Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

, the production and distribution of beer was controlled by the

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

, and most widely sold through the army's Military Social Establishment supermarket chain and through mini markets in city centres and

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

as well as

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

areas. Beers imported from

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

are not common, although brands like Lebanese Almaza,

Heineken Heineken Lager Beer ( nl, Heineken Pilsener), or simply Heineken () is a 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 Febr ...

and

Amstel The Amstel () is a river in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands. It flows from the Aarkanaal and Drecht in Nieuwveen northwards, passing Uithoorn, Amstelveen, and Ouderkerk aan de Amstel, to the IJ in Amsterdam. Annually, the riv ...

are popular and available in hotels, restaurants and most shops in different parts of cities like

Damascus )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...

Aleppo )), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black". , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = ...

Latakia , coordinates = , elevation_footnotes = , elevation_m = 11 , elevation_ft = , postal_code_type = , postal_code = , area_code = Country code: 963 City code: 41 , geocode ...

Tartus ) , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = , imagesize = , image_caption = Tartus corniche Port of Tartus • Tartus beach and boulevard Cathedral of Our Lady of Tortosa • Al-Assad Stadium&n ...

and

Qamishli Qamishli ( ar, ٱلْقَامِشْلِي, Al-Qāmišlī, ku, قامشلۆ, Qamişlo, syc, ܒܝܬ ܙܠܝ̈ܢ, Bēṯ Zālīn, lit=House of Reeds or syr, ܩܡܫܠܐ, translit=Qamishlo)

. Production of the country's two local brands, al-Shark (from

Aleppo )), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black". , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = ...

) and Barada (from

Damascus )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...

) was halted in 2011 due to the outbreak of civil war. A new brewery known as Afamia was opened in 2010 in

Adra The Adventist Development and Relief Agency International (ADRA or ADRA International) is a humanitarian agency operated by the Seventh-day Adventist Church for the purpose of providing individual and community development and disaster relief. I ...

near Damascus. By the end of 2017, the Arados brewery was opened in the town of

Safita Safita ( ar, صَافِيتَا '; phn, 𐤎‬𐤐𐤕‬𐤄, ''Sōpūte'') is a city in the Tartous Governorate, northwestern Syria, located to the southeast of Tartous and to the northwest of Krak des Chevaliers. It is situated on the tops of ...

Tartus Governorate Tartus Governorate, also transliterated as Tartous Governorate, ( ar, مُحافظة طرطوس / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat Ṭarṭūs'') is one of the 14 governorates of Syria. It is situated in western Syria, bordering Latakia Governorate to the ...

Beer brands and brewing companies

*''Al-Shark Beer'', (or al-Chark) is a product of the state-owned Al-Shark Company for Food Stuff Products in Aleppo. It was founded in 1954 and fully owned by the government of Syria. It is a

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 brewing ...

beer, slightly higher in alcohol (3.7%) and with a higher rating than Barada beer, and it had a medium malt body. *''Barada Beer'', is a product of the state-owned Barada Beer Company in Damascus. It was founded in 1977 and fully owned by the government of Syria. It is a pale lager beer with the quality of bottling being highly variable and frequently poor. It had 3.4% alcohol, a yellowish hazy color and a light body. Government produced Barada was notorious for its poor quality and stale taste. *''Afamia Beer of Syria'', founded in 2010 and launched in 2017 by Afamia Beverages Company; Afamia brewing facility is located in Adra Industrial Zone, at the northeastern suburbs of the capital Damascus. Afamia brewery has invested in state-of-the-art equipment and technology along with European expertise and raw material to produce Syria's first premium beer with 4.5% alcohol by volume in brown bottle and Blue label. Afamia also produces Afamia Extra Strong with 8.5% alcohol by volume in a brown bottle and Red label. *''Arados Beer'', launched in 2017 by the Arados brewing factory in Safita, Tartus Governorate, with the help of experts from the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

. It is the latest company for beer production in Syria, with an investment of US$16 million, and with plans to produce 15 million liters per year. Arados brewery of Safita represents the first mass-produced domestic beer since production of al-Shark and Barada ceased, following the outbreak of the civil war in Syria.

Ancient history

The

Ebla tablets The Ebla tablets are a collection of as many as 1,800 complete clay tablets, 4,700 fragments, and many thousands of minor chips found in the palace archives of the ancient city of Ebla, Syria. The tablets were discovered by Italian archaeologist P ...

, discovered in 1974 in

Ebla Ebla ( Sumerian: ''eb₂-la'', ar, إبلا, modern: , Tell Mardikh) was one of the earliest kingdoms in Syria. Its remains constitute a tell located about southwest of Aleppo near the village of Mardikh. Ebla was an important center t ...

, and presumed to go back to 2500 BC, reveal that the city produced a variety of beers, including one that appears to have been named after the city "Ebla".

References

External links

Afamia Beer of Syria

Syrian breweries

Barada beer
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beer In Syria Syrian cuisine

Beer brands and brewing companies

Ancient history

See also

References

External links