India: Cobra Beer wins 12 Gold medals at Monde Selection

Cobra Beer has struck gold, winning no fewer than 12 Gold medals for its beers at the prestigious Monde Selection, Brussels 2006 – World Selection of Quality. For the second year running, Cobra has been awarded more Gold medals for beer than any other company in the world, Indian media released July 14.

The 2006 ceremony was held in Prague, Czech Republic where Cobra was awarded a total of 17 medals including a highly-coveted Grand Gold medal for its Indian-brewed beer, a further 11 Gold medals and five Silver medals. These accolades are a testament to the continued strength of Cobra Beer’s international brewing relationships with Charles Wells in the UK, Browar Belgia in Poland and Mount Shivalik in India.

Charles Wells received Gold medals for each of the three Cobra products it entered including Cobra draught, which made its debut at the awards, as well as for bottled Cobra in 330ml and 660ml sizes. The brewery was also awarded an International High Quality trophy in recognition of their Gold medal awards for Cobra Beer for the past three years in a row.

Of the 17 medals won, 12 were awarded to Cobra products brewed by Browar Belgia in Poland, including two Gold medals for Krait Beer – Cobra’s beer for the American market, and a Gold for King Cobra, the double fermented strong lager, which was entered into the selection for the first time. Browar Belgia too was commended for their consistent high brewing standards for Cobra Beer with the award of their own International High Quality trophy.

Finally, Cobra’s brewing partner in India, Mount Shivalik Group entered its two products for only the second time and was awarded a first-ever Grand Gold and a Gold medal for bottled 330ml and 650ml Cobra respectively.

“I am delighted by our tremendous showing at this year’s Monde Selection”, said Lord Bilimoria CBE DL, founder and Chief Executive of Cobra Beer. “We were overwhelmed to win 11 Gold medals last year, and to win 12 this year demonstrates that we continue to punch well above our weight. We are all very proud of this achievement.”

“We are particularly proud of the success of our India-brewed Cobra. When we resumed brewing in India in 2005 after an eight-year absence, we did so because we saw that the consumer was crying out for choice, but also because we saw the tremendous progress that Indian manufacturing had made. These medals are proof that India is capable of absolutely world-class manufacturing.”

“We are indebted once again to our Production Director, Robert Knox, who oversees Cobra’s brewing operations throughout the world, and to the whole team at Cobra Beer, whose dedication has seen the company continue to go from strength to strength.”

Gurdeep Sohal, Brewmaster at the Mount Shivalik Group, added: "We are delighted to have won a Grand Gold medal at Monde Selection. This award illustrates the tremendous progress we have made in such a short time with the India-brewed Cobra and, as the only Indian beer to be awarded with Gold medals, this affirms the fact that we are brewing the best quality beer in India."

E-malt.com, the global information source for the brewing and malting industry professionals. The bi-weekly E-malt.com Newsletters feature latest industry news, statistics in graphs and tables, world barley and malt prices, and other relevant information. Click here to get full access to E-malt.com. If you are a Castle Malting client, you can get free access to E-malt.com website and publications. Contact us for more information at marketing@castlemalting.com .