Heineken launches “Heineken 3”, mid-strength beer targeting day drinkers

Dutch brewer, Heineken unveiled its newest creation on Friday in Australia. The new brand named “Heineken 3” is a premium mid-strength extension of its famous brand with lower calories and carbs.

“Heineken 3 has only 86 calories per bottle, 5g carbs and 3.3 per cent ABV so consumers no longer have to compromise on taste and premium experience when choosing a lower calorie beer,” the company said.

It would be the first product launched by the company in 20 years. Heineken is spending AUS$6 million in a marketing blitz to get people to drink the brew.

The brewer which is using Australia as a test market for a possible global rollout said the new brand “is tailored for Australia, but is absolutely important for us globally.”

In Australia, Heineken has close to 2% of the total beer market, and 11% of the premium segment. Australia like most Western countries is consuming less beer and more of other alcohol. Beer consumption in the country has fallen from 75% to 41% of all alcohol in the last 68 years, according to available data.

However, mid-strength beer has grown in the last 10 years, now accounting for 19% of all beer consumed in the country, compared to low strength.

According to data, the mid-strength segment has been growing at 50% per year and Heineken wants to tap into that market.

Alessandro Manunta, Marketing Manager, Heineken Lion, a subsidiary of the Dutch brewer in Australia said the new brand was targeting “daytime drinking occasions”.

“In Australia, daytime drinking accounts for 50% of total beer volumes, which is roughly 850 million litres,” he said.

“So the chunk of the pie is really big, and this occasion is dominated by mid-strength, which has about 20% volume share.”

The plan for the brewer is to market a beer which does not leave the drinker with a hangover to continue partying into the evening. The brewer is also hoping to capture a segment of wine and cider drinkers.

Mr. Manunta said he would be “disappointed” if Heineken 3 hadn’t reached double-digit share of Heineken sales within three years.

“The product itself has already won different awards around the globe, and testing locally has put it in the top 5% of all beer tested in Australia.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *