New beer launched in Tonga [1]
Thursday, July 17, 2008 - 09:17. Updated on Tuesday, September 10, 2013 - 18:44.
THE Lion Liquor company of Ma'ufanga launched a new beer product, Mata Maka Lager last night, July 16 at the Billfish Bar.
Company director John Sullivan, the former general manager of the Royal Beer Company, who has been working in the Tongan Beer industry during the last decade believed that there was a need for a "locally focused beer product that people could take ownership of."
John is also eyeing the possibilities for local made products to be exported to other islands through the Pacific Islands Free Trade Agreement, PIGTA.
The Mata Maka Liguor is manufactured by Lion Nathan International LNI, a Japanese-owned New Zealand company with its head office in Australia. Lion Nathan's major brands include, Steinlager, Castlemaine, Tooheys, Speights, Lion Red, as well as wines and other spirits brands. Lion Nathan is a major sponsor of the All Blacks through Steinlager.
John said that LNI recognised the possibilities for a Tongan specific beer brand and produced a product to suit Pacific requirements. "Mata Maka we believe will come to be known as an easy drinking lager beer with a smooth finish and a clean crisp aftertaste," he said.