 1996 four breweries, including Backus and Johnston merged into one new company using the name Union of Peruvian breweries Backus and Johnston ( es, Unión de Cervecerías Peruanas Backus y Johnston S.A.A.).
In 2000 the company further expanded when the Brewery Company of Southern Peru (Cervesur) joined the union, making it owner of the popular ''
Cusqueña'' brand. From 2005 to 2016, Backus and Johnston was part of the
SABMiller group of breweries. The company still owns the prominently visible brewery in the Rímac district.
Breweries
Backus owns breweries in various parts of Peru. Its main brewery is located in
Lima
Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...
, while the other breweries are still located in the parts of Peru they used to serve before the take-over by Backus and Johnston.
* Ate brewery in
Lima
Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...
(now ''Cristal'', ''Cusqueña'', ''Barena'' and ''Polar'' )
* Motupe brewery in
Chiclayo
Chiclayo (; qu, Chiklayu) is the principal city of the Lambayeque region in northern Peru. It is located inland from the Pacific coast and from the nation's capital, Lima.
Founded by Spanish explorers as "Santa María de los Valles de Chicl ...
(now ''Cristal'' and ''Pilsen Callao'')
* Trujillo brewery in
Trujillo (former ''Pilsen Trujillo'', now ''Cristal'', ''Pilsen Callao'' and ''Pilsen Trujillo'')
* Arequipa brewery in
Arequipa (former ''Arequipeña'', now ''Arequipeña'', ''Cristal'', ''Cusqueña'' and ''Pilsen Callao'')
* Cusco brewery in
Cusco (former ''Cusqueña'', now ''Cristal'', ''Pilsen Trujillo'', ''Cusqueña'' and ''Pilsen Callao'')
* Pucallpa brewery in
Pucallpa
Pucallpa (, qu, puka allpa, lit=red dirt; Shipibo: ''May Ushin'') is a city in eastern Peru located on the banks of the Ucayali River, a major tributary of the Amazon River. It is the capital of the Ucayali region, the Coronel Portillo Pro ...
(former ''San Juan'', now ''Cristal'', ''Pilsen Callao'' and ''San Juan'')
Brands
Beers
Backus and Johnston and Grupo Empresarial Bavaria own most of the popular beer brands in Peru, including: ''San Juan'', a 5%
abv
Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as ABV, abv, or alc/vol) is a standard measure of how much alcohol (ethanol) is contained in a given volume of an alcoholic beverage (expressed as a volume percent). It is defined as the number of millilitres (mL) o ...
pale lager
Pale lager is a very pale-to- golden-colored lager beer with a well- attenuated body and a varying degree of noble hop bitterness.
The brewing process for this beer developed in the mid-19th century, when Gabriel Sedlmayr took pale ale brew ...
. San Juan is brewed in the Backus brewery located in
Pucallpa
Pucallpa (, qu, puka allpa, lit=red dirt; Shipibo: ''May Ushin'') is a city in eastern Peru located on the banks of the Ucayali River, a major tributary of the Amazon River. It is the capital of the Ucayali region, the Coronel Portillo Pro ...
. Before the take-over by Backus, San Juan was brewed by Cervecería San Juan S.A.A. This brewery was founded on 2 September 1971 in
Pucallpa
Pucallpa (, qu, puka allpa, lit=red dirt; Shipibo: ''May Ushin'') is a city in eastern Peru located on the banks of the Ucayali River, a major tributary of the Amazon River. It is the capital of the Ucayali region, the Coronel Portillo Pro ...
in the
Ucayali Region
Ucayali () is an inland department and region of Peru. Located in the Amazon rainforest, its name is derived from the Ucayali River. Its capital is the city of Pucallpa. It is the second largest department in Peru, after Loreto.
Geography
...
and named after San Juan Bautista.
''Cusqueña'' is one of Peru's most ubiquitous brands. It has been traditionally produced in a "''dorada''" (golden) and a "''negra''" (black) styles. The latter is typical of a lighter porter, not quite as dark as most stouts. In recent years ''Cusqueña'' has also been sold in red lager, ''trigo'' (wheat), and
quinoa
Quinoa (''Chenopodium quinoa''; , from Quechua ' or ') is a flowering plant in the amaranth family. It is a herbaceous annual plant grown as a crop primarily for its edible seeds; the seeds are rich in protein, dietary fiber, B vitamins, a ...
variants.
''Arequipeña'' was a rival product to Cusqueña and Cristal until the take-over by Grupo Empresarial Bavaria. ''Arequipeña'' is brewed in the Cervecera del sur del Peru brewery located in Sachaca near
Arequipa,
Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = National seal
, national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...
. Barena; Cristal
''Cusqueña'' is a light lager, or a dark malted beer. Some label designs were created by Barry Laughlin.
* Callao is a 5% abv
pilsener
Pilsner (also pilsener or simply pils) is a type of pale lager. It takes its name from the Bohemian city of Plzeň (german: Pilsen), where the world's first pale lager (now known as Pilsner Urquell) was produced in 1842 by Pilsner Urquell Bre ...
(
pale lager
Pale lager is a very pale-to- golden-colored lager beer with a well- attenuated body and a varying degree of noble hop bitterness.
The brewing process for this beer developed in the mid-19th century, when Gabriel Sedlmayr took pale ale brew ...
); the brand was originally owned by the National Beer Company, which was acquired by Backus and Johnston in 1994.
*
Trujillo (pilsener)
[ Trujillo]
Pilsen Trujillo
12 October 2007.
*
Barena
*
Malta Polar (Peru) Malta Polar may refer to:
* A non-alcoholic malt beverage brewed and bottled in Venezuela by Cervecería Polar (part of Empresas Polar) and in the United States by the Florida Brewery (also known as ''Maltín Polar'')
* Malta Polar, a Peruvian Sc ...
Backus and Johnston also has a license to import
Birra Peroni Nastro Azzurro
Peroni Brewery () is a brewing company, founded by Francesco Peroni in Vigevano, Italy in 1846. It is probably best known worldwide for its pale lager, ''Nastro Azzurro'' (5.1% ABV), which was the 13th best-selling beer in the United Kingdom in ...
in Peru.
Soft drinks
The soft drinks owned by Backus include ''Viva'', a beverage similar to
Inca Kola
Inca Kola (also known as "the Golden Kola" in international advertising) is a soft drink that was created in Peru in 1935 by British immigrant Joseph Robinson Lindley. The soda has a sweet, fruity flavor that somewhat resembles its main ingredien ...
and ''Guaraná'', a beverage containing
guaraná
Guaraná ( from the Portuguese ''guaraná'' ), ''Paullinia cupana'', syns. ''P. crysan, P. sorbilis'') is a climbing plant in the family Sapindaceae, native to the Amazon basin and especially common in Brazil. Guaraná has large leaves and cl ...
fruit.
*
Guaraná
Guaraná ( from the Portuguese ''guaraná'' ), ''Paullinia cupana'', syns. ''P. crysan, P. sorbilis'') is a climbing plant in the family Sapindaceae, native to the Amazon basin and especially common in Brazil. Guaraná has large leaves and cl ...
*
Viva
*
Saboré (this product line was terminated in 2008)
Bottled water
Bottled water is produced under the brand names Cristalina Backus and San Mateo.
* San Mateo is a Peruvian brand of
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A pet, or companion animal, is an animal kept primarily for a person's company or entertainment rather than as a working animal, livestock, or a laboratory animal. Popular pets are often considered to have attractive appearances, intelligence ...