The much-anticipated annual Farsons Great Beer Festival will this year take place between Friday, 28th July and Sunday, 6th August 2006 at Ta’ Qali Park from 7.30pm onwards. The ten-day festival is an open-air, fun-filled event for all the family, attracting thousands of visitors every year. There is ample free parking and entrance is free. The main sponsors of this year’s edition are Malta Tourism Authority and Vodafone, whilst X.FM is the official radio station.

“The Farsons Great Beer Festival, Malta’s premier beer festival, this year will be celebrating 26 great years of beer and entertainment. The festival is mainly a celebration of Farsons’ brewing tradition which was first established in 1928,” said Ray Grech, Chief Marketing Officer at Simonds Farsons Cisk plc.

A large variety of local and international beers will be available at the Farsons Great Beer Festival.  Maltese beers include Cisk Lager, Hopleaf, Hopleaf Extra, Blue Label Smooth 'N' Creamy and the new Shandy Lager and Lime. A great choice of international beer brands include Cisk Export, Carlsberg, Skol, Budweiser, Guinness, Kilkenny, John Smith’s, Beck's and Corona.

The food court offers a vast selection of food, ranging from Chinese to Turkish, Italian to Mexican, as well as hot dogs and burgers to complement the selection of beers available at the festival.

For the fourth consecutive year, beer drinkers have the opportunity of acquiring this year’s official Farsons Great Beer Festival mug. This will be available for purchase at all the bars and is offered full of the beer of choice. A limited stock of these specially designed mugs makes them a unique collector’s item.

The 26th edition of the festival offers not only great beer and food, but also free entertainment with over 40 live performances on two stages.

“The Farsons Great Beer Festival has long been known for being a showcase for the best in Maltese musical talent, and features different shows on two stages every evening. The Main Stage features mainstream singers such as Chiara, Freddie Portelli, Indigo, Keith Camilleri, Fabrizio Faniello, Enzo Guzman, Tony Camilleri, Olivia Lewis, the Young Talent Team, and Claudette Pace amongst many others. Hosts of the Main Stage this year are popular TV presenters Moira Delia and Ray Calleja,” said Mr Ivan Filletti, Marketing Manager at Simonds Farsons Cisk plc.

Top Maltese rock and alternative bands will perform at the Rock Stage situated in the World Beers Area. These include Corkskrew, The Riffs, Beangrowers, Scream Daisy, Rug, Winter Moods, Bitterside, Tribali, Scream Daisy, Ira Losco and the eagerly awaited performance by Fakawi. The Rock Stage, also features young and upcoming bands and is an alternative night out for many young people.

“In all, the Farsons Great Beer Festival is a great evening out for the whole family. Parents can put their mind at rest with the play area that has been set up for young children, whilst enjoying the entertainment provided by the festival,” said Mr Matthew Cuomo, Beer Festival Coordinator.

Mr Kevin Drake, Personal Assistant to the Executive Chairman and Malta Tourism Authority explained, “The branding process is probably one of the most important steps taken by the Malta Tourism Authority. Through it we aim to create a distinct image of Malta in people's minds the world over. We aim to create a brand that goes by the name of Malta. However, the strongest brands are always built from the inside out. That way it is essential to begin building brand Malta INTERNALLY. That is why we need 403,000 brand managers... Each and every one of us has to promote our country, our brand, fanatically. We all need to live and breathe the brand, by promoting the three core values of Brand Malta: Heritage, Hospitality, Diversity.”

“In the coming days, weeks and months no stone will be left unturned in our efforts to explain precisely what the branding process is all about and how we can all do our bit in this regard. Why the Farsons Great Beer Festival? Well, simply put, the onus is on us to take the message to where the people are, and not vice versa. This festival attracts more than 80,000 people over a ten day period, so, logically, it is a perfect platform for strengthening Brand Malta,” concluded Mr Drake.

In order to raise much-needed funds, Ir-Razzett tal-Hbiberija are organising a competition where participants can win Lm10,000 in cash every night for ten nights. More information about this competition can be found at the stand of Ir-Razzett tal-Hbiberija at the festival.

Other sponsors of this year’s edition include Algida, Global Capital, Exotique, Tuc, Hera Cruises and Danone.

Visit www.farsons.com/beerfestival for up-to-date programme of entertainment on both the Main Stage as well as the Rock Stage.