Beer in India
Beer is not as popular as stronger alcoholic beverages like desi daru and Indian-made foreign liquor, such as Indian whiskey.
[1] Beer-like sura has been produced in India since the Vedic era (c. 1500–1200 BCE, Rig Veda),[2] rice beer has been produced by the native tribes since ancient times,[3] European beer imports to India from England started in 1716, introduced by the British raj.
Kautilya has also mentioned two intoxicating beverages made from rice called Medaka and Prasanna.
[9] Rice beer or handia has been traditionally prepared by various indigenous tribes of India, in which Ruellia suffruticosa is sometimes added for flavor.
[10] Elephant herds have been known to attack villages to drink this rice beer for which they have acquired a taste.
[4] To protect the beer from spoiling during the long journey, it had to have high alcohol content and hops were added to it.
[13][14] In 1830, Edward Abraham Dyer, father of Colonel Reginald Edward Harry Dyer of Jallianwala Bagh massacre, travelled to India and set up India's first brewery, the Kasauli Brewery.
Out of this 2,748,365 gallons were purchased by commissariat and rest was left for consumption by the civilian population.
[23] In 1949, N. N Mohan acquired all the assets of Dyer Meakin Breweries and added a few more units.
[14] Established in 1969, Lilasons Breweries in Madhya Pradesh is known for their strong beer brand Khajuraho.
[24] In recent years, foreign companies have been entering India and acquiring local businesses.
It was a joint venture between United Breweries, UK-based Scottish & Newcastle and Ravi Jain.
[27] In 2003, SABMiller India acquired 50% stake in local Shaw Wallace's beer business.
[29] In late 2005, UK-based Cobra Beer entered the Indian market by beginning negotiations with in December.
[32] In February 2006, Anheuser-Busch Inbev, the makers of Budweiser, entered a partnership with Hyderabad-based Crown Beers.
Also around the same time, India's first bottled craft beers were launched by the Martin Judd's brewery in Maharashtra, and Australian owned "Little Devils" in Ghaziabad.
While the bottling ventures proved short-lived, and closed down within a years time, brewpubs have since become a successful format and common sight, especially in India's large cities.
Among them was Bira91, an Indian witbier brand, which became extremely popular across the country, and has since shifted its production back to India.
[42] Due to the increase in disposable income and discerning consumers, the potential is high.
Karnataka and Kerala are the only two state in India which has a lower tax rate for beer compared to other alcoholic beverages.
