Baltika Breweries is the largest brewery in Russia, producing one of Europe’s best-selling beers. The success of Baltika Breweries was no fluke; it was a well-planned and executed venture within the Leningrad Association of the Beer Brewing and Nonalcoholic Beverages Industry in Soviet-Era Russia. In 1978, construction began on what would become the Baltika brewing facility in St Petersburg, following a design prepared by the Gipropishcheprom-2 Institute. When the construction was completed in 1990, the new company was named Baltika Brewery, but this was not yet a brand name. It was not until 1992, when the brewery underwent reorganization, that the Baltika brand was created with the exclusive intention of producing the highest quality European beer using classical technology.

The Baltika brand was quickly hailed as the most popular beer on the market, beating out what had become a domestic Soviet market full of low-quality light beers. In 1997, Baltika purchased a controlling interest in the Donskoye Pivo factory in Rostov-on-Don and in October 2000 they added the Tula Brewery. In 2006, Baltika Brewery merged with three other Russian breweries, Vena, Pikra, and Yarpivo, and the new group took on the name Baltika Breweries, better reflecting what the entity had become. In 2008, The Carlsberg Group purchased about 89% of Baltika and, as of 2010, Baltika Breweries maintained a domestic market share of 40% and were responsible for 70% of all exported Russian beer. As of 2009, 270 million l (2,300,853 US bbl) of Baltika brand beer was sold abroad, and the company’s Russian facilities are capable of producing 5.1 million hl (approx. 4.3 US bbl) per month. Baltika produces about 30 different beers, including Tuborg, Carlsberg, and Kronenbourg. Most beer sold on the export market is broadly in the international pilsner style, although there are several permutations available.