Uganda: Nile Breweries launch their first domestically produced premium beer

Nile Breweries Ltd (NBL) has unveiled its very first premium beer in Uganda’s market - Nile Gold Crystal Malt Lager, the Daily Monitor communicated on August, 10.

Only a few months after it launched Grolsch an imported premium pilsner, SABMiller’s subsidiary continues to branch out into other fresh beers.

According to NBL’s Managing Director, Nick Jenkinson, the brand was conceived as a result of Nile brewery’s ambition to join the premium market. The introduction of the new beer comes at a time when the brewery has completed a $29 million expansion on it plant including the brew house, the packing section and the storage facilities which has in effect doubled its capacity.

“We didn’t have a local premium beer in our brand portfolio as all our premium brands were imported and it was important for us to put a local premium brand on the market,” Mr Jenkinson said, “ and with this new capacity that we have available it gave us the opportunity now to start increasing the size of our brand portfolio.”

Nile Gold Crystal Malt Lager in a green 330ml bottle is to effectively match NBL’s competitors in the premium beer drinkers’ market, which has mainly been flooded by Tusker and Guinness brands. The company’s MD said the official going price for its new malt beer is Shs1,800 per bottle or Shs33,000 per its case, but it will have no control over the retail price once beer leaves the factory.

12 August, 2009