Zywiec

Zywiec (5.7% abv) is another Polish lager which is readily available in the UK, and from Tesco of course! Basically its similar to other Polish lagers, except it has more 'Pilsner' like qualities to it such as grassy hop character and a decent diacetyl hit (ie butterscotch like flavours). As mentioned in an earlier post, Zywiec is actually a small brewing empire who use a marketing strategy of grandeur. The self proclaim to be the biggest and best selling beer in Poland, which is actually false as apparently Tyskie is bar far the leading brand. The brewery was founded in 1852 by the Habsburg family when the Zywiec area was actually part of the Austrio-Hungarian empire. It was nationalised by Poland after the second world war and then sold of to Heineken in the mid-1990's to raise revenue for the state after the fall of communism in 1989. Otherwise an interesting beer! http://www.zywiec.com.pl/