Nektar beer with the longest tradition , It is also the best-selling beer in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with sales of 48.3 million liters of beer per year. Nektar beer is the winner of 10 gold medals at the prestigious world competition “Monde Selection” in Brussels, and the special recognition of Nektar beer was expressed by retailers, and in 2018 it was placed in 100 “Must have” brands in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Exactly 145 years ago, in a small town near Banja Luka, with the roar of the Vrbas River, the brave work of a Trappist monk from the Marija Zvijezda monastery created a brave little Banja Luka brewery. The founder of this small brewery is Franz Pfanner, the leader of the Trappist order in Banja Luka, who, along with other monks, founded a cheese factory to produce the famous “Trappist cheese” and one of the first power plants in Europe, adhering to their humble way of life and the motto “Pray and work” (“Ora et labora”).
In addition to the love and attention that the first Banja Luka brewers paid to beer, there was another reason why this golden drink originated in Banja Luka. At that time, the favorite drink of the people of Banja Luka was the home-made strong alcoholic drink “Rakija”, which the inhabitants made for their own needs and which in most cases had a bad effect on the health of those who drank it. Using German technology and Czech experience in beer production, the small brewery began producing premium beer, which at the time served as a therapy to treat addiction to spirits, and the therapy prescribed drinking four liters of beer a day.
Times have changed, old ways of life have passed, but nevertheless the Banja Luka brewery still preserves its tradition, so it has become a landmark of Banja Luka. Although the brewery’s first steps were modest and small, they walked bravely and proudly, and as a result, the Banja Luka Brewery, run by Nektar Beer, has grown into the largest and most respected brewery in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and continues to strive to preserve their roots and let the beer to speak in their name.
