Lager legend Heineken dies at 78

Alfred Henry "Freddy" Heineken, who helped make his namesake beer one of the world's most popular brands, has died at the age of 78.

The former head of the world's third biggest brewer, Heineken NV, died in his home in the seaside town of Noordwijk, in the Netherlands.

He leaves his wife, a daughter and son-in-law, and five grandchildren.

Heineken has not revealed the cause of death and say the former chief executive's funeral will be a private affair.

Heineken's family will retain his controlling stake in the brewer, which trails only Anheuser Busch and Interbrew in size.

"With the death of Freddy Heineken a unique man left us," Heineken chief executive Karel Vuursteen said in a written statement.

Heineken started his career at the company in June 1942 as an 18-year-old. The brewery was founded by his grandfather, Gerard Adriaan Heineken, in 1864.

In 1946 he became a sales manager at the company's US distributor, and during his two year-stay became intrigued by marketing and advertising and returned to the company's Europe HQ to build the beer as a premium brand.

He designed the famous green bottle and the logo with the red star and the graceful black banner bearing the brand name.

And it worked. Heineken's green bottles were more expensive than the alternatives, but that didn't hurt their popularity.