The first brewery in Malta was not established until 1929; Farsons Pale Ale was brewed to meet the requirements of the British garrison and navy stationed on the island. In 1929, Farsons merged with the H.G Simonds brewery from Reading to establish Simonds Farsons Ltd.

In the same year and a short distance from the Farsons brewery, the Marquis John Scicluna, whose family had established the first privately owned local bank, opened the Malta Export Brewery. While Simonds Farsons Ltd had been granted the licence to brew ales, the Malta Export Brewery was granted a temporary exclusive licence to brew Bavarian style lagers under the names Cisk Pilsner and Cisk Munchener.The launch in August 1929 unfortunately coincided with the end of the ‘Roaring Twenties’, just months before the Wall Street Crash. Following 20 years of rivalry, the Malta Export Brewery merged with Simonds Farsons Ltd in 1948.

The name“Cisk”originates from Scicluna’s nickname“ic-Cisk”which developed out of the local mispronunciation of the word“cheque”which was introduced into local circulation by the Scicluna Bank.

Cisk had a definitive role in the transformation of the island’s beverage industry, which saw a predominantly wine drinking culture embrace the love of beer. Consumed across the Maltese Islands, Cisk has a strong presence at Malta’s traditional social band clubs, known as ”kazini”.

In 2012 12.5million Euros were invested in a new state of the art brewhouse and in 2016, 27million in a new beverage packaging facility.

Simonds Farsons Cisk Ltd remain independent brewers and committed to the family traditions and heritage that sustained the brand all these years. Cisk beers consistently achieve international recognition confirming their quality and adding to their prestige.