Beer in Israel

A bottle of Goldstar Dark Lager, an Israeli beer

Beer in Israel is manufactured primarily by two major brewers in Israel: Tempo Beer Industries Ltd. of Netanya, and the newer Israel Beer Breweries, of Ashkelon, a subsidiary of the local Coca-Cola Company.

Brewers

There are fourteen brewers of different sizes in Israel. The Tempo brewery brews the market leading brands Maccabee and Goldstar. Israel Beer Breweries, part of the Carlsberg Group brews Carlsberg, a dry amber Tuborg and Layla Dirty Blonde Lager, exported only to America.

Smaller brewers are the Tel Aviv Brewhouse in Tel Aviv; the Ramat Ha'Golan micro brewery, Salara Brewery in Yizrael Valley; Cafe En-Hod near the northern city of Haifa; the Dancing Camel Brewing Company in Tel Aviv;, Jems Beer Factory in Petach Tikva and the Palestinian Taybeh Brewery in the village of Taybeh in the west bank (near Ramallah).

Beers

A non-alcoholic black beer brewed from malt, Nesher Malt, is also popular in Israel. Called "bira shechora (black beer)," it is sold in small glass bottles, like ordinary beer, but also comes in 1.5 liter bottles, similar to those of carbonated soft drinks. A low sugar version was recently introduced on the market.

Economy

With a strong local economy the alcoholic drinks market in general is growing within Israel, with particular growth in beer sales. The leading beer companies, such as Tempo Beer Industries and Israel Beer Breweries, launched new beer brands in 2007, with the most significant introductions being Goldstar Light, Tuborg T and Samuel Adams. Goldstar and Maccabee are the overall leading brands in Israel. Over 75% of beer sales in Israel are from off-sales locations such as supermarkets, rather than bars.