Steinlager
Encyclopedia
Steinlager is a lager
-style beer
brewed by Lion Nathan
in Newmarket, a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It has won several prizes, notably at beer competitions in the United States
, and is New Zealand
's biggest export
beer.
, Arnold Nordmeyer
threatened to cut international beer imports as part of his "black budget" and challenged New Zealand's brewers to "come up with an international-style lager beer". Lion Nathan produced a beer the following year named Steinecker, named after the company whose equipment the beer was made in. The beer's name was changed in 1962, not in response to a challenge from the Steinecker company, but to distinguish it from Heineken
.
In 1973 Steinlager was launched in the United States
and an American consultant suggested that to become successful the company should change the colour of their bottles to match that of other premium beers. As a result, the original brown bottle colour was changed to green.
. The two different tasting beers were known as Steinlager Blue or Steinlager Green which related to the colour of the bottle or can it came in (although Steinlager Blue was sold in a brown bottle). Steinlager Blue was discontinued in the later 1990s, leaving just Steinlager Green which then dropped the green from the name.
, Willem Dafoe
and Vincent Gallo
.
.
sports teams, probably the most high-profile rugby team in the world, the New Zealand All Blacks
Rugby Union
team, have had the support of Steinlager since 1986. Steinlager is also the current presenting sponsor of the United States leg
of the IRB Sevens World Series
.
Steinlager was involved in yacht racing with the maxi-ketch Steinlager 2, which , skippered by Peter Blake, won all six legs of the 1989-90 Whitbread Round the World Race, and again in 1995 with Team New Zealand
with their "Black Magic" boat, which won the Americas Cup by beating Dennis Conner
's defending boat Stars & Stripes, also known as Young America, 5-nil in the finals' series. Steinlager, along with Toyota, Enza
, TVNZ and Telecom New Zealand
, formed the "family of five" major sponsors of Team New Zealand in 1995 and again in their successful defence of the cup in 2000.
In 2006, Steinlager provided sponsorship to specific USA Rugby Union teams, including Media Rugby Football Club and York/Lancaster Rugby Football Club, as part of a US marketing campaign.
Lager
Lager is a type of beer made from malted barley that is brewed and stored at low temperatures. There are many types of lager; pale lager is the most widely-consumed and commercially available style of beer in the world; Pilsner, Bock, Dortmunder Export and Märzen are all styles of lager...
-style beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
brewed by Lion Nathan
Lion Nathan
Lion Nathan National Foods is the parent company created in October 2009, into which Lion Nathan and National Foods were merged. It is fully owned by Kirin Holdings Company, Limited...
in Newmarket, a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It has won several prizes, notably at beer competitions in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and is New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
's biggest export
Export
The term export is derived from the conceptual meaning as to ship the goods and services out of the port of a country. The seller of such goods and services is referred to as an "exporter" who is based in the country of export whereas the overseas based buyer is referred to as an "importer"...
beer.
History
In 1957 the New Zealand Minister of FinanceMinister of Finance (New Zealand)
The Minister of Finance is a senior figure within the government of New Zealand. The position is often considered to be the most important Cabinet role after that of the Prime Minister....
, Arnold Nordmeyer
Arnold Nordmeyer
Sir Arnold Henry Nordmeyer, ONZ, KCMG , born Heinrich Arnold Nordmeyer, was a New Zealand politician. He was leader of the Labour Party for three years while it was in Opposition.-Early life:...
threatened to cut international beer imports as part of his "black budget" and challenged New Zealand's brewers to "come up with an international-style lager beer". Lion Nathan produced a beer the following year named Steinecker, named after the company whose equipment the beer was made in. The beer's name was changed in 1962, not in response to a challenge from the Steinecker company, but to distinguish it from Heineken
Heineken
Heineken is a Dutch beer which has been brewed by Heineken International since 1873. It is available in a 4.6% alcohol variety in countries such as Ireland. It is the flagship product of the Heineken company and is made of purified water, malted barley, hops, and yeast. In 1886 H...
.
In 1973 Steinlager was launched in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and an American consultant suggested that to become successful the company should change the colour of their bottles to match that of other premium beers. As a result, the original brown bottle colour was changed to green.
Steinlager Blue
In 1991, another beer bearing the Steinlager name was introduced. Steinlager Blue was marketed using an advertising campaign featuring The Blues BrothersThe Blues Brothers
The Blues Brothers are an American blues and soul revivalist band founded in 1978 by comedy actors Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi as part of a musical sketch on Saturday Night Live...
. The two different tasting beers were known as Steinlager Blue or Steinlager Green which related to the colour of the bottle or can it came in (although Steinlager Blue was sold in a brown bottle). Steinlager Blue was discontinued in the later 1990s, leaving just Steinlager Green which then dropped the green from the name.
Steinlager Pure
On the first of June 2007 Steinlager Pure was released in the New Zealand market. Steinlager "Pure" and Steinlager "Classic" are now sold alongside each other, with Steinlager Pure positioning itself at the premium end of the beer market. It is marketed with Harvey KeitelHarvey Keitel
Harvey Keitel is an American actor. Some of his most notable starring roles were in Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets and Taxi Driver, Ridley Scott's The Duellists and Thelma and Louise, Ettore Scola's That Night in Varennes, Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, Jane Campion's The...
, Willem Dafoe
Willem Dafoe
Willem Dafoe is an American film, stage, and voice actor, and a founding member of the experimental theatre company The Wooster Group...
and Vincent Gallo
Vincent Gallo
Vincent Gallo is an Italian-American film director and actor. Though he has had minor roles in mainstream films such as Goodfellas, he is most associated with independent movies, including Buffalo '66, which he wrote, directed, did the music for and starred in; The Brown Bunny, which he also...
.
Steinlager Super Cold
Introduced in 2006, Super Cold is simply Steinlager Classic served at 0 degrees CelsiusCelsius
Celsius is a scale and unit of measurement for temperature. It is named after the Swedish astronomer Anders Celsius , who developed a similar temperature scale two years before his death...
.
Steinlager Edge
Steinlager Edge is a mid-strength, low-carb variant of Steinlager. It is made from the same hops as Classic and Pure but has an alcohol content of just 3.5% compared to 5.0%.Sponsorship
Steinlager is actively involved in sponsorship of major New ZealandNew Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
sports teams, probably the most high-profile rugby team in the world, the New Zealand All Blacks
All Blacks
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
Rugby Union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
team, have had the support of Steinlager since 1986. Steinlager is also the current presenting sponsor of the United States leg
USA Sevens
The USA Sevens is an annual rugby sevens tournament held in the United States. A part of the IRB Sevens World Series, it currently takes place on Saturday and Sunday during the second weekend of February...
of the IRB Sevens World Series
IRB Sevens World Series
The IRB Sevens World Series, known officially as the HSBC Sevens World Series as of the 2010-11 season, through sponsorship from banking group HSBC, and also sometimes called the World Sevens Series, is a series of international rugby union sevens tournaments organised for the first time in the...
.
Steinlager was involved in yacht racing with the maxi-ketch Steinlager 2, which , skippered by Peter Blake, won all six legs of the 1989-90 Whitbread Round the World Race, and again in 1995 with Team New Zealand
Team New Zealand
Team New Zealand is a sailing team based in Auckland, New Zealand representing the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron.Team New Zealand has become a household name in their home country following their consecutive wins in the America's Cup in 1995 and 2000...
with their "Black Magic" boat, which won the Americas Cup by beating Dennis Conner
Dennis Conner
Dennis Conner is an American yachtsman, noted for winning the bronze medal at the 1976 Olympics, two Star World Championships, and four wins in the America's Cup.-America's Cup:...
's defending boat Stars & Stripes, also known as Young America, 5-nil in the finals' series. Steinlager, along with Toyota, Enza
Enza
The Enza is a river in northern Italy, a right affluence of the Po River. Its source is at the Alpe di Succiso, in the northern Apennines , at 1,406 m...
, TVNZ and Telecom New Zealand
Telecom New Zealand
Telecom New Zealand is a New Zealand-wide communications service provider , providing fixed line telephone services, a mobile network, an internet service provider , a major ICT provider to NZ businesses , and a wholesale network infrastructure provider to other NZ CSPs...
, formed the "family of five" major sponsors of Team New Zealand in 1995 and again in their successful defence of the cup in 2000.
In 2006, Steinlager provided sponsorship to specific USA Rugby Union teams, including Media Rugby Football Club and York/Lancaster Rugby Football Club, as part of a US marketing campaign.