Egypt's Beer: Stella, Identity, and the Modern State

by Omar D. Foda

Although alcohol is generally forbidden in Muslim countries, beer has been an important part of Egyptian identity for much of the last century. Egypt's Stella beer (which only coincidentally shares a name with the Belgian beer Stella Artois) became a particularly meaningful symbol of the changes that occurred in Egypt after British Occupation.

Weaving cultural studies with business history, Egypt's Beer traces Egyptian history from 1880 to 2003 through the study of social, economic, and technological changes that surrounded the production and consumption of Stella beer in Egypt, providing an unparalleled case study of economic success during an era of seismic transformation. Delving into archival troves--including the papers of his grandfather, who for twenty years was CEO of the company that produced Stella--Omar D. Foda explains how Stella Beer achieved a powerful presence in all popular forms of art and media, including Arabic novels, songs, films, and journalism. As the company's success was built on a mix of innovation, efficient use of local resources, executive excellence, and shifting cultural dynamics, this is the story of the rise of a distinctly Egyptian "modernity" seen through the lens of a distinctly Egyptian brand.

Genres: Egypt

264 pages, Paperback

Published December 15, 2019

Reviews

[Moaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the scholarly work and the amount of research it took to write such a book, especially with the usual lack of documentation in Egypt. Most of the chapters were clear and organized in tracing the history of Stella. Two minor annoyances to me were at the early chapters where it was notably repetitive in explaining some scientific terms in the machinery used, total brewery control, brewing methods, ..etc. This became less of an issue with the following chapters. The only other issue was the chapter discussing the author's grandfather reign. I thought it was briefer than the others and could have been written better/provided more information. Overall, such a good book especially because of the social context it gives and brief commentary on social changes along the years.