Crown Bock

Crown Bock was a strong dark lager produced at the Crown Brewery in Alexandria, Egypt — bringing the Dutch and German bock tradition to the unlikely setting of North Africa. The Crown Brewery was established in 1897 by Belgian investors in Alexandria and became one of Egypt's two dominant breweries. Heineken invested in Crown in 1937, bringing Dutch brewing expertise and management practices to the facility alongside its proprietary yeast and technical knowledge. The Bock was almost certainly brewed to satisfy the European community in Alexandria — the cosmopolitan mix of Belgian, Dutch, Greek, Italian and British residents who demanded the full range of European beer styles even in a tropical climate. Cold-conditioning a bock in Alexandria's Mediterranean heat would have required significant refrigeration infrastructure — testament to the brewery's technical ambition. In 1963 President Nasser nationalised Crown and Pyramid Breweries, ending Heineken's Egyptian chapter abruptly and forcing the forfeiture of shares for below-market compensation. The Crown Bock was discontinued with the brewery's absorption into Al Ahram.