Molson Export

Molson Export beer is an Ale with an ABV of 5%, i.e. a warm-fermented beer, brewed by Molson Canada – a brewery founded in Montreal in 1786, making it North America’s oldest. First brewed in 1903, Molson Export is itself the oldest of all the Molson beer brands.

History

Molson Brewery

On May 2, 1782, at the age of 18, John Molson left England for Canada, landing in Montreal on June 26. Shortly after his arrival, he began working at the Thomas Loyd brewery. He went on to purchase it in an auction in 1784.

Forward-thinking and ambitious, John Molson focused on perfecting his beer. In 1785, he temporarily closed his business to cross the Atlantic in search of the modern equipment and quality ingredients that would eventually come to characterize his first brew.

Upon his return to Montreal in 1786, John founded the Molson Brewery on the shores of the Saint Lawrence River. Determined to use only top quality ingredients in his beer, he freely distributed the barley seeds he had brought back from overseas to local farmers. His first beer, an Ale, was such a huge success that he quickly brewed three additional varieties, launching the start of a brewing enterprise that would last for generations.

In 1816, John Molson formed a partnership with his three sons – John, Thomas and William. It was Thomas who would eventually follow in his father’s footsteps by continuing the Molson brewing tradition and upholding the high standards of quality. In 1903, inspired by the popularity of imported beers, Herbert Molson, Thomas’ grandson, and brew master John Hyde created Molson Export, an authentic Ale brewed in the classic style developed by John Molson.

The beer was named Molson Export because the brewers deemed it of such high quality that it was good enough to be exported and was even better than the imports that were in high demand at the time. In 1955, the now famous boat on the label was chosen as the quintessential symbol of this beer with an exceptional taste. To this day, it represents John Molson’s journey, his determination and his quest to find the best ingredients.

Brewing process

The brewing process consists of several steps, including:

• mashing and lautering the malted barley,
• boiling and fermenting wort from the brewhouse,
• conditioning, filtering, and packaging the beer.

The key ingredients in this process are: malted two-row barley, brewer’s yeast for fermentation, hops for flavouring and water. In keeping with its founder’s brewing principles, Molson Export has used some of the same ingredients for over 100 years: two-row malted barley, an exclusive strain of yeast whose use dates back to the foundation of the Molson Brewery, hand-picked hops from Oregon and British-Columbia, and carefully filtered water.

Barley

The word "Ale" is of Germanic or Scandinavian origin and was used to refer to a fermented drink made of barley. Molson Export uses a custom blend of different varieties of two-row malted barley. The malting process consists of letting the grains soak and germinate before lightly roasting them. Once malted, the barley adds body, flavour and colour to the beer, as well as sugars and nutrients that activate the yeast.

Yeast

The strain of Ale yeast used in the Molson Export brewing process dates back to the foundation of the Molson Brewery. Yeast is responsible for the transformation of sugars into alcohol. A typical Ale is fermented more vigorously and at higher temperatures than Lagers. The fermentation temperature must, among other things, be verified every hour to produce the balanced flavour and subtle notes of apple that are characteristic of Molson Export.

Hops

This aromatic plant allows for the better preservation of beer. During the brewing process, its flowers are used as a spice. Hops thus play an essential role in producing the taste, bitterness and aroma of beer. This is what gives Molson Export its distinctive spicy notes. Molson Export has always used Golding and Oregon varieties in the brewing recipe, despite being rare. This is one of the ways the master brewers of Molson Export perpetuate the beer’s long tradition.

Water

Molson thoroughly filters all impurities in the water and conserves only the natural minerals that are essential to proper fermentation.

Tasting notes

The signature taste of Molson Export is the spicy notes and well-balanced hoppy aroma. The Ale yeast used is proprietary and exclusive to Molson and produces distinctive perfumes and flavours. Its spiciness – close to that of white pepper – is accompanied by a hint of Granny Smith green apple. Some tasters also perceive citrusy notes. Molson Export is also recognizable by the perfect head when poured or served on draught. Its high malt and hops content gives it a distinctive foam that sticks to the glass.

Prizes and awards

Best beer in its category

Molson Export won the gold medal at the Best North American Style Blonde/Golden Ale category at the 2010 Canadian Brewing Awards. This prestigious contest brings together breweries from across Canada and selects the best beers from among them in a blind taste competition. The 2010 edition saw a total of 76 breweries submitting 390 beers across 31 categories. A panel of 20 judges selected the winners based on specific criteria, namely the taste, appearance, aroma, mouth-feel and overall impression.

Advertising campaigns

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"Young since 1903"

Launched in 1997, the Jeune depuis 1903 (Young since 1903) campaign was a huge success in Quebec and emphasized the long-standing tradition behind Molson Export. In 2003, as part of this same campaign, Molson Export celebrated its 100th anniversary.

In 2010, Molson Export renewed the tradition with a new image that leveraged the rich history and an advertising campaign that focused on John Molson’s quest. A TV spot recounting one of his perilous trans-Atlantic voyages went on-air while an integrated multimedia campaign focused on John Molson’s courage, passion and determination in the Bell Centre and online.

Molson Export - 341ml bottle	Molson Export - 355ml can	Molson Export - Case of 24 bottles

Partnerships

Molson Export has been associated with the Canadiens Hockey Club since 1957 and with the Montreal Alouettes Football Club since 1999.

Links

• Molson Export