Business

Galician brewery to bring O’Hara’s beer to Brazil

Hijos de Rivera, which has stake in Irish brewer, is collaborating on new Celtic beer

O’Hara’s beer will be available in Brazil in a couple of months, said Ignacio Rivera of Hijos de Rivera.

CHARLIE TAYLOR in Monaco
Mon Jun 18 2018 - 09:07

Galician brewery Hijos de Rivera, which last year took a 32 per cent stake in Irish craft beer producer O'Hara's, is to launch the Carlow company's products in Brazil shortly.

Ignacio Rivera, who leads the family-owned business, told The Irish Times the brewery is also collaborating with O'Hara's on a new Celtic beer.

"O'Hara's is selling very well in Spain and we are very happy with its success. It is also on sale in Portugal and will be available in Brazil in a couple of months," he said.

“Brazilian people are very curious about new beers and the craft phenomenon is growing. It is a good time to introduce new beers to the market,” Mr Rivera added.

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Established in 1906, Hijos de Rivera has a 6 per cent share of the Spanish beer market. It is most well known for Estrella Galicia beer and Maeloc cider.

The brewery, which distributes its drinks worldwide, first struck up a relationship with O'Hara's parent, the Carlow Brewery Company, three years ago. It formally took a state in the brewery in April 2017 for an undisclosed sum.

A finalist in this year’s EY World Entrepreneur of the Year finals, Mr Rivera said O’Hara’s and other companies that Hijos de Rivera has taken a stake in are encouraged to continue to operate independently.

Carlow Brewery Company, which was established by Séamus and Eamonn O’Hara in 1996, is one of Ireland’s biggest craft brewers

"Ireland is famous for its stout and we wanted to include some of it in our portfolio. We thought that O'Hara's stout was the best one on the market while its other products also fit well with what we produce," said Mr Rivera.

Up until the 1990s, Hijos de Rivera was a small local brewer. However, the company has become a much bigger player in recent years with its beers now available in 50 countries worldwide.

The brewery has tripled production, revenues and profit since 2008.

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