Taiwan Beer

Japanese colonial period The company known today as TTL has its origins in a government agency established by Taiwan's Japanese rulers in 1901. Initially, the Monopoly Bureau of the Taiwan Governor's Office was responsible for all opium, salt, and camphor sold in Taiwan. In 1905, tobacco was added to the list of monopolised commodities and products. In 1907, the Japanese colonial government began taxing liquor producers to create a new revenue stream. The government then remodelled the whole of Taiwan's liquor industry, and set up much needed infrastructure and training. "Takasago" is the word that, since Japan's Edo period, had served as the customary Japanese name for Taiwan. most of its equipment had been acquired second hand from an old brewery in Hawaii. Upon completion, it was more than in area (about the size of a football field), The investors' original plan was to export the company's product, but its initial quality was inferior to that of Japanese beers, and early export results were unsatisfactory. The following year, the Administrative Office's successor, the Taiwan Provincial Government, reorganised the monopoly system, by forming the Taiwan Tobacco and Wine Monopoly Bureau. The recipe was altered not only to make the brew sweeter and less bitter, but also to absorb a surplus of locally produced rice that was suppressing prices and thus limiting the incomes of farmers. To meet public demand, it introduced canned beer in 1975. opened its beer market to foreign imports from America and Europe. Not long after that year, imports from Japan and Southeast Asia were also permitted. During the 2000s, TTL also took steps to introduce Taiwan Beer to the Chinese market. Initially, its efforts to register the Taiwan Beer brand as a trademark were thwarted several times in reliance upon China's trademark law, which forbade the registration of a geographical name as part of a trademark. Within two months, TTL started shipping Taiwan Beer to China; the following year, the corporation began brewing the product in Jiangsu Province. ==Beers==

The best selling of the many styles of Taiwan Beer are amber lager beers brewed along pilsner lines. and has been said by one reviewer to add "... a certain umami and sake-like note not found in most Asian lagers." Like all mass market beers, the popular styles of Taiwan Beer are filtered and pasteurised. Some styles are also brewed on-site at the Taiwan Beer Bar, a brewpub in Taipei. Taiwan Beer is served cold and best complements Taiwanese and Japanese cuisine, especially seafood dishes such as sushi and sashimi. It has won international awards, including the Monde Selection many times since 1997, and the Brewing Industry International Awards in 2002. and in white cans bearing a blue striped design with green lettering. A rough-and-ready concoction rated at 4.5% ABV, and in cans that reproduce the white, red, and green label seen on the bottle. Its more refined and rounded flavour "Premium" is a 5% ABV European pale lager brewed at low temperature using 100% Munich malt. It is marketed in brown bottles with a gold and white label, and in gold and white cans. "18 Day Draft", unusually, is unpasteurised, It is designed to be sold freshly brewed, and is not often seen in stores, as it expires just 18 days after production. and cans are white, gold and blue. The following year, the "Mine" brew was joined by "Mine Dark". Further beverages marketed under the Taiwan Beer brand include stouts, "fruit beers" (mango, pineapple, grape and orange; 2.8% ABV), alcohol-free beers, and non-alcoholic flavoured beers. Amongst other new products, Taiwan Beer has launched the "Brew Lab" series "for refined tastes", the "Sweet Touch" series of fresh local fruit juices blended with beer/wine, and "Gold Medal Free", a non-alcoholic beer for drivers. The fruit beers were introduced after foreign brewers started building factories in Taiwan, a move that negated Taiwan Beer's hitherto competitive advantage of freshness in its local market. The initial idea was to create beer styles that included 'Taiwan flavours', being the flavours of agricultural products characteristic of the island, which is a leading fruit producer. TTL also hoped that fruit beers would be lighter, more refreshing, and would attract more female consumers. The fruits chosen included Irwin mangoes from Yujing District in Tainan, Golden Diamond pineapples from Guanmiao, also in Tainan, and Black Queen grapes from Erlin in Changhua County. The manufacture of fruit beer is not a simple process. The pectin in the fruit juice must be removed, as it would increase the beer's viscosity and accelerate the process of oxidisation; pineapple juice must also be heated to destroy enzymes that would break down protein in the beer. The R&D team at the Wuri Brewery carried out many experiments with the temperature, humidity and pressure of subsequent processes to formulate the best methods of making the fruit beers, which have been much appreciated and generated positive reviews. ==Culture==

Taiwan Beer is a national icon strongly identified with Taiwanese culture, Two basketball teams, one a Super Basketball League outfit named Taiwan Beer (popularly nicknamed 'The Brew Crew'), and another one, which competes in the T1 League under the name TaiwanBeer HeroBears, are sponsored by the brand. So too is the Taiwan Beer baseball team, which TTL established and operates in cooperation with the National Taiwan Sport University. After the nearby Taichung station on the Taiwan High Speed Rail was opened in January 2007, the Taichung City government teamed up with the Taichung High Speed Rail Tourism Development Association to transform Guanghua Street, on which the brewery is located, into a beer tourist street. It was officially opened in August 2008. Inside the brewery is a shop/visitor centre that includes an exhibition hall detailing the beer brewing process, and describing both the history of Taiwan Beer, and the history of beer as far back as 5000 BCE. It has received mixed reviews: one reviewer praised the bar as a "light airy space" and the beer garden as "really worth a visit", while another writer dismissed the bar as having "something of a crude beer hall ambience", albeit with "the cheapest beer you can hope to find on the island". ==Competition==

Taiwan Beer leads its namesake market. Long Chuan launched a range of "fruit beers" in 2012, and Taiwan Beer's introduction of a similar range was a response to that launch. In June 2022, Dutch brewing company Heineken N.V. announced that it had agreed to acquire Long Chuan from local company Taiwan Tsing Beer Corporation. Redpoint Brewing, which produced the island's first IPA called 台PA, Formosa Bird Beer and Lychee Beer (both by North Taiwan Brewing) along with the house brews served in two locally owned restaurant chains, Jolly Brewery and Restaurant (operated by Great Reliance Food & Beverage) and '''Le ble d'or'''. ==References==