Black label

Black label may refer to:

Carling Black Label

Black Label is a Canadian brand of lager distributed by Carling and well-known throughout the former British Empire. In several countries, it is also known as Carling Black Label, and in Sweden, it is known as Carling Premier. However, in the United Kingdom it is now known as just Carling in response to public demand for a snappier call at the bar (according to the company).

History

Although its original focus was on ale, Carling has been brewing lager-style beers since the 1870s. In 1927, as part of an overall corporate re-branding effort under new president J. Innes Carling, the company renamed its already popular Black & White Lager to Black Label.

Three years later, Carling was purchased by Toronto business tycoon E.P. Taylor, who merged the company into his Canadian Breweries Limited (CBL), which grew to be the world's largest brewing company, at least for a time. Under Taylor, Black Label was promoted as CBL's flagship brand and went on to become the world's first beer to be brewed on a mass international scale, becoming particularly popular in Commonwealth countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

Carling brewery

Carling brewery was founded in Canada in 1818. In 1952 Carling lager was first sold in the United Kingdom; in the early 1980s it became the UK's most popular beer brand (by volume sold). The company changed hands numerous times; it was acquired by Canadian Breweries Limited, which was eventually renamed Carling O'Keefe, which merged with Molson, which then merged with Coors to form Molson Coors Brewing Company. In South Africa the Carling brands are distributed by SABMiller.

History

The history of Carling dates back to 1818, when Thomas Carling, a farmer from the English county of Yorkshire, and his family settled in eastern Canada, at what is now the city of London, Ontario. He brewed an ale which became popular, and eventually took up brewing full-time. The first Carling brewery had two kettles, a horse to turn the grinding mill and six men to work on the mash tubs, and Carling sold his beer on the streets of London, Ontario from a wheelbarrow.

In 1840 Carling began a small brewing operation in London, selling beer to soldiers at the local camp. In 1878 his sons, John and William, built a six-storey brewery in London, which was destroyed by fire a year after opening. Thomas Carling, shortly after helping to fight the fire, died of pneumonia.

Label

A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, polymer, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product, on which is written or printed information about the product. Information printed directly on a container or article can also be considered labeling.

Labels have many uses, including providing information on a product's origin, use, shelf-life and disposal, some or all of which may be governed by legislation such as that for food in the UK or USA. Methods of production and attachment to packaging are many and various and may also be subject to internationally recognised standards.

Uses

Labels may be used for any combination of identification, information, warning, instructions for use, environmental advice or advertising. They may be stickers, permanent or temporary labels or printed packaging.

Products

Permanent product identification by a label is commonplace; labels need to remain secure throughout the life of the product. For example, a VIN plate on an automobile must be resistant to heat, oils and tampering; similarly, a food label must endure until the food has been used.

Black

Black is the darkest color, the result of the absence of or complete absorption of light. It is the opposite of white (the combined spectrum of color or light). It is an achromatic color, literally a color without color or hue. It is one of the four primary colors in the CMYK color model, along with cyan, yellow, and magenta, used in color printing to produce all the other colors.

Black was one of the first colors used by artists in neolithic cave paintings. In the 14th century, it began to be worn by royalty, the clergy, judges and government officials in much of Europe. It became the color worn by English romantic poets, businessmen and statesmen in the 19th century, and a high fashion color in the 20th century.

In the Roman Empire, it became the color of mourning, and over the centuries it was frequently associated with death, evil, witches and magic. According to surveys in Europe and North America, it is the color most commonly associated with mourning, the end, secrets, magic, force, violence, evil, and elegance.