Do you want to know more about Stella Artois? The popular drink has been around for years, but what do we know about it?
It can be hard to find things out about this Belgian lager, and many of us are unsure where to turn for information about it.
But no more! Today we have five facts about Stella Artois! Just keep reading to learn more about the lager today.
Top 5 Facts About Stella Artois
Let’s get straight into it! Below we have the top five facts we think you should know about Stella Artois. Just keep reading to find out more about Stella Artois now.
1. It’s Festive Origins
In 1708 Sebastian Artois became head brewer at a Belgian brewery, Den Horen, in Leuven, where Stella Artois was later brewed.
Homage is paid to these origins with the horn symbol seen on contemporary bottles of Stella Artois. Be sure to look out for it when you next order a bottle of Stella Artois!
It wasn’t until 1926 that his descendant, Brouwerji Artois decided to launch a festive beer for Christmas. That beer was Stella Artois!
Later, the pilsner lager was available all year and has been brewed since then!
The only time brewing of this lager stopped was during World War Two when Germany invaded Belgium, forcing production to stop.
2. There Is A Nine-Step Serving Ritual
That’s right, there is a right way to serve Stella Artois! The nine-step ritual known as the Belgian Pouring Ritual is considered the right way to pour Stella Artois.
This involves chilling the lager to 36 to 38 degrees Fahrenheit. Next, you rinse the glass and open the bottle.
The bottle then needs to be poured into the glass at the right angle, giving you the perfect head.
This head is then cut from the top of the glass, usually with the side of a knife. Once the glass is cleaned again, your Stella Artois is served for drinking.
Now that is a long process to go through each time you enjoy a Stella Artois, but why not give it a try next time you enjoy the drink and see if it makes a difference?
3. It’s A Stronger Lager
With an alcohol percentage of 5.2%, Stella Artois is usually stronger than other lagers on the market. Depending on the country, the alcohol content in Stella Artois is lower at 5%.
You can always check the percentage of alcohol content by checking the label on the bottle or the tap at your local bar.
The strength of Stella Artois was used to market the larger when it was first released, especially in Britain.
One advertisement described Stella Artois as, ‘for fellas who take their lager strong,’ while other adverts featured telephone books ripped in half.
There’s no denying the fact that Stella Artois is a stronger lager, and is sure to make you feel a little squiffy after a few drinks.
4. It’s More Expensive Than Other Lagers
Stella Artois has had its fair share of advertising campaigns over the years, from the emphasis on the strength we mentioned earlier to cost.
From 1982 to 2007, they ran a campaign in the United Kingdom where Stella Artois was labeled as, ‘reassuringly expensive.’
The high duty tax on stronger alcoholic beverages made Stella Artois more expensive than other beers in the United Kingdom.
Determined to make the higher cost a positive, Stella Artois used its price as a marketing tool, pushing the idea that their premium lager was better than other cheaper lagers on the market, thus worth the added cost.
To help promote this, Stella Artois released several award-winning and high-quality TV adverts that were quite cinematic compared to other adverts at that time.
These adverts showed the drink in a positive light, pushing up their sales.
5. It Has A Bit Of A Reputation
Despite being expensive, Stella Artois has often been popular with poorer, working-class drinkers.
It is this popularity that created a bit of an unfortunate reputation in the United Kingdom, with Stella Artois being referred to as a ‘wife-beater drink.’
Now, this is more of a nickname and reputation than scientifically proven, but you can imagine that this reputation isn’t a good one!
As Stella Artois has a higher alcohol content than other lagers on the market, it is a good option for those not wanting to spend more money to get drunk quickly.
And although we know that alcohol can make people more violent and aggressive, it’s hard for us to say whether there is a clear link or not!
The reference to Stella Artois being a ‘wife-beater drink,’ can also be viewed as a reference to Tennesse Williams’ play ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ where the character Stella is domestically abused.
Most of this, of course, is speculation and public opinion. We will leave it up to you to decide if Stella Artois deserves this reputation!
Final Thoughts
And there you have it, five facts we bet you didn’t know about Stella Artois! We hope you found this helpful and provided some new insight into a popular lager!
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