By Jay Forte, Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Born in Sweden, Rek-order-lig (as it is pronounced) was the labor of love of Swedish married couple Anders and Helén and their friend Håkan twenty years ago. Today it is distributed internationally and in 2016 has been making a splash in Rio, thanks to the efforts of the brand’s representative in Brazil, English-expatriate Russell Browne.
There are two unique and delicious Rekorderlig flavors to enjoy here in Brazil; Strawberry-Lime and Passionfruit. There are nine flavors in the range, and more will be brought to Brazil in time.
The brand is popular in pubs across the UK, the for those looking for an alternative to a heavy beer, with built-in appeal with the ladies and full of sophisticated fruit flavor, the drink seems tailored for the Brazilian palette.
Browne, explains the progress so far, “Rekorderlig Cider has been selling in Brazil only since the end of March 2016. Currently we are selling in only four States: RS, PR, ES and RJ but we hope to find distributers in every State of Brazil in the coming months.”
For those who have not seen Rekorderlig Cider yet in Rio de Janeiro, it can currently be found at; Brewteco in Leblon & Barra, Manifesto, Boua Bar & Kitchen, and the Blue Agave in Ipanema, among other locations. Browne adds, “Our Facebook page has a list of all the places we are currently stocked, plus you can purchase Rekorderlig online and have it delivered anywhere in Brazil.”
The challenge of bringing a new brand into Brazil is not to be taken lightly, and Browne shares some of his experiences. “I have been in Rio since December 2013. It has been one of the craziest challenges of my life doing business in Brazil after launching the brand in New Zealand before this.”
He continues, “Some of the laws here make absolutely no sense at times – we were once told we could not sell a product that mixed fruits from different fruit families by the government import agency here. But we persevered as we knew we had many Brazilian fans who knew us from their travels to Europe and Australia where we sell over five million cases a year.”
“Once you add in the high protectionist import tariffs we did question whether it was going to be worth it – nearly seventy percent of the price of Rekorderlig Cider is tax here. But that doesn’t seem to be putting any Brazilians off […] are on target to sell 10,000 by the end of the year.”
Rekorderlig is proudly created at the Åbro brewery, a brewery which dates back more than 150 years making it the oldest family owned brewery in Sweden. The cider is built on a foundation of sweet apple and pear cider, Swedish flavors, old tradition and modern innovation.
As the brand says, “Whether you are drinking a Rekorderlig in Brazil, London, New York, Auckland or Sydney, every drop is still made in a sleepy Swedish town called Vimmerby, the same place it has been made for two decades.”
* This is a Sponsored Article by Rekorderlig Cider.