Do you understand the Polish beer market?

Some people use pubs and drink beer without being aware of the big changes that have taken place in the Polish beer market over last 20 years. 

When denationalisation of the beer market in Poland began after 1990, most of the larger breweries started to be taken over by foreign multinationals. The beer market is now dominated by these international brewing giants. Many well-known brands such as Żywiec, Okocim, Lech, Tyskie & Warka are now owned by companies such as Heineken (Holland), SABMiller (South Africa/UK) and Carlsberg (Denmark).

In recent times, the large brewing corporations have focused mainly on promoting pasteurized lager. Such beers have impressive durability and are usually mass produced using modern brewing techniques but do not always provide for a great deal of variation.

At the opposite end of the market there are some smaller, regional and independent breweries producing beers using more old-fashioned, traditional methods. The beers from the smaller breweries are often unfiltered, unpasteurized, occasionally top-fermented and result in a variety of unique tastes.