Stay Classy

Some think this "viral" campaign by Bud Light for the Bud Light Lime cans is clever or funny. It's not. Not clever. Not funny. Not entertaining. I like dude-rtising. I think the majority of ads targeted to men are funny. Bud Light ads were always funny on the verge of stupid, but this is just flat out retarded. If you had dropped in a line about getting it in the can ONCE, that could have been funny. Repeated over and over, it's not. I think Jonathan over at the Pitch got it right - it 100% reminds me of the movie Idiocracy.



"The years passed, mankind became stupider at a frightening rate. Some had high hopes the genetic engineering would correct this trend in evolution, but sadly the greatest minds and resources were focused on conquering hair loss and prolonging erections. "

Frenemies

Reports are out that Coors Light has surpassed Miller Light to be the number 3 bestselling beer in the US, behind Bug Light & Budweiser. One of those stories can be found here. Coors latest marketing messaging sticks to one point, only that it should be VERY COLD. (I agree. Kills the taste.) What is funny is that Miller and Coors are supposed to be helping each other, being owned by the same company nowadays. Looks more like sibling rivalry. Clip of the info below:

Miller Lite's sales last year totaled 17.7 million barrels, down from 18.35 million barrels in 2007, according to trade publication Beer Marketer's Insights. Meanwhile, Coors Light's sales increased 2.6%, to 17.75 million barrels compared to 17.3 million barrels.

Coors Light and Miller Lite are the nation's No. 3 and No. 4 brands. The top selling brands are Bud Light, at 42 million barrels, up 0.1%, and Budweiser, at 23.1 million barrels, down 6.1%. Rounding out the top 10 are Natural Light, Corona Extra, Busch Light, Busch, High Life and Heineken.

Overall U.S. beer sales increased 0.5% in 2008.

It's All About the Benjamins

Right outside of Wrigley Field in Chicago are a number of buildings and rooftops visible from inside the stadium, for both live audiences and those watching on TV. One of them is the "Budweiser Building," a bright rooftop that A-B has used to run a giant billboard for Budweiser since 2004. The building has been sold, and the new owners are using a paperwork excuse to kick Budweiser out, and open the space back up to the highest bidder. In 2004, A-B agreed to pay the previous building's owner about $350,000 a year for the space, with a contract that extended thru Feb 2009. I can only imagine what the new owners think they can get for the space now. From the story in the Chicago Tribune:
The new owners failed to send an invoice for September's lease payment to the Chicago office of Jef Schmidt, Anheuser-Busch's director of marketing, according to the brewer's lawsuit. Schmidt contacted the owner's attorney, who then faxed an invoice, but the letter lacked a contact phone, fax and federal tax identification number needed before a check could be cut, according to the beer maker's lawsuit.
The new owner is saying A-B defaulted because they paid their bill 5 days late, which they only did because they didn't have any information on WHERE to send the money. The building owner just wants to be able to open it up, make it available to whomever will pay the most money each month.

What it used to look like from inside the stadium:


Now the rooftop is all covered up:

InBev could bring variety to US

There was a story in the Wall Street Journal over the weekend about how InBev's deal with A-B might actually improve the offerings on US store beer shelves. Much like how microbrew fans in the US do not love mega brewers, Europeans who enjoy small local brews also resent InBev for bringing watered down beverages.

At any rate, entertaining read about taste-testing several InBev offerings that could, maybe, someday, make their way to a shelf near you.

MillerCoors keeps a beer blog

And it all about beer industry news. It can be found here.

Today's news is that Bud Light Lime is the top growth brand in supermarkets during the first half of the year, according to beer sales statistics from Nielsen. (Yes, that says supermarkets, meaning that this doesn't necessarily account for TOTAL sales. In some states, you can ONLY buy beer at supermarkets, while in others you cannot at all. SO the kind of people that pick up beer at the grocery store, tend to like Bud Light Lime. I don't buy beer at the grocery store, but I AM a fan of Bud Light Lime.)

The new lime line extension -- (which follows MillerCoors is quick to note debuted WELL after Miller Chill) -- moved nearly 1 million cases in the period ended June 28, according to beer market analysis from Nielsen. What makes that more impressive is that Bud Light Lime didn’t hit the market until late April.

Overall, A-B placed nine brands among the fastest growing brands in the first half of the year. Besides Bud Light Lime they were: Michelob Ultra (5), Busch Light (6), Land Shark Lager (7), Bud Light Clamato (8), Michelob Golden Draft Light (12), Bacardi Silver (16), Bud Clamato (17) and Busch (19).

MillerCoors placed seven brands on the list, including three of the top five. They are: Coors Light (2), Keystone Light (3), Miller Chill (4), Blue Moon seasonals (5), Blue Moon Belgian White Ale (13), Coors Banquet (14) and Miller Genuine Draft Light (24).

Mexican imports had a strong showing: Tecate Light (18), Tecate (20), Modelo Especial (22), Coronita Extra (23) and Dos Equis (25).

Other brands on the top 25 include: Yuengling (10), Stella Artois (11), Heineken Premium Light (15) and Samuel Adams seasonal (21).

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Summer beers

The deck is open for the season at the Casa de Soseman. Which means you're welcome anytime, just bring a sixer of something interesting with ya! I have a stockpile of beer koozies, and a yard that dogs love to play in.

To date, our backyard tastings have included the following fluffy beers:

Bud Light Lime - Domestically produced, sweeter Corona, good with Tex Mex
Coors/Blue Moon Honey Moon Summer Ale - Sweet, lightly carbonated, good with spicy BBQ
Leinenkugel's Summer Shandy - Totally tastes like lemonade & beer. Dangerously easy to drink. Light and not too sweet.

Most of these are borderline beer cocktails. Light, girly, sometimes fruity or sweet, but always refreshing and kept well chilled. They all seem to go well with KC humidity and fresh off the grill eats. They also make good use of the limited hops available this year.

Here are all the beers I still want to consume before this deck season gets much later:
Boulevard's Zon
Pyramid's Curve Ball
Sam Adams Summer
Sierra Nevada Harvest Fresh Hop Ale

So what have you seen lately you want to try? What have you tried and want to share with the class?

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Right in my own backyard

What kind of a midwestern beer blogger would I be not to weigh in on this news? I know everyone heard about it already, and everyone has an opinion, from Bull @ the KC Beer Blog, to George Parker over at AdScam

I think big, old, American business institutions, including our friends in STL, have probably created some sort of giant corporate hairball over the years, and I am not above believing they should probably get some sort of a "correction" like this. I am not touching the topics of Unions, American pride, US owned companies, etc. Not with a 10 foot pole. I think anyone trying too hard to fight for US only production of anything is fighting a losing battle. We're global consumers already people. ANYway.

I know no one in STL would like for their big brewer, the supporter of 90% of all their professional sports, the fun cash cow, to be taken over in a hostile bid by a foreign company. So for their local economy, and the feeling of ownership over a monster that holds 48.5% of the national beer sales, I know it is not a fun prospect for them. Did you know that Auggie Busch managed to take home $12.2 million dollars in 2007? Yeah. Article doesn't mention the helicopter...

I think Modelo has to have a very vested interest in all of this, knowing that AB owns a significant share of their company now. What does that mean for Modelo if InBev is successful? Would Modelo really just sit back to see what happens? Would a merger with AB be beneficial for them, or more for AB? No idea. But it is all interesting. If you're more educated on all of this than I am, please, share your thoughts.

Linky linky

After avoiding my Husband, who I cold-heartedly accused of suffering from manflu, all weekend, I think I am finally catching the creeping crud that has been passed around lately. Which means that I am going to share some of my favorite linkable stories from the past few days, rather than trying to type anything in complete sentences.

The Brookston Beer Bulletin makes some interesting points about our ginormous friends over in St. Louis. It's hard for giants to accept changes in paradigm.

Diageo might be getting thirsty for beer. They're eyeballing opportunities with big beer companies.

KU might bring back beer to the Jaybowl. Man. I don't think it's a bad idea, I just can't believe it has been 10 years. The article says they stopped selling beer in the Union in 1998.

I guess I am not the society type

Clearly, we aren't talking debutante balls , or even Junior League. Not me. But Dustin forwarded an email today from the Brewmaster Society, and I thought hey, that's a society I might like. Too bad it was not to be. This is the image I received when I visited the site.

Ahhh! An effort by our friends at Anheuser Busch. Dustin is now an insider. And they didn't even invite me. Sigh. I am a lazy blogger, and don't link back to other blogs. I only update when I feel like it. My Technorati ranking is low, among other things, and no one ever sends me free stuff. Sad. ~sniff~ I'll make it up to myself with the sick amounts of traffic I get from my friend Google.

No wonder it goes well with Japanese food!

I'm not original. I heard about this on the morning news, and noticed the bad ad parody on AdRants yesterday, all but ignored the story in my self-absorbed daily routines. Then I saw it on the KC Beer Blog too, and it hit me that I am kind of an idiot. (Shut up.) I'm not even delving into the whole issue that Greenpeace has. What was upsetting me is this - Budweiser is brewed from RICE? Yup. Apparently from a mixture of rice and barley malt, according to the never-questioned, all-powerful Wikipedia. Huh. Most American lagers are brewed from cheap mashups of rice, corn, barley malt and a handful of hops. What ratios? Don't know. I am becoming enlightened.

The Demon You Know

I ate so MUCH. I could have kept a whole village alive on the food I consumed this weekend. It is actually quite astounding. I only managed to try 2 beers. (Hey, cut me some slack, this weekend was all about MOM, not all about beer.)

I tried one of A-B's newest brews, the "craft" types they are brewing for different regions. I had a Demon Hop Yard IPA at Westbrook Lobster in Clinton, CT. I didn't expect much, so I wasn't surprised when it poured a clear and filtered amber color into the pint glass. I was suprised to detect a fair amount of hops, and a taste that actually bit back! I wouldn't say that it was anywhere near the BEST IPA I've ever had, but it was pretty darn good. So...wow. Good job.

My brother & sister-in-law were up for a beer last night, so we cruised to New Haven and hit up the Bru Room at BAR, in the Yale neighborhood. We didn't have any (thank god) but I saw the HUGE pizzas they were bringing to the tables, and I think we'll have to do that sometime. They looked & smelled wonderful. I had a pale ale, which seemed nice and balanced and went down easily. My brother had a thick and sticky stout, which was sweet and delicious, but I was far too full to appreciate it all. The bar started to get crowded around 11:30-midnight, full of Yalies in ironic t-shirts, and we had to get home early to get up for the big family brunch the next day.

Flava In Ya Ear

It is Friday and I've got this in my head. I can't explain everything, sometimes I can only report the news. (But whoa, Busta looks so young!)

So I was purusing some other beer blogs, and came across Hail the Ale. (Hey looky, they have sponsors!) I saw this post about Michelob's flavored beers coming out soon. And I remember writing a post that was similar, but I forgot that it was NOT about Michelob, but rather about Anheuser-Busch, and apparently I had saved it as a draft for a while, and never published it. Curious. Am I losing my mind already?

So read about A-B's fruit beer here, and Michelob's there, and get ready for a summer filled with girly beers.

Its Fruity!

You'll have to try them for yourselves. I've realized that I am a strict no-fruit-in-my-beer-sort-of-girl.

Anheuser-Busch last week unveiled “fruity“ pilsners as the latest brews in its Michelob family. The debut comes as the summer grilling season is set to get underway, coinciding with the top selling season for alcohol.

The beers are “light and refreshing with a subtle hint of real fruit,” the company said.
The new beverages come in three flavors: Pomegranate Raspberry, Lime Cactus and Tuscan Orange Grapefruit.

"Adults who live an active lifestyle will appreciate the subtle fruit flavors and light effervescence found in these beers," said Jill Vaughn, Anheuser-Busch brewmaster. "Michelob Ultra Fruit Infused beers are perfectly balanced and best enjoyed when paired with bold ethnic dishes and lighter fare such as grilled chicken."

"Anheuser-Busch has had great success with Michelob Ultra and Michelob Ultra Amber and we wanted to provide consumers with a refreshing summertime offering," said Eduardo Pereda, director of Michelob Family, Anheuser-Busch, in a statement.

The brews are now available through Labor Day in grocery and convenience stores in 12-bottle variety packs or single-flavor six-packs.

The bigs roll out another little batch

I got updates today from Brandweek and BeerAdvocate on the same topic:

Anheuser-Busch has a company-wide local specialty beer program, which was introduced to brew specialty beers that are uniquely tailored to regional taste preferences. The program was initially launched at Anheuser-Busch’s Merrimack, N.H., and Columbus, Ohio, breweries in March 2006 and was later extended to the company’s St. Louis brewery in September 2006. Those beers were the Burnin’ Helles Bock, Demon’s Hop Yard IPA, and Mule Kick Oatmeal Stout.

Today, Anheuser-Busch introduces Ascent 54 -- an authentic German-style dunkel weisse (dark wheat) beer available on draught in select bars and restaurants in Colorado. (Dunkels are quite the trend this year, huh?) Per the articles/press releases:

Ascent 54 is an unfiltered beer with a delicate sweetness, complex taste and a surprisingly light finish that complements its blend of specialty malts and unique spicy aromas. The beer is a deep-bronze color and has a distinctively dense and long-lasting foam head. This specialty beer was crafted by a small, hand-picked group of beer lovers from various areas of expertise at Anheuser-Busch’s Fort Collins brewery who chose the beer style, created the recipe and selected Ascent 54’s name and tap marker design.

“As members of this community for more than 20 years, we took great pride in crafting a beer specifically geared toward the discerning palate of Colorado’s adult beer lovers,” said Steve Presley, senior assistant brewmaster of Anheuser-Busch’s Fort Collins brewery. “People who thrive on trying new and different styles of beer at their favorite neighborhood pubs will enjoy discovering this one.”

For Ascent 54, the development team chose a blend of German Hallertau-Hallertau and Hallertau-Tettnang hops, which contribute to the brew’s complex taste and light finish. Also included is 50% malted wheat, combined with the finest Munich, caramel and chocolate malts, which give the beer its rich, deep-bronze color. A Bavarian weisse yeast strain was imported for use during fermentation to ensure the beer developed its expressive palate and characteristic weisse aroma.

”Ascent 54 is best served in a tall glass with a wide opening, which allows the beer’s aroma to funnel straight to the nose. The beer’s complex flavor pairs well with barbequed meats, spicy cuisine, traditional German fare, cheese and a variety of sweet desserts including apple pie, strudel, pecan pie and lemon cake.

Brewed at Anheuser-Busch’s Fort Collins, Colo., brewery, Ascent 54 contains 5.5% alcohol by volume.

Some of you who visit live in Colorado. Can you help me out? Go out, grab a glass, and let me know what you think. I'm curious as to how the mega brewers do, with their attempts at small batch, regional, specialty brews.

Super Bowl

This year will be my first Super Bowl with a DVR. I am more excited than a normal person should be about that.

Last year the Super Bowl contained a record number of ads, clocking in at 47 minutes of advertising. This year's rate for one :30 spot is a reported $2.6 million dollars. CBS is still pushing to sell the last 25% of available inventory, but it's clear that they should top $100 million on Feb 4th.

Anheuser-Busch has been the exclusive alcohol advertiser in the Super Bowl since 1989, and they will remain such for CBS broadcasts of the Super Bowl from 2007 until 2012. Now THAT'S owning a franchise. They typically buy up at least 5 minutes of ad time to hawk their beers, so they are dropping about $25 million dollars just to buy your EYEBALLS, never mind the money they spend in producing ads that they hope generate some chatter afterwards.

My question for you is - what will you be drinking while watching the game?

**edited to add that I beat eMarketer to the posting, but their data is WAY more acurate**

Straight from the article linked above, the top five SuperBowl advertisers, ranked by ad spending over the past 20 years:
Anheuser-Busch $250.8 million
Pepsico $190.0
General Motors $ 65.7
Time Warner $ 63.4
Walt Disney $ 43.5
Top 5 Total $613.4 MILLION

Not Enough

I would link to this, but I lost my password for my online subscription, so for being difficult, the WSJ doesn't get a link.

Anheuser-Busch Considers Expanding Beyond Beer
The Wall Street Journal
Market forces are leading giant beer marketer Anheuser-Busch to consider moving beyond its core product offerings and into other alcoholic beverages. Earlier this month, A-B president August Busch IV acknowledged beer's sliding market share and said, "If this trend continues, we at Anheuser-Busch will have to re-evaluate our business model going forward in terms of expanding beyond beer and broadening our position within the total alcohol industry." His words caught many experts off guard, even though the company has already taken several small steps and formed alliances geared toward expanding its product portfolio. "I think a lot of people were surprised by it," said Lynn M. Walding, president of the National Conference of State Liquor Administrators and administrator of the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division, who was present at Mr. Busch's speech. "While [Anheuser] has been testing the mixed-drink market as of late, Mr. Busch's remarks suggest that greater inroads into the spirits category can be expected in the not-too-distant future." It is unknown what form Anheuser's interest in the liquor industry could take. One possibility is a joint venture or partnership. Anheuser already has its relationship with Bacardi, which recently acquired the upscale Grey Goose vodka line. Another frequently mentioned possibility is Louisville-based Brown-Forman Corp., maker of Jack Daniel's whiskey.

There's more there, but I can't get to it right now. But I did find this little nugget on Sacbee.com 's Food section in May, stating that beer sales are at half of their peak. I'm saddened by this. I can't help it.

For Father's Day, Have a Beer with Dad

From Brandweek

Dads Saluted in Beer Industry Promo Effort
June 09, 2006 NEW YORK – The Anheuser-Busch-backed beer support group, "Here's to Beer," has rolled out another series of promotional spots, this time saluting the bond between fathers and their children. The new TV spot features award-winning broadcaster Joe Buck reminiscing about his father, legendary Hall-of-Fame broadcaster Jack Buck. The ad combines commentary from Joe Buck interspersed with historical footage and Buck family photos. Creative is by St. Louis-based Waylon, and the spot was produced by Park Productions. The ad will air throughout June on both broadcast and cable during high-profile sporting events including the World Cup, U.S. Open, Stanley Cup finals, NBA Finals and select MLB games. The trade group will also run a special print version of the ad in USA Today on Friday, June 16, in honor of Father's Day. "Getting together for a beer is a great way for fathers and their adult sons and daughters to celebrate the day, share stories and create new memories that will last a lifetime," Bob Lachky, evp-global industry development, Anheuser-Busch, said in a statement. "These new ads are a unique way to honor fathers and convey beer's place in family celebrations." In conjunction with the ads, "Here's To Beer" is hosting a consumer contest called "Who Would You Have a Beer With?" at HeresToBeer.com. In the first phase of the contest, entrants nominated anyone—famous or unknown—and provided 50 words or less to make their case. Five finalists will be selected to receive a video camera to record their stories, which will be posted on the Web site. Beginning July 24, consumers can visit HeresToBeer.com to vote on their favorite video. The creator of the winning video will receive a trip for four to the ultimate destination for beer lovers, Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany.

That's All

My two favorite subjects, together, in one CNNMoney Article.

Basically, beer needs a PR push, and Anheuser-Busch thinks that advertising is the answer. Cuz you know, wehn you gotta SELL something, you SELL it, right? My favorite quote from this article:

"Spirits are perceived as affordable luxury," said Ozgo. "People are more careful with their spending today. Maybe they can't buy a $40,000 BMW but they're willing to buy a good $60 to $70 bottle of Scotch. You don't get that kind of trading-up feeling with beer."

You're Pretty When I'm Drunk

I signed up to be a member of BeerAdvocate.com this week. Dear lord, how I love this site! It will inspire me for years. And in looking over our past beers, I realize that I needed the help. Some have been great, some have been horrific. I know. But I'm dealing with some demons here. I used to be a beer snob. Light anything was never good enough for me. Too bland, too nothing, too flavorless. And then I decided that I should go on a diet. And now I drink lights because I don't have the will power to only have one of anything. If I did, I would pick one excellent full bodied beer, and be happy. But that's not me. I'm still watching my oh-so-girlish figure, so I can't go all out for the gutsy, heavy, dark beers all of the time. And it's summer, so I automatically want something lighter and colder. But I just can't serve Miller or Bud around here any more. I just can't DO IT. So I'm taking baby steps into more exciting beer lands. This week's beer is what The Husband & I have been drinking all week at home.

According to the Boston Beer Company:
Sam Adams Light is not just a lighter version of Samuel Adams Boston Lager® but rather the culmination of over two years of tireless research and brewing trials to create a flavorful Light beer. And it has proved to be worth the wait. Brewed using only the finest two row malt and German Noble hops it has a smooth, complex roasted malt character that is superbly balanced with the subtle orange fruit notes of the Noble hops. Sam Adams Light® finishes crisp and smooth without any lingering bitterness, leaving you yearning for more.

In Beer Girl language, it's a light beer that tastes more like a real beer. It has flavor. Some light beer drinkers will not like that about this beer. But that's why I love it.

I'm going to try for a patriotic tie-in, what with this being the Fourth of July weekend & all. Here's my half assed attempt, in VH-1's This to That in So Many Steps Style.

San Adams used Ben Affleck as a celebrity spokesperson....Ben Affleck dated Jennifer Lopez....who was in The Wedding Planner with Fred Willard....who was in Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle with Jamie Kennedy...who starred in the Boiler Room with Sean Caan....son of James Caan...who was in Dick Tracy with Dustin Hoffman...who played in Rain Man...with Tom Cuise...who starred in Born on the Fourth of July!

See? sam Adams IS Patriotic. :) Happy Holiday Weekend!