Decent beer is always available in Turkey, even though the national tipple is rakı.
Turkey produces several good lagers. The best—and best-selling Turkish beer (80% of the market) is Efes Pilsen, brewed in İzmir. The same company brews Becks, Miller, Warstiener and Fosters under licence.
Tuborg is also brewed in Turkey under license. Heineken is imported.
The craft beer movement has come to Turkey with small copmanies producing limited-production brews with unique flavors. In Istanbul, Bomonti is the recreation of a historic beer famous a century ago.
You won’t die of thirst on a hot day in Turkey!
Prices of beer, and indeed all beverages containing alcohol, have risen dramatically in the past decade because of government policies. Laws and ordinances governing the sale and consumption of beer, wine and spirits have become stricter as well. More…
When I first arrived in Turkey in 1967, the only beer available was Tekel Birası, brewed and distributed by the now-defunct government monopoly wine-beer-and-spirits company. It was sometimes alright, more often disappointing, but it’s all there was at the time.
You may still find Tekel Birası in some places. Tekel is gone, but another brewer keeps the disappointment alive.
Some restaurants feature one brand of beer over others (according to the beer company’s restrictive distribution agreements), so you may not have a choice of beers in every establishment.
| Turkish Wines |
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