Brewing Science and Industrialization

Skol is a fairly ‘young’ beer.  For the remainder of this exercise we will focus on Skolt Brazil, the A-B In Bev owned portion of the brand since is recognized as a Brazilian Beer. Ownership and licenses in Britain and Asia go to Carlsberg and in Africa it is owned by UniBra.  This oddity in itself makes Skol unique among beers.

The basic agreement behind the founding Skol international focused on the science of brewing with the aim of providing a universal taste from many locations.

According to Zythophile.co.uk it is alleged “Skol International attempted to maintain strict quality control over each brewer, with the Schwarz Laboratories in New York, owned jointly by Labatts, Allied and Pripp, testing samples of Skol from new members of the consortium “exhaustively” until satisfied. One firm in 1967 was supposed to have been waiting 18 months for the green light, with 28 trial brews tested and rejected. Eades admitted to only one serious failed launch: in New Zealand in 1964, where “a lack of market research” meant that the local Skol “did not coincide with local taste”.

Skol Brazil began it brewing operations in a facility that at the time was state of the art which allowed it to fulfill its goals of providing the consistent taste recognized as Skol.

The development of refined testing practices allowed for this extensive testing of the many products to maintain the unified taste.

http://https://live.staticflickr.com/3154/3293386190_3aa8f45c5e_m.jpg

Beer Style

 Skol is a pale light drinking beer, a lager style brew – meaning it is fermented with bottom fermenting yeast at cooler temperatures for 7 to 10 days resulting in a lighter more thirst quenching beverage.  Lagers are characterized and being sweet and crisp with higher carbonation levels.   This characteristic was probably one of the major reasons it became so popular in Brazil – its thirst quenching ability in the hot region – allowing it to outsell the previously acknowledged favorite ale in Brazil.  Skol is also popular in other regions which are also warm – Africa and Asia.

Although lagers are not known for having high alcohol contents, Skol Brazil currently brews beverages with current alcohol content of about 7.9%.

 The WW1 – WW2 Era

 Skol International was not formed until 1961 so it was not immediately affected by any of the World Wars.  This beer was developed more as a consequence to the world wars when beer producers

• Recognized a market for beers that the public wanted. Former soldiers had developed a liking for beers not familiar to their home regions and beer suppliers were now able to provide the product they craved.
• Skol International is in itself one form of Innovation developed after the wars. The merger formed by these parties would not have been likely prior to WW1 and WW2.
• The consortium that was formed by Allied Breweries most likely resulted in the brand Skol being alive today. Without the agreement it is possible that the brand would have died from lack of resources and equipment as many beers did after the WW2.

Consolidation and Globalization

As with most other commercially produced beer – Skol has gone through a myriad amount of mergers and its unique position of multiple brand ownership is the result.

A mentioned previously Skol has multiple owners depending on the region it is brewed in.  Skol Brazil followed the path below:

Marketing and Branding

 Skol’s target market is the average man on the street who is just seeking a thirst quencher.  It is more aimed at the blue collar worker because of its price point.  More sophisticated beer drinkers have expressed significant dislike of the taste of Skol.

The historical aspect of the brand was to make a unified taste available worldwide.  Skol produced by today by A-B In Bev is believed to maintain the same flavor which makes it popular with the man on the street at very affordable prices.

Skol is positioned as a low cost beer that is familiar to the everyday masses.  It is a familiar beer with no ‘airs’ about itself.

Competitors of Skol vary based on the marketing region.  In Brazil and the rest of the South American and Caribbean market this can include any of the locally brewed lagers e.g. Red Stripe in Jamaica or Banks in Barbados.

Skol is once again unique since its strength is also its weakness – the unified taste in all regions.  This unified taste makes it familiar wherever you are located.  This also means that persons travelling between regions who dislike the taste of Skol would not be inclined to purchase this been.

Recent additions of  new flavors to the product line in Brazil should assist with Skol in rebranding itself with a newer market niche.  These new product additions should go a long way in maintaining the brand presence of Skol for some time in the future.

Modern Era

Recent additions to the Skol lineup of products have revamped its image to a more modern look.  Skol has attempted to focus on the sociology of the human being.

The new Skol products have been branded

• Skol Senses
• Skol Secret
• Skol Spirit
• Skol Love
• Skol Rainbow

These are packed with bright colors indicative of its market with significant use of highlighting elements.

There is also a trend to be more inclusive as is prevalent worldwide these days (namely Skol Rainbow).

Skol today has entwined itself with the culture of Brazil – the culture of Carnival which is a colorful and fun spectacle enjoyed by all areas of the Brazilian society.

The higher alcohol content is also a factor that could increase its popularity with younger drinkers since it requires less  volume to ingest the increased alcohol.

Skol maintains the position of most beer company today to drink responsibly.  In Brazilian culture where promiscuity is alleged to be prevalent, this means responsible social interactions.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPm_UOnEYJQ   (adult content implied).

These recent additions to the Skol line- while providing a modern look and aimed at a younger ‘more hip’ market has still left very little impression with the discerning beer drinkers.  The product still receives a poor review in the market.   Initial reviews of the product have rated it 1.9  out of 5 by “Untappd” online market review, however, as the new Skol Beats becomes available to more of the public ratings have increased to 2.2 out of 5. (Untappd, 2019)

You are encouraged to try Skol Beats and join Untappd online to post your reviews.

https://untappd.com/b/ambev-skol-beats/43872

References

Carlsberg Group. (2018, May). Retrieved 09 28, 2019, from https://www.carlsberggroup.com/products/skol/skol/

Cockrall-King. (2012). Food and the City. Amherst: Prometheus Books.

Hornsey, I. S. (2003). A History of Beer and Brewing. Royal Society of Chemistry.

Wikipedia. (2019, 02 25). Retrieved 09 28, 2019

Zythophile. (2012, 05 11). Retrieved 09 28, 2019, from http://zythophile.co.uk/2012/05/11/how-brazils-favourite-beer-arrived-from-scotland/