Foster’s launches Shanghai lager

Foster’s International is launching a new Chinese beer called Shanghai in the UK premium packaged lager market.

Shanghai has an alcohol by volume content of 4.7 per cent and is aimed at upmarket bars in London and Manchester, Chinese restaurants and major multiple retailers. It will be marketed using posters and promotions with the catch phrase: “Have you been Shanghai’d?”.

The booming premium packaged lager market is already crowded with a number of Asian lagers. However, Foster’s believes Shanghai will succeed because of its historical “integrity” – it has been brewed under a different name in Shanghai since the Twenties – and its flavour, which the company claims appeals to the Western palate.

Andrew Hall, vice-president of Europe for Foster’s International, comments: “Shanghai is a rapidly developing Asian metropolis and has long been a source of cultural influence and exchange with the West. Shanghai beer is one more example of this exchange, a fusion of East meets West.”

The company claims it already has listings with Asda for the beer. It is to be distributed in the UK through FD Brands.