Murree Brewery Spirit of Pakistan

Murree Brewery is the only beer, whiskey and vodka manufacturer in Pakistan and has been around since the 19th century. Murree Brewery, a company established by the British Raj in 1860, caters to the Six million non-Muslim residents of Pakistan ONLY. Yeah right!

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Murree Brewery factory location

The Brewery is located in highly secure compound of Pakistan Army Generals and their lackeys.

The exact place is Gulistan colony, Topi Rakh behind Ayub Park

So hardly anyone can get in without permission from the Army

Murree Brewery Alcoholic products

Murree Brewery Co Ltd manufactures

Beer
Whiskey
Vodka
Rum
Malt 79
Gins
Brandy
And some non alcoholic sodas that no one is interested in

as their their lead products.

Murree Brewery Beer price

Their Beer is the top selling item, because it is cheap and doesn’t taste too bitter. Directly from the factory Beer can of 500ml costs Rs 750 but from the bootlegger it is Rs 1500 now.

PRO TIP

Get a triple distilled Whiskey if you want hard liquor because the remaining spirits are not too good to your liver

Why is Murree Brewery so famous?

This brewery is one of the oldest Beer Fermenter in Asia and the most accessible to Pakistanis.

The only other legitimate beer manufacturer is Hui coaster brewery in Gwadar Pakistan and is too far off to get to.

Murree Brewery beer is the most sought-after tipsy beverage, with a relatively high alcohol content of 5% and more. Because of consistent quality and Australian imported Hop and German Malt, Murree Brewery’s alcohol products are an essential part of every social gathering in the upper tiers of Pakistani society.

Can we buy Beer online in Pakistan?

I do nit think we can buy beer online in Pakistan, because its too much risk, but you can pay cash directly to dozens of freelancing bootleggers in every city.

If you want any alcoholic drink, do inbox me

Non muslims can buy directly from the factory but muslims cannot buy legally.

How are Alcoholic Drinks made?

For all those still stuck on the technicalities of brewing, ‘Hops’ are flowers of humulus lupulus plant used to give flavoring and stability to the alcohol brew. Barley seeds are germinated and when the plant barely grows out, BAM! It is dried and dunked in the brew in a process called “malting”, to use plant starch for taste.

All this is done inside a cozy compound deep inside Rawalpindi Garrison, near Jinnah Park.

Is drinking alcohol permitted in Islam?

Muslims are prohibited from using Alcohol drinks and this is what Quran has to say about that:-

Quran: 4-43 “… O you who believe. Do not approach prayers with a befogged mind, until you can understand all that you say…”
Quran: 2-219 “… They ask you concerning wine and gambling. Say. In them is great evil, and some benefit for men; but the evil is greater than the benefit…”
Quran : 5-90 “O you who believe, intoxicants, gambling and idolatrous practices, and the divining of the future are but loathsome evil of Satan’ s doing; shun it, then, so that you may succeed”

Clerics say that the restriction on alcohol consumption was gradually tightened in the Muslim society.

The hypocritical social taboo on drinking Alcohol

In Pakistan, alcohol consumption is a big no-no in the middle class. It is a sin far greater than lying, cheating, stealing, corruption, abuse, malaise, lack of character, fakeness, hoarding, tax evasion, bad manners, molestation, domestic violence, animal cruelty and shortchanging people.

The upper class doesn’t care and the lower class cannot afford to be righteous.

Colonial Architecture of Murree Brewery factory

We went to the pre-Victorian part of the Murree brewery factory nestled in the Army Chief’s enclave.

In fact the current Army chief’s house was Murree Brewery company office in the previous century.

History of Murree Brewery, Rawalpindi

The beer factory was set up by a hot-climate brewer Mr. Dyer in Ghora Gali Murree for the soldiery of India. Mr. Dyer is the dad of the notorious Colonel Dyer of the Jallianwala massacre fame. Yes, the younger Dyer was born in Muree.

No wonder he was not right in the head.

In the 1800s, Murree Brewery’s product was such a success that follow-up factories were set up in Rawalpindi, Quetta, India and Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka. In WW-II, Muree Brewery hit an all-time high of beer production of 1.6 Gallons a year. Probably that’s why the British nearly lost their Island country UK to the Germans.

Visit to Murree Brewery

We were taken to the alcohol filling plant, the towering mixers and the storage Vats. I was told a gora resident engineer would come into and leave the factory through a hidden underground tunnel that went right up to his residence. He didn’t want to mix with the ‘natives’

Currently, Murree Brewery’s yearly alcohol productions is about 10 million Liters per year and it is all for the Pakistani market. I’ve been told it beats Heineken too, in taste, just because it comes fresh out of the vats.

Getting a job at Murree Brewery requires hooking up with someone you know on the inside.

Who is the owner of Murree Brewery?

The company is owned by the Zoroastrian Bhandara Family, namely Mr. Isfanyar M. Bhandara, the nephew of celebrated Parsi-Pakistani novelist Ms. Bapsi Sidhwa .

The late Mr. M P Bhandara was quite a guy, from what I have gathered. He had a personal-touch for his people. Every employee is allowed free tuition to study further and everyone shares in the profits, besides loans and handouts. I am sure his progeny would take his lead.

All the workers I talked to said they don’t drink alcohol – I wonder who does the tasting?

Other Breweries in Pakistan

The Breweries in Quetta and Ghora Gali Muree were shut down because they were difficult to run administratively, especially after Bhutto sahib’s alcohol ban to appease the radicals’, in the 70s.

Right now Muree Brewery is the oldest public listed companies in Asia. Their crowning jewel is the 21 years old wooden cask matured sublime whiskey. I never got to see the actual drink though.

One more brewery has been setup by the chinese in Gwadar Balochistan

How to get Alcoholic drinks without permit in Pakistan?

All those non-Muslims interested can get alcohol drinks from any of the shops inside 5-star hotels of Pakistan. Namely, Serena, Marriott, Best Western, Ramada, PC Rawalpindi but not flash man as a zealous former minister shut that down.

To purchase alcohol legally, you’d need to be a non-Muslim and then you can apply for a license at any of the Excise & Taxation offices in every district of Pakistan http://excise.punjab.gov.pk/excise_duty

You can also get alcohol from several embassies and consulates of second tier countries

You can also get your beer from scores of bootleggers all across the country, but you’d have to be introduced through a reference first. The bootlegger will then fleece you with cheap imitations at 30% higher prices. The current beer price on the bootlegger market is Rs 1000 per beer can. In fact, inflation has hit poor alcohol consumers the hardest. Demand outstrips supply by a huge margin that Murree Brewery and imports cannot fulfill. The rest is moonshine beverage made in people’s washrooms. Presently, there is a double digit year-on-year growth for the company and demand outstrips supply by a huge margin. Even a three shift 24/7 production sometimes falls short.

Or Just Call +923005111523 to get all your drinks