The Alexander Brewery in Emek Hefer has won a Silver Medal in the prestigious European Beer Star competition in Nürnberg, Germany. The winning beer was Alexander Bock, in the Heller Bock category.
Only a few weeks earlier, Alexander highlighted its bock beer at a tour and press conference at the brewery attended by food and entertainment writers from the Israeli media. The Magazine was represented by editor Erica Schachne and this writer. We were joined by The Jerusalem Post wine writer Adam Montefiore.
This marks the fifth time Alexander beers have won medals in the European Beer Star, and the eighth time they have won in international competitions overall. This year, 2,360 beers from over 50 countries were entered in 75 categories. Some 150 certified beer judges tasted the beers, judging for color, aroma, taste, and true-to-style guidelines. Alexander Bock was the only Israeli beer to win anything.
Alexander founder Ori Sagy and CEO Lior Balmas accepted the award at a ceremony in Nürnberg. Balmas announced that this was a moment of “true national pride. An Israeli craft beer has been given recognition by a distinguished panel of international judges. This is not only an achievement for our brewery but for the entire Israeli beer industry.”
Earlier, Sagy had noted that Alexander has been almost the only Israeli craft brewery to win awards in international competitions, beginning in 2013.
“I don’t know what is the reason for this,” he said. “Either the beer the other breweries submit is not good enough, or they think it’s not good enough and don’t dare to compete. For us, the vision of brewing excellent Israeli beer is doing it according to the highest standards.
“We strive to brew Israeli beer that stands proudly in line with the best breweries in the world. The only way to find out if we are living up to our vision is to compete with the best brewers of the world.
“I’m confident that Israelis can do anything they want to be the best,” affirmed Sagy. “We have great Israeli wine and great Israeli tomatoes and many other great Israeli products. But you have to work hard to be qualified as one of the best, and not all Israelis are willing to make the effort.”
What is bock beer?
BOCK BEER is a strong German-style lager, usually dark brown with a full body, exhibiting sweetness from the malt, with little flavor from the hops. Heller Bock (or Maibock), the category in which Alexander won, is a paler version of bock with a little more hop character.
The name “bock” is a Bavarian pronunciation of Einbeck, the city where it originated in the 17th century. Since bock means “billy goat” in that language, most of the beer labels for that style include a goat. So does Alexander’s.
Alexander first introduced its bock beer late last year. In the past, only very few Israeli brewers have produced a bock beer or its stronger version, double bock.
The beer pours out a lovely clear copper color, topped by a bubbly head. The malt-forward character is there in the aroma: toasted malt, some honey, and yeast. There is also alcohol in the vapors, reflecting the hefty 7.5% alcohol by volume. The taste is moderately bitter, balanced with malt sweetness and delicate caramel and toast flavors. The finish is creamy and dry.
At the press conference in the brewery, Alexander served another seasonal beer – its Fest Lager, a milder lager beer based on the Märzen style and made popular by its association with the annual Oktoberfest beer festival in Munich.
The press event also marked the third anniversary of Alexander Beer being distributed by Carmel Wines. The veteran winery also distributes Jem’s (another Israeli craft brewer) and several imported beers, such as Corona, Hoegaarden, Stella Artois, and Leffe.
Ran Assa, marketing director for Carmel, told the press attendees that the Israeli craft beer market, countrywide, has not suffered much during the months of war. According to figures from StoreNext marketing data, sales during January to October of 2024 were down very slightly from the same months the previous year.
Assa added that Alexander Beer retail sales (not including bars and restaurants) actually increased by 8% (in absolute quantity) during the first half of 2024. This was the greatest growth of the leading beer brands.
Despite the growing popularity of craft beer, sources in the Israeli beer market estimate that craft beers account for only 5% to 6% of all beer sales, in quantity. Perhaps with more international recognition of the quality of Israeli beers will come further growth in craft beer sales.
The writer is the owner of MediawiSe, an agency for advertising and direct marketing in Jerusalem. He writes a blog on Israeli craft beers, called “Israel Brews and Views,” which can be found on Facebook.