From ‘Koude Kletser’ to ‘Goudgele Rakker’: these are Heineken’s most popular nicknames
FavorFlav’s Lauretta calls a Heineken a ‘golden-yellow cold rascal with a white foamy head’. And there are plenty more names that refer to the beer. Research conducted among more than 1,100 Dutch people shows that there are many regional differences when it comes to how beer lovers from different parts of the Netherlands prefer to order their beer.
In 1873, 150 years ago this year, the ‘Heineken’ brand was officially introduced. In 1941, Freddy Heineken took over his father’s brewery. Freddy Heineken proved to be an exceptionally strong marketer. He came up with the laughing ‘e’ in the beer brand’s logo, created the slogan ‘Heerlijk Helder Heineken’ and uttered the famous words: ‘I don’t sell beer, I sell conviviality’.
Men versus women
Heineken’s 150th anniversary is being celebrated with a campaign centered around Heineken’s nicknames. Remarkably, ‘Pilske’ is a typical southern way of ordering, while in the north ‘Bierke’ is most often shouted at the bar. Male beer drinkers use the nicknames ‘Pilsie’ and ‘Goudgele Rakker’ more often, while women more frequently talk about ‘Biertje?’ and ‘Pintje’. It also appears that people in their twenties use the names ‘Pilsie’ and ‘Heinie’.
From ‘Pilske’ to ‘Goudgele Rakker’
These are the most popular nicknames for beer heard in every region of our country:
Friesland: Bierke & Koude kletser
Groningen: Pilsie & Pilsje
Drenthe: Pilsie
Overijssel: Pilsje & Biertje
Gelderland: Gerstenatje & Pilsie
Flevoland: Bierie & Goudegele rakker
Utrecht: Biertje
North Holland: Biertje
South Holland: Koude Kletser
Limburg: Pintje & Pilske
Zeeland: Heinie
North Brabant: Pilske
Limited edition
The special 150th-anniversary edition of the iconic Heineken bottle and can is available as a limited edition in supermarkets and features ten commonly used nicknames, including ‘Biertje’, ‘Goudgele Rakker’, ‘Pintje’, ‘Koude Kletser’, ‘Pilske?’, ‘Pilsie’, ‘Bierie’, ‘Heinie’, ‘Bierke’ and ‘Gerstenatje’. Various nicknames also appear on the 0.0% bottles, including, of course, the widely used ‘0.Nulletje’.
Read also:
- Warning: life-threatening amount of hard drugs found in Moët & Chandon Ice Imperial champagne
- High February: how to bake with weed
- Cans of Unox soup confiscated: contraband discovered
