The Murree Brewery (Pakistan): A Liquor Legacy of the British Raj

Navrang India April 29, 2026

The story of the Murree Brewery is an intoxicating blend of colonial necessity, industrial ambition, and the complex social fabric of the British community in colonial India. Established in 1860, it holds the distinction of being the oldest brewery in the Indian subcontinent. Founded primarily to quench the thirst of British personnel stationed at Ghora Gali in the Pir Panjal area, it provided a vital domestic alternative to the expensive and often spoiled beer imported from England.

Remnants of old Murree Brewery,Pakistan
image: Nasir Khan Nasir  en.wikipedi.org

The Ruins of the Murree
 Brewery travelthehimalayas.com

Origins and the Dyer Dynasty

The brewery’s inception is inextricably linked to two English families: the Whimpers and the Dyers. Edward Dyer, the first General Manager, was a pioneer who understood that the tropical heat of the plains was the enemy of English ale. By situating the brewery at an altitude of 6,000 feet in the hill station of Murree (now in Pakistan), the company leveraged the cool Himalayan climate and fresh spring water to produce beer that rivaled European standards.

Murree brewery,
express.tribune.com 

Colonial India oldest and largest Beer company
Britishrastgar-co.com

Above image: Murree Brewery,  the largest one  then accounted  for 37% of total production in the Indian subcontinent.  The  company beer was awarded a silver medal at the World fair in Brussels in 1867  and in  1876 itself  it  gained a distinguished name in the beer industry and got an award in excellence in Philadelphia, PA, USA. Further, it also took the credit of being the first commercial venture listed on the Calcutta stock exchange........... 

Dyer breweries, India.
thequint.com

Edward Dyer’s success at Murree eventually led him to expand his empire, founding the Dyer Meakin Breweries. However, the family name carries a dark historical shadow; Edward was the father of Brigadier General Reginald Dyer, the officer responsible for the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar of Punjab zprovince.  Despite this grim familial association, the brewery itself remained a commercial powerhouse, becoming the first venture to be listed on the Calcutta Stock Exchange.

Impact on the British Army and English Population

Before the Murree Brewery, the British Crown faced a logistical nightmare. The long sea voyage from Britain often turned beer sour, leaving soldiers and civilians "handicapped" by a lack of familiar spirits. The Murree brewery changed the landscape of colonial consumption. By 1892, Indian breweries produced over 4.8 million gallons of beer annually, with more than half being purchased by the commissariat for the British Army.

For soldiers stationed in "dark jungles" and remote plains, the choppy, stone-fruit-scented beer of Murree was more than a beverage; it was a psychological anchor. It helped subdue the "pangs of separation" from families in England and provided a respite from the stresses of colonial administration. The company’s excellence was recognized globally, winning a silver medal at the 1867 World Fair in Brussels and an award for excellence in Philadelphia in 1876.

Murree  brewery, British
India flicker.com
 
Above image: Brewery at Murree (Pakistan) from the 'Bellew Collection: Photograph album of Surgeon-General Henry Walter Bellew' taken by John Burke in the 1860s.  Located  in the foothills of the Himalayas north-east of Islamabad of Pakistan, during the colonial period, Murree was a hill station (about 6000 feet from MS; next only to Shimla hill station, HP) was  established. The Murree Brewery  became the largest employer in the region...........

The abundant supply of fresh spring water near Solan close to the  British summer capital Shimla (now the capital of Himachal Pradesh) attracted Ed Dyer who moved his brewery to this hilly place. 

starsunfolded.com

Kasauli Brewery,Kasauli, HP
image: Havindar upload.wikimedia.org

Above image: The Kasauli brewery and distillery were set up in the late 1820s at Kasauli (now part of Himachal Pradesh) by Edward Abraham Dyer, father of Colonel Reginald Edward Harry Dyer of Jallianwala Bagh massacre fame. He brought brewing and distilling equipment from England and Scotland. It was established under name of Mohan Meakin in 1855. Later Dyer's name was dropped...........

Expansion to Kasauli and Strategic Shifts

As demand surged in the 1880s, the enterprise expanded. Edward Dyer eventually established a brewery in Kasauli (now in Himachal Pradesh, India), which utilized the same high-altitude advantages as Murree. However, due to a severe water shortage in Kasauli, the brewing equipment was later shifted to Solan, though the Kasauli site remained an important center for distilling. The Kasauli brewery is today recognized as the oldest continuously operating distillery in Asia.

Destruction, Partition, and Present Status

The brewery's history was nearly extinguished by the fires of Partition in 1947. The original Murree facility was destroyed by rioting mobs. In the 1940s, controlling shares had passed to the Bhandara family, a Parsi (Hindu-associated in some local contexts of the time) family who steered the company through Pakistan's volatile political climate post-Independence.

Murree brewery, Pakistan indiatimes.com

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Cartoon by Clive Goddard
tipsy British bob  watchmojo.com

Today, despite the legal prohibition of alcohol for Muslims in Pakistan, the Murree Brewery Company remains the country's largest producer of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. In 2015, it produced 10 million liters of beer and significant quantities of single malt whisky and brandy. With assets valued at approximately $77 million as of 2017, the brewery stands as a resilient survivor of a bygone era, continuing to produce the same malts that once fortified the British Raj and quenched the beer-hungry British Bobs.