But a fifth of respondents (21%), the majority of whom were women (54%),referred to porter not as beer, but more as a delicacy – an exquisite drink that has to be enjoyed slowly. Almost as many respondents (17%) admitted that porter was one of their traditional winter values. A comparatively small proportion, 5% of all porter beer fanciers, have admitted that they consume porter-type beer in winter in order to get warmer rather than to quench their thirst.

For already the sixth year, during the winter season, Cēsu alus is offering consumers porter-type beer. Each year we have developed the variety of porter beer flavours, changing it from the classical porter beer type to especially exclusive chocolate and balsam porter beer varieties. This year Cēsu alus offers Ziemas Porteris – a saturated flavoured beer, produced from especially dark roast malt. LeadingCēsu alus Technologist, Māris Grambergs, recommends that Cēsu Ziemas Porteris be enjoyed when it has been cooled in order to retain all the nuances of its flavour and added spices. Cēsu Ziemas Porteris is already available in the largest supermarkets in a newly designed 0.5l brown glass bottle packaging, as well as in a four-pack holiday package. During the first week of sales a total of fifty thousand bottles of Cēsu Ziemas Porteris have already been sold.

On 12 November we invited our consumers to the Merlin restaurant, in which a closed beer tasting event involving porter-type dark beerstook place. During this event several world famous dark beer and porter varieties were tasted. The new Cēsu Ziemas Porteris shared first place with a dark beer called Gösser which comes from Austria. As the main advantage of Cēsu Ziemas Porteris, the participants of the beer tasting mentioned the well-balanced porter flavour with its pleasantly warming aftertaste.

Chairman of Cēsu alus Board, Eva Sietiņsone-Zatlere: “In order that we can offer the product that best corresponds to our consumer’s wishes, we especially focus on evaluations delivered by beer fanciers. Therefore, in addition to our porter criteria study, we invited real bear lovers to the first porter beer tasting event, and we are thankful for their responsiveness and unselfish evaluations.”

Investments in 2010 in the development of Cēsu Ziemas Porterisbeer total LVL 20,000.

*Study implemented by “Data serviss”, a total of 1,035 residents in Latvia aged from 18 to 74 years old took part in the study. The study was implemented in the time period between 8 October and 18 October 2010.