Innis & Gunn founder Dougal Sharp has hit out against “the marketing mirage of foreign beer” and urged drinkers to support domestic brewers.
Sharp, who founded the Scottish brewer in 2003 and has worked in the industry for over 35 years, said the rising popularity of continental-style lagers could be attributed to “pure marketing waffle”.
The “current wave of Spanish, Italian and other continental beer” showed drinkers were “ready to drink better, premium lagers” Sharp said.
However, drinkers should instead consider beers with roots closer to home, he said.
“People seem to be drawn in by the marketing mirage of foreign beer. But the good news is that there are superb premium lagers brewed right here.”
Homegrown beers like Innis & Gunn’s Lager Beer helped contribute to “local agriculture and the rural economy, to jobs and communities in the process”, Sharp said.
They also had a lower carbon footprint than those shipped from the continent – “if they actually come from mainland Europe in the first place”, he added.
Continental-style lagers like Molson Coors’ Madri and Heineken’s Cruzcampo have been some of the most successful launches in a challenging alcohol market in recent years. Supermarket sales of Madri surged £37.8m on volumes up 42.3% last year [NIQ 52 we 21 April 2024], while Cruzcampo racked up sales of £29.6m in its first year in the off-trade.
However, critics have cast aspersions on the brews over the fact neither are produced overseas. Madri hails not from Madrid but Burton-upon-Trent, while Cruzcampo is made by Heineken at its breweries in Edinburgh and Manchester.
Last November, Estrella Galicia – which has been produced in the Galicia region of Spain since 1906 – launched a new out-of-home campaign calling out “big British-brewed brands masquerading as Spanish beers”.
The campaign comprised billboards displaying messages such as “no bull, just everything else from Spain” and “don’t fall for fake brews”.
It was followed by a further £10m push across OOH, radio and digital, out-of-home advertising, PR and social media from June.
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