Red Stripe
A Jamaican pale lager with a distinctive stubby bottle.
Red Stripe is a 4.7% ABV pale lager first introduced in 1928 from a recipe developed by Paul H. Geddes and Bill Martindale. It is brewed by Desnoes & Geddes in Jamaica and the Netherlands, and since 2015 has also been brewed in the United Kingdom by Heineken under licence. The brand is notable for its distinctive stubby bottle and its association with Jamaican culture, reggae music, and international sporting sponsorships.
Quick Facts
- Brewery
- Desnoes & Geddes
- Style
- Lager
- Year
- 1928
- Abv
- 4.7%
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Red Stripe was first produced in the early 1930s by Galena Brewing Company in Galena, Illinois, US. The company sold the recipe to British investors after facing financial troubles, and the investors brought the brand and recipe to Jamaica. The traditional stubby bottle was introduced in 1965 and reduced to 11.2 US fl oz in 2010. In 1993, Guinness Brewing Worldwide (now Diageo) acquired a controlling interest in Desnoes & Geddes, taking over international distribution. Heineken acquired Diageo's stake in 2015 and stated it would launch an offer for the shares it did not own. Red Stripe was brewed under license in the UK by Charles Wells from 1976 until 2014, when Diageo made alternative supply arrangements. For part of that era, a stronger variant called Crucial Brew (9% ABV) was produced with red and black branding. In the United States, Red Stripe was first imported in 1985 with poor initial results due to packaging in green standard 12 oz bottles instead of the distinctive squat brown bottle. Shipments were temporarily suspended in January 1989 due to cannabis smuggling in shipping containers discovered in the Port of Miami. Diageo introduced canned Red Stripe, brewed under contract by Moosehead in New Brunswick, to the US market in 2009. In 2012, Diageo moved US production to the US, contract-brewed by City Brewing Co. at its Latrobe Brewing Company facility in Pennsylvania, but lack of consumer acceptance led to brewing returning to Jamaica. On 7 September 2016, the first container of Red Stripe exported to the US from Jamaica in four years was shipped. As of 2023, it was still imported to the US from Jamaica in bottles and from the Netherlands in kegs and cans.
Reader's Guide
Red Stripe's significance lies in its journey from a small Illinois brewery to an internationally recognized Jamaican brand. Its acquisition by Guinness (later Diageo) in 1993 expanded global distribution, and Heineken's acquisition in 2015 continued its international presence. The brand's marketing has heavily tied it to Jamaican culture, sponsoring reggae and ska events including the annual Reggae Sumfest in Montego Bay, and serving as the unofficial beer of the Notting Hill Carnival since 1976. In North America, a television advertising campaign launched in 2001 featured a comedic Jamaican character with the catchphrase 'Hooray, beer!', while UK campaigns used 'easy now.' Red Stripe has sponsored the Jamaica national bobsled team, including stepping in at the last minute in February 2018 to provide a new bobsled for the women's team at the Pyeongchang 2018 Olympics. Other sponsorships include the 2007 Cricket World Cup as Caribbean regional sponsor, a J$100 million commitment to the Jamaican Football Federation for 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying, and UK music events such as the Camden Crawl and The Great Escape festivals. The Red Stripe Music Awards ran from 2007 to 2010, with winners including Ben Howard. The brand also sponsors the television program Pardon the Interruption during summer months and the International Festival of Thumb Wrestling in Mason City, Iowa.
More in Beer Brands 1-24
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced