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{{Short description|Belgian pilsner beer}}
{{infobox beverage
{{pp-semi-indef}}
| name = Stella Artois
{{Use British English|date=January 2021}}
| logo = ]
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2022}}
| image = ]
{{Infobox beverage
| caption =
| abv = 5% (5.2% in some markets) | name = Stella Artois
| type = ] | image = Stella Artois chalice filled.jpg
| caption =
| manufacturer = ]
| type = ]
| distributor = AB InBev
| origin = ], ] | logo = Stella Artois logo.svg
| abv = 4.6 to 5.2 ]
| introduced = 1926
| style = ]<ref name="ABInDev Stella Artois">{{cite web|url=https://beerandbrewing.com/dictionary/AQlOEuNJlB/|last=McFarland|first=Ben|title=Stella Artois|work=Craft Beer and Brewing|access-date=2 July 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.beerhunter.com/documents/19133-000225.html|last=Jackson |first=Michael|date=30 July 1999|title=Belgium's Great Beers|work=]|access-date=2 July 2019}}</ref>
| website =
| manufacturer = ]
| distributor =
| origin = Belgium
| region = ], Belgium
| introduced = {{start date and age|1926}}
| ingredients = ],<ref>{{cite web|title=Stella Artois|url=https://www.waitrose.com/ecom/products/stella-artois/590294-83666-83667|website=waitrose.com|access-date=2 February 2018|archive-date=3 February 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180203064113/https://www.waitrose.com/ecom/products/stella-artois/590294-83666-83667|url-status=dead}}</ref> malted barley, maize, yeast, water
| website = {{URL|stellaartois.com}}
}} }}
'''Stella Artois''' ({{IPAc-en|ɑːr|ˈ|t|w|ɑː}} {{respell|ar|TWAH}}, {{IPA|fr|aʁtwɑ|lang}}) is a ] beer,<ref name="ABInDev Stella Artois"/> first brewed in 1926 by Brouwerij Artois in ], Belgium. In its original form, the beer is 5.2 per cent ], the country's standard for pilsners. The beer is also sold in other countries including the UK, Ireland, Canada and Australia, where it has a reduced ABV.<ref name = "strength">{{cite web|url=http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/news.ma/article/63232 |title=Inbev expected to launch 4% Stella Artois |work=Morning Advertiser |date=24 June 2008 |access-date=26 June 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120426192932/http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/Brands-News/Inbev-expected-to-launch-4-Stella-Artois|archive-date=26 April 2012}}</ref><ref name=":0" /> Stella Artois is owned by Interbrew International B.V. which is a subsidiary of the world's largest brewer, ].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=8125933 |title=Company Overview of Interbrew International B.V. |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=2016 |website=Bloomberg Research |publisher=Bloomberg L.P.access-date=5 February 2017}}</ref>


==History==
'''Stella Artois''' ({{pronEng|ˈstɛlə ɑrˈtwɑː}}) is a 5% ] (5.2% in some markets) ] first brewed in ], Belgium in 1926 as a Christmas brew, and named ''Stella'' after the Latin for "star".<ref name="Pivovary Staropramen Brands and products">{{cite web|url=http://www.pivovary-staropramen.cz/web/en/znacky/stella|title=Pivovary Staropramen : Stella Artois|accessdate=2006-12-10}}</ref>
The Den Hoorn brewery in Leuven opened in 1366, when it was a tavern brewing its own beer for sale under the sign of a hunting horn. In 1708, Sébastien Artois became head brewer; then, in 1717, purchased the brewery, renaming it Brouwerij Artois.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.biernet.nl/bier/brouwerijen/belgie/vlaams-brabant/leuven/artois|title=Artois Brouwerij|work=biernet.nl}}</ref>


In 1926, Brouwerij Artois launched Stella as a Christmas beer,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://vinepair.com/articles/stella-artois/|last=Wolinski |first=Cat|date=29 March 2019|title=11 Things You Should Know About Stella Artois|work=Vine Pair|access-date=2 July 2019}}</ref> named after the ].<ref name="Fisk2009">{{cite book|last=Fisk|first=Peter|title=Marketing Genius|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fUeWAAAAQBAJ&pg=PT316|date=20 August 2009|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|isbn=978-1-907293-40-5|page=316}}</ref> First sold in the winter season, it eventually became available year-round, with exports into the broad ] commencing in 1930, though it did not reach the entire market until 1964.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Scarsella |first=Jameson |date=2023-10-12 |title=Stella Artois Emerges As A Modern-Day Icon |url=https://thebusinessdownload.com/stella-artois-emerges-as-a-modern-day-icon/ |access-date=2024-04-25 |website=The Business Download |language=en-US}}</ref> Production was halted for a period when operations were suspended during ]. By 1960, about {{convert|100|e6USgal|e6L|order=flip|round=50|abbr=off}} of Stella Artois were being produced annually. ] secured a licence to brew Stella Artois under contract in the United Kingdom in 1976.<ref> Retrieved 1 November 2012. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101223220225/http://www.ab-inbev.com/go/media/global_press_releases/press_release.cfm?theID=278&theLang=EN |date=23 December 2010 }}</ref>
Although Belgium is best known internationally for its ales, the so-called "table beers," the bottom-fermented ] lagers such as Stella Artois head the list for domestic consumption, making up almost 75% of Belgian beer production. Stella is promoted as an international brand by its brewer, ]. In its home market of Belgium, however, it is marketed, priced and sold as a regular lager. Despite its success internationally, the number 1 selling beer in Belgium is its sister beer ].


In 1988, Brouwerij Artois was a founding member in the merger creating ]. That year, Taylorbrands founder David Taylor created a new package design, bottle design, and shape. The original 1926 bottle label inspired the design, which replaced a 1960s design. The design incorporates the horn symbol and the 1366 date of the original Den Hoorn brewery. The label also shows medals for excellence awarded to Brouwerij Artois at a number of ] in Belgium in the 19th and 20th centuries. The name Stella Artois is held within a ] which was influenced by the style of ] in Leuven.{{citation needed|date=December 2013}}
In the UK and in Canada, a lower ABV version is also available, called respectively Stella Artois 4% and Stella Artois Light-Légère. This variant was launched to compete alongside fellow Inbev lager ] Vier and to address negative associations of the brand.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/news.ma/article/63232 |title=Inbev expected to launch 4% Stella Artois - Brands News |publisher=Morning Advertiser |date=2008-06-24 |accessdate=2009-06-26}}</ref>


In 1993, Interbrew moved production of Stella Artois into a new, fully automated brewery in Leuven. In 2004, Interbrew was part of the merger creating ], and by 2006, total annual production volume of Stella Artois exceeded one billion litres.
==Production==
]Stella Artois is brewed in Belgium (both in the plants of ] and ]) and the United Kingdom, as well as other countries, including Australia, and Ukraine.<ref name="Sun Inbev Ukraine Brands and products">{{cite web|url=http://www.suninterbrew.ua/ukr/stellaartois.php|title=Sun Inbev Ukraine Brands : Stella Artois|accessdate=2008-10-05}}</ref> Much of the brew exported from Europe is currently produced at InBev's brewery in Belgium, and packaged in the ] in Bremen, Germany. Stella Artois is also brewed in ] by ] for the Australian market under license from InBev{{Citation needed|date=March 2009}}. In the United States, Stella Artois is imported and distributed by ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.anheuser-busch.com/brandPages/stella.html|title=Anheuser-Busch: Brand List|accessdate=2009-06-11}}</ref>


In 2008, InBev was part of the merger creating the ] (AB InBev) brewery company. That same year, a lower-alcohol version, Stella Artois 4%, was introduced in the UK market.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/news/902888/Watch-new-Stella-Artois-4-commercial/|title=Watch the new Stella Artois 4% commercial|work=marketingmagazine.co.uk}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thegrocer.co.uk/articles.aspx?page=articles&ID=218076|work=]|title=No smooth outcome as Stella 4% sales fall|date=16 May 2011|access-date=4 January 2012}}</ref> In 2011, a ], Stella Artois Cidre, was launched.
The ''Anno 1366'' on the Stella Artois logo refers to the origin of brewing in the city of Leuven. The city's tax records dated 1366 mention the existence of a local brewpub called ''Den Hoorn'', ('Hoorn' in Dutch meaning 'Horn' in English, as is represented in the logo on the beer label). The name ''Artois'' was coupled to the brewery in 1708, when new owner Sebastian Artois achieved the title of ''master brewer''. The frame that surrounds the name Stella Artois on the label refers to the traditional style of window frame found in Flemish architecture.


In 2020, AB InBev reduced the alcohol content of their beers for the UK market, from 4.8% to 4.6%. The original UK strength of Stella Artois was 5.2% and 4.8% from 2008 until 2020.<ref name = "strength" /> According to Freddy Delvaux, former head of the in-house laboratory, the Belgian version was 33&nbsp;] when he joined the lab in 1973, compared to just 20&nbsp;IBU in 2014.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.garshol.priv.no/blog/284.html | title=Professor Delvaux | first=Lars | last=Garshol | date=19 May 2014}}</ref>
Stella Artois is available on draught and in several packaged sizes, including a 275 ml bottle, 284 ml bottle, 330 ml bottle, 440 ml can, 500 ml can, pint size can known as "La Grande Bière" (568 ml), 660 ml bottle, 700 ml bottle, 935 ml bottle, and a 1 litre bottle.


==History== ==Production==
]]]
The first recorded history of Stella Artois is in 1366, when records of taxes exist on Leuven's Den Horen Brewery, a brewery that is still in existence today. In 1708, '''Sebastian Artois''' became the master brewer at Den Horen, and gave his name to the brewery in 1717.
]
Stella Artois is brewed in Belgium (in the plants at ] and ]), at ] and ] in the United Kingdom, as well as in other countries.<ref name="Sun Inbev Ukraine Brands and products">{{cite web|url=http://www.suninterbrew.ua/ukr/stellaartois.php |title=Sun Inbev Ukraine Brands : Stella Artois |access-date=5 October 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202111615/http://www.suninterbrew.ua/ukr/stellaartois.php |archive-date=2 December 2008 }}</ref> Much of the beer exported from Europe is produced at InBev's brewery in Belgium, and packaged in the ] in ]. Stella Artois is also brewed for the Australian market by ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lionco.com/2011/12/19/lion-welcomes-stella-artois-and-belgian-specialty-beers-into-its-australian-portfolio/|title=Lion welcomes Stella Artois and Belgian specialty beers into its Australian portfolio|date=19 December 2011|access-date=19 December 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140318135251/http://lionco.com/2011/12/19/lion-welcomes-stella-artois-and-belgian-specialty-beers-into-its-australian-portfolio/|archive-date=18 March 2014}}</ref> In the United States, Stella Artois is brewed and distributed by ] at its various brewing facilities in the US, beginning in 2021 and before then it was imported.<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=http://www.anheuser-busch.com/brandPages/stella.html|title=Anheuser-Busch: Brand List|access-date=11 June 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101019061747/http://anheuser-busch.com/brandPages/stella.html|archive-date=19 October 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web| last = Licata| first = Zoe| title = ‘Imported’ Beer Brands Look to Domestic Production to Meet Consumer Demand| work = BevNET.com| access-date = 2024-11-21| date = 2024-10-08| url = https://www.bevnet.com/magazine/issue/2024/imported-beer-brands-look-to-domestic-production-to-meet-consumer-demand}}</ref> For the Hungarian market, Stella Artois is brewed in ], Hungary, by ], under licence from InBev. For the Canadian market is brewed by Labatt Brewery in Ontario, Canada.


Stella Artois is available on draught and in several packaged sizes.
In 1926, Stella Artois was launched initially as a seasonal beer especially for the Christmas holiday market. It was first sold in Canada and it was such a commercial success that the brand became available year round and, apart from the duration of the ], has been produced ever since. The first Stella Artois beer was exported to the ] in 1930. By 1960, 1 million hl of Stella Artois was being produced annually. InBev opened a new fully automated brewery in Leuven in 1993, and by 2006, total production volume was over 10 million hl annually.


An unfiltered version was introduced to the United Kingdom market in 2022.<ref name="unfiltered">{{cite news |last1=Woolfson |first1=Daniel |title=Budweiser Brewing Group plans unfiltered Stella Artois launch |url=https://www.thegrocer.co.uk/new-product-development/budweiser-brewing-group-plans-unfiltered-stella-artois-launch/660796.article |access-date=22 March 2024 |work=The Grocer |date=14 October 2021}}</ref>
The current pack design and bottle shape was created in 1988 by David Taylor, founder of ]. The design replaced a 1960s design and is inspired by the original 1926 bottle label. The design incorporates the horn symbol of the Den Horen brewery and the date 1366 which is the date of the earliest recorded brewing in Leuven. The label also shows medals for excellence awarded to the brewery at a number of ]s in Belgium in the 19th and 20th century. The name Stella Artois is held within a "]" which was influenced by the style of ] of Leuven.

The American ] band ] wrote "Stella" from their 2009 album '']'' about the beer.


==Advertising== ==Advertising==
===United Kingdom===
{{Globalize/UK|section|date=July 2009}}
Initially, brewers Whitbread launched Stella in the UK with advertisements featuring the slogan "Stella's for the fellas who take their lager strong". The images showed a Stella-monogrammed half-pint glass (due to its strength) – in one advertisement with a muscular 'glass arm' for a handle, in the other a glass sitting beside a torn-in-half telephone directory. This was the same creative unit which was involved, at the time, in Whitbread's launch of Trophy Bitter "The pint that thinks it's a quart".
{{Unreferenced section|date=November 2009}}
]
For some time, Stella Artois' advertising slogan in the United Kingdom was "]". The UK television advertising campaigns became known for their distinctive style of imitating European cinema and their ] inspired by ]'s '']''. The campaigns began with a series of adverts based on '']'', directed by the British duo ] and Vaughan Arnell, moving on to other genres including ], silent ] and even ] (for which the slogan was changed to "Reassuringly Elephants"). They have used notable movie directors such as ], and their aim was to portray the drink in a context of sophisticated ].


In the 1980s and 1990s, the Stella Artois advertising slogan in the United Kingdom was "]". The UK television advertising campaigns became known for their distinctive style of imitating European cinema and their ] inspired by ]'s '']''. The campaigns began with a series of advertisements based on the 1986 French film '']'', directed by the British duo ] and Vaughan Arnell, moving on to other genres, including ]s, silent ] and ]. They have used notable film directors such as ]. Furthermore, the brand makes extensive use of the French language in its advertising campaigns, even though the beer brand originates from the monolingual Dutch-speaking city of ]. An example of this can be seen in the advertising campaign for Stella Artois Cidre, in which the tag-line "C'est cidre, not cider" is used, although this cider is produced in ], which also lies in the Dutch-speaking ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://trends.knack.be/economie/nieuws/bedrijven/konings-maakt-stella-artois-cidre/article-1194981416540.htm |title=Konings maakt Stella Artois Cidre |date= 30 March 2011 |access-date=10 September 2012}}</ref>
During 2007, the "reassuringly expensive" slogan was dropped, and the word "Stella" has been avoided in the advertisements. This has been seen as a reaction to the lager's perceived connection with aggression and binge-drinking in the United Kingdom, where it is nicknamed "]".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-494149/Where-did-wrong-beer-wife-beater.html |title=Where did it all go wrong for the beer they call 'wife beater'? |publisher=Dailymail.co.uk |date=2007-11-15 |accessdate=2009-06-26}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://archive.theargus.co.uk/2007/11/18/245918.html |title=The Argus - Pubs ban Stella Artois |publisher=Archive.theargus.co.uk |date=2007-11-18 |accessdate=2009-06-26}}</ref> To counter this image, a new brand of lower strength beer is now being marketed in the UK - Stella Artois La Nouvelle 4.<ref>http://www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/news/902888/Watch-new-Stella-Artois-4-commercial/</ref><ref>http://eternalworrier.blogspot.com/2008/07/reassuringly-chavtastic-stella-artois.html</ref>


Stella Artois is advertised as containing "only 4 ingredients: hops, malted barley, maize and water". Yeast is also an ingredient used in the fermentation process, but almost all of it is removed before packaging. Since 2009, Stella Artois has been suitable for ], as ] (fish bladder) is no longer used to remove trace amounts of yeast.{{citation needed|date=January 2021}}
In Belgium, Stella Artois is promoted as ''Mijn huis is waar mijn Stella staat'' and ''Chez moi, c'est près de ma Stella'' (''My home is where my Stella is''). In Belgium, Stella is sold as a regular lager and does not enjoy the more flattering reputation it has abroad.


==Brand image==
Stella Artois has had a long association with film. Dating back to 1994 (in the UK), the beer has organised a range of events as well as TV sponsorship of Channel 4 films and a website. Most recently the beer brand has adopted the new identity&nbsp;— Studio Artois. Stella Artois has been a primary sponsor of the film festivals at ] and ].
At least since the early 21st century, Stella Artois has carried the nickname of the "wife beater" in the United Kingdom, due to a perceived connection between ] involving the brand and ]. In January 2012, the online activities of ] lobbyists, ], were exposed in the United Kingdom when ], a member of the ] said that the company (then owned by ], a former advisor to ex-Prime Minister ]) was trying to ] from Misplaced Pages's ] and the phrase "wife beater" from this article.<ref>{{cite news |first=Oliver |last=Wright |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/lobbying-company-tried-to-wipe-out-wife-beater-beer-references-6284622.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220524/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/lobbying-company-tried-to-wipe-out-wife-beater-beer-references-6284622.html |archive-date=24 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Lobbying company tried to wipe out 'wife beater' beer references |work=] |date=4 January 2012 |access-date=14 March 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/citydiary/8990671/Portland-brews-up-row-over-wife-beater-Stella.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/citydiary/8990671/Portland-brews-up-row-over-wife-beater-Stella.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Portland brews up row over 'wife-beater' Stella |first=Anna |last=White |work=]|location=London |date= 4 January 2012 |access-date=14 March 2012}}{{cbignore}}</ref>


==Marketing==
In May 2008, an advertising campaign was run in the United Kingdom reporting that Stella Artois is only made from four ingredients: hops, malted barley, maize and water. Technically, the process also uses agents such as yeast for ]. Since 2009, Stella Artois has been brewed to be suitable for vegetarians after over 200 years of treating with ] (made from fish) to clear the yeast from the brewed beer.
Stella Artois has been associated with film in the UK since 1994, organising events, sponsoring television, and hosting a website. Stella Artois has been or is a primary sponsor of the ], ], and ] film festivals, the ], the ], and the ].

Stella Artois has broadcast several ], as part of Anheuser–Busch InBev's overall ad buys during the game. The brand made its debut during ] in 2011, in an ad starring ]. The commercial was heavily criticised in the ] media for giving the impression that the beer is ].<ref>{{cite web |author=HLN.be |url=https://www.hln.be/hln/nl/929/TV-Gids/article/detail/1219360/2011/02/08/Chique-Franse-Stella-spot-gaat-de-mist-in-op-Super-Bowl.dhtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160610063332/https://www.hln.be/hln/nl/929/TV-Gids/article/detail/1219360/2011/02/08/Chique-Franse-Stella-spot-gaat-de-mist-in-op-Super-Bowl.dhtml |archive-date=10 June 2016 |title=Chique 'Franse' Stella-spot gaat de mist in op Super Bowl |publisher=De Persgroep Digital |date=8 February 2011 |access-date=10 June 2012 |url-status=bot: unknown }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=De Standaard|url=http://www.standaard.be/artikel/detail.aspx?artikelid=DMF20110208_065 |title=Stella Artois maakt weinig indruk op publiek Super Bow |newspaper=De Standaard |date= 8 February 2011|access-date=10 June 2012}}</ref>


==See also== ==See also==
{{Portal|Beer|Drink|Belgium}}
*], a 4% wheat-based lager often sold alongside Stella Artois in the UK
* ]
*], a 6.2% 'brown' beer to be phased out and replaced by ]
* ]
*], a 4.6% 'oak aged' lager sold alongside Stella Artois in the UK
* ]


==References== ==References==
{{reflist}} {{Reflist}}


==External links== ==External links==
{{Commons category}}
*
* {{Official website}}
* : official film website
* : official film website
* *
* *
*
*
*


{{Anheuser–Busch InBev}}
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{{Authority control}}
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Latest revision as of 23:31, 21 November 2024

Belgian pilsner beer

Stella Artois
TypeBeer
ManufacturerAnheuser–Busch InBev
Country of origin Belgium
Region of originLeuven, Belgium
Introduced1926; 98 years ago (1926)
Alcohol by volume 4.6 to 5.2 per cent
StylePilsner
IngredientsSaaz hops, malted barley, maize, yeast, water
Websitestellaartois.com

Stella Artois (/ɑːrˈtwɑː/ ar-TWAH, French: [aʁtwɑ]) is a pilsner beer, first brewed in 1926 by Brouwerij Artois in Leuven, Belgium. In its original form, the beer is 5.2 per cent ABV, the country's standard for pilsners. The beer is also sold in other countries including the UK, Ireland, Canada and Australia, where it has a reduced ABV. Stella Artois is owned by Interbrew International B.V. which is a subsidiary of the world's largest brewer, Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV.

History

The Den Hoorn brewery in Leuven opened in 1366, when it was a tavern brewing its own beer for sale under the sign of a hunting horn. In 1708, Sébastien Artois became head brewer; then, in 1717, purchased the brewery, renaming it Brouwerij Artois.

In 1926, Brouwerij Artois launched Stella as a Christmas beer, named after the Christmas star. First sold in the winter season, it eventually became available year-round, with exports into the broad European market commencing in 1930, though it did not reach the entire market until 1964. Production was halted for a period when operations were suspended during World War II. By 1960, about 400 million litres (100 million US gallons) of Stella Artois were being produced annually. Whitbread secured a licence to brew Stella Artois under contract in the United Kingdom in 1976.

In 1988, Brouwerij Artois was a founding member in the merger creating Interbrew. That year, Taylorbrands founder David Taylor created a new package design, bottle design, and shape. The original 1926 bottle label inspired the design, which replaced a 1960s design. The design incorporates the horn symbol and the 1366 date of the original Den Hoorn brewery. The label also shows medals for excellence awarded to Brouwerij Artois at a number of trade exhibitions in Belgium in the 19th and 20th centuries. The name Stella Artois is held within a cartouche which was influenced by the style of Belgian architecture in Leuven.

In 1993, Interbrew moved production of Stella Artois into a new, fully automated brewery in Leuven. In 2004, Interbrew was part of the merger creating InBev, and by 2006, total annual production volume of Stella Artois exceeded one billion litres.

In 2008, InBev was part of the merger creating the Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev) brewery company. That same year, a lower-alcohol version, Stella Artois 4%, was introduced in the UK market. In 2011, a cider, Stella Artois Cidre, was launched.

In 2020, AB InBev reduced the alcohol content of their beers for the UK market, from 4.8% to 4.6%. The original UK strength of Stella Artois was 5.2% and 4.8% from 2008 until 2020. According to Freddy Delvaux, former head of the in-house laboratory, the Belgian version was 33 IBU when he joined the lab in 1973, compared to just 20 IBU in 2014.

Production

Stella Artois brewery in Leuven
The global bottle of Stella Artois

Stella Artois is brewed in Belgium (in the plants at Leuven and Jupille), at Samlesbury and Magor in the United Kingdom, as well as in other countries. Much of the beer exported from Europe is produced at InBev's brewery in Belgium, and packaged in the Beck's Brewery in Bremen, Germany. Stella Artois is also brewed for the Australian market by Lion. In the United States, Stella Artois is brewed and distributed by Anheuser-Busch at its various brewing facilities in the US, beginning in 2021 and before then it was imported. For the Hungarian market, Stella Artois is brewed in Bőcs, Hungary, by Borsod Brewery, under licence from InBev. For the Canadian market is brewed by Labatt Brewery in Ontario, Canada.

Stella Artois is available on draught and in several packaged sizes.

An unfiltered version was introduced to the United Kingdom market in 2022.

Advertising

United Kingdom

Initially, brewers Whitbread launched Stella in the UK with advertisements featuring the slogan "Stella's for the fellas who take their lager strong". The images showed a Stella-monogrammed half-pint glass (due to its strength) – in one advertisement with a muscular 'glass arm' for a handle, in the other a glass sitting beside a torn-in-half telephone directory. This was the same creative unit which was involved, at the time, in Whitbread's launch of Trophy Bitter "The pint that thinks it's a quart".

In the 1980s and 1990s, the Stella Artois advertising slogan in the United Kingdom was "Reassuringly Expensive". The UK television advertising campaigns became known for their distinctive style of imitating European cinema and their leitmotiv inspired by Giuseppe Verdi's La forza del destino. The campaigns began with a series of advertisements based on the 1986 French film Jean de Florette, directed by the British duo Anthea Benton and Vaughan Arnell, moving on to other genres, including war films, silent comedy and surrealism. They have used notable film directors such as Jonathan Glazer. Furthermore, the brand makes extensive use of the French language in its advertising campaigns, even though the beer brand originates from the monolingual Dutch-speaking city of Leuven. An example of this can be seen in the advertising campaign for Stella Artois Cidre, in which the tag-line "C'est cidre, not cider" is used, although this cider is produced in Zonhoven, which also lies in the Dutch-speaking Flemish Region.

Stella Artois is advertised as containing "only 4 ingredients: hops, malted barley, maize and water". Yeast is also an ingredient used in the fermentation process, but almost all of it is removed before packaging. Since 2009, Stella Artois has been suitable for vegans, as isinglass (fish bladder) is no longer used to remove trace amounts of yeast.

Brand image

At least since the early 21st century, Stella Artois has carried the nickname of the "wife beater" in the United Kingdom, due to a perceived connection between binge drinking involving the brand and domestic violence against women. In January 2012, the online activities of AB InBev lobbyists, Portland Communications, were exposed in the United Kingdom when Tom Watson, a member of the Labour opposition party said that the company (then owned by Tim Allan, a former advisor to ex-Prime Minister Tony Blair) was trying to remove references to Stella Artois from Misplaced Pages's "wife beater" disambiguation page and the phrase "wife beater" from this article.

Marketing

Stella Artois has been associated with film in the UK since 1994, organising events, sponsoring television, and hosting a website. Stella Artois has been or is a primary sponsor of the Cannes, Melbourne, and Sundance film festivals, the Independent Spirit Awards, the Dallas International Film Festival, and the Little Rock Film Festival.

Stella Artois has broadcast several Super Bowl ads, as part of Anheuser–Busch InBev's overall ad buys during the game. The brand made its debut during Super Bowl XLV in 2011, in an ad starring Adrien Brody. The commercial was heavily criticised in the Belgian media for giving the impression that the beer is French.

See also

References

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  2. Jackson, Michael (30 July 1999). "Belgium's Great Beers". Beer Hunter. Retrieved 2 July 2019.
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  5. ^ "Anheuser-Busch: Brand List". Archived from the original on 19 October 2010. Retrieved 11 June 2009.
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  7. "Artois Brouwerij". biernet.nl.
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  9. Fisk, Peter (20 August 2009). Marketing Genius. John Wiley & Sons. p. 316. ISBN 978-1-907293-40-5.
  10. Scarsella, Jameson (12 October 2023). "Stella Artois Emerges As A Modern-Day Icon". The Business Download. Retrieved 25 April 2024.
  11. Interbrew acquires brewing activities of Whitbread Retrieved 1 November 2012. Archived 23 December 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  12. "Watch the new Stella Artois 4% commercial". marketingmagazine.co.uk.
  13. "No smooth outcome as Stella 4% sales fall". The Grocer. 16 May 2011. Retrieved 4 January 2012.
  14. Garshol, Lars (19 May 2014). "Professor Delvaux".
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  16. "Lion welcomes Stella Artois and Belgian specialty beers into its Australian portfolio". 19 December 2011. Archived from the original on 18 March 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  17. Licata, Zoe (8 October 2024). "'Imported' Beer Brands Look to Domestic Production to Meet Consumer Demand". BevNET.com. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  18. Woolfson, Daniel (14 October 2021). "Budweiser Brewing Group plans unfiltered Stella Artois launch". The Grocer. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  19. "Konings maakt Stella Artois Cidre". 30 March 2011. Retrieved 10 September 2012.
  20. Wright, Oliver (4 January 2012). "Lobbying company tried to wipe out 'wife beater' beer references". The Independent. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 14 March 2012.
  21. White, Anna (4 January 2012). "Portland brews up row over 'wife-beater' Stella". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 14 March 2012.
  22. HLN.be (8 February 2011). "Chique 'Franse' Stella-spot gaat de mist in op Super Bowl". De Persgroep Digital. Archived from the original on 10 June 2016. Retrieved 10 June 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  23. De Standaard (8 February 2011). "Stella Artois maakt weinig indruk op publiek Super Bow". De Standaard. Retrieved 10 June 2012.

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