BUDWEISER (ANHEUSER-BUSCH)

'Budweiser', sometimes referred to as 'Bud', is a global pale lager brand owned by the St. Louis based Anheuser-Busch company. Budweiser is made with a proportion of rice in addition to barley malt, for which it has received some criticism, though the company takes the position that the rice gives the beer a lighter taste. Budweiser is produced in various breweries located around the United States and the rest of the world. It is a filtered beer available in draught and packaged forms. It has 5.0 percent alcohol volume, except in Utah, Minnesota and Oklahoma where a 3.2% alcohol by weight strength is available due to state laws. Minnesota only requires 3.2% alcohol by weight beer at select public events and beer being sold in grocery stores and gas stations.

Contents

Market share

Marketing

Bottle

Containers and Packaging

Slogans

Name dispute

The beer

Budweiser brands

Bud Light

Budweiser Select

Bud Ice

Bud Ice Light

Budweiser Brew Masters Private Reserve

Bud Dry

Bud Silver

Budweiser in the news

See also

References

External links

References

Market share

Anheuser-Busch has a market share in the United States of about 50% for all beers sold. The company's 2005 annual report cites figures which demonstrate Budweiser brands are proving to be quite successful in three markets outside of the U.S.:

★ in the People's Republic of China, where Anheuser-Busch has had a brewery in Wuhan since 1995, 3.4 million barrels of Budweiser were brewed in 2005.

★ in Canada, where Labatt Brewing Company brews and packages Budweiser and Bud Light for the Canadian market; Budweiser is one of the country's most popular bottled beers behind Labatt and Molson.

★ in the United Kingdom Anheuser-Busch leases the Stag Brewery in Mortlake.
Budweiser is also widely available in Mexico due to Anheuser-Busch's half-ownership of Grupo Modelo, through which Budweiser and Bud Light (introduced in 1982) are distributed. In Ireland, Budweiser is one of the leading lager brands; it is brewed, marketed, and sold by Guinness. Budweiser is also available in Italy, Brasil, Argentina, Finland and Russia because of partnerships Anheuser-Busch has with major brewers there.
Budweiser was recently launched in India, where it's slowly gaining marketshare by being a much-sought after alternative to the leading Kingfisher, Fosters and Royal Challenge.

Marketing

Budweiser is one of the major breweries that emphasizes humorous advertising campaigns, such as the "Real Men of Genius" radio commercials for Bud Light, recently moved to television. The spots feature an over-the-top, 1980s-style rock ballad sung by Dave Bickler, the former lead singer of "Survivor", describing ordinary activities as if they were heroic. The campaign originally was called "Real American Heroes," but the name was changed after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
Some Bud advertising campaigns have entered the popular culture in the United States. They include a long line of TV advertisements in the 1990s featuring three frogs named "Bud", "Weis", and "Er", and a campaign built around the phrase "Whassup?". The company is known for its sports sponsorships, video game sponsorship (Tapper), and (often) humorous advertisements. Advertising campaigns have also included a nude Ganymede grasping a beer bottle and borne aloft by a bald eagle,^[1] lizards impersonating the "Bud-weis-er" frogs, and Clydesdale horses. Budweiser has a vast presence in motorsports; Bernie Little's Miss Budweiser hydroplane boat, sponsoring the Budweiser King Top Fuel Dragster driven by Brandon Bernstein. Budweiser has been a sponsor of Brandon and Kenny Bernstein for the last 27 years. Budweiser is the official beer of NHRA and NASCAR. Budweiser is also the long time sponsor of NASCAR Driver Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is not going to be sponsored by Bud next year. Bud is currently in talks with another NASCAR driver, Kasey Kahne, possibly becoming his sponsor in 2008. Even in the early 1900s, the company was marketing through popular music; the company commissioned what a play-on-words number called ''Under the Anheuser Bush'', which was recorded by several early phonograph companies. Currently, some of their commercials feature the song "Galvanize", by The Chemical Brothers. In the last few years, a number of humorous advertisements for Bud Light have been shown on television. (See External Links) Some of the company theme songs, particularly "Here Comes the King", have been referenced by Budweiser TV commercials for many years.
Budweiser is an official partner and sponsor of Major League Soccer and the Los Angeles Galaxy Major League Soccer franchise, and was the headline sponsor of the British Basketball League in the 1990s, taking over from rival company Carlsberg. Budweiser are also an official sponsor of the English Premier League.
The 2005 Hong Kong film ''Drink-Drank-Drunk'' heavily featured Budweiser product placement, with the main character Siu Min working as a logo-jacketed beer maid.

Bottle

The Budweiser bottle has remained relatively unchanged since its introduction in 1876. The top label is red and currently reads "Budweiser ()". The top of the main label is red with a white banner with a pledge on it, which has changed three times. Below the banner is a coat of arms of sorts, which once had the Conrad and Co. logo on it, and now features an Anheuser-Busch stylization. Below that is a large white box. In this box the words "Budweiser Lager (King of) Beer(s) Brewed by our original (all natural) (Budweiser) process from the Choicest Hops, Rice, and Best Barley (Malt)" (words in parentheses have been added or removed over time). Because of Budweiser's "King of Beers" mantra, Bud Light is sometimes known as the "Prince of Beers" or simply "The Prince" to its avid consumers.
The words "Anheuser Busch" and "St. Louis Mo" appear in this box as well.

Era	Pledge	Logo	Beer title	Top label
1870s	1	C. Conrad and Co.	''Budweiser Lager Beer''	Original Budweiser
Early 1900s	2	C. Conrad and Co.	''Budweiser Lager Beer''	'Budweiser' Reg U.S. Pat Off
1920s	3	Anheuser-Busch	''Budweiser''	Anheuser-Busch 'Budweiser' St. Louis
1940s	2	Anheuser-Busch	''Budweiser Lager Beer''	'Budweiser' Beer
1950s	4	Anheuser-Busch	''Budweiser Lager Beer''	'Budweiser' Lager Beer
1970s	4	Anheuser-Busch	'Budweiser' Lager Beer	Budweiser
1980s	4	Anheuser-Busch	'Budweiser' Lager Beer	Budweiser
Today	4	Anheuser-Busch	'Budweiser' King of Beers	'Budweiser' (Bow Tie)

Containers and Packaging

Over the years Budweiser has been distributed in many sizes and containers. Through the early-1950s Budweiser was primarily distributed in just 3 packages -- kegs, 12-ounce bottles, and quart bottles. Cans were first introduced in 1936^[2]. From 1936 to 1955 cans were slow to catch on, and bottles still dominated. In 1955, August Busch Jr.[3] made the strategic move to expand Budweiser's national brand and distributor presence. Along with this expansion came advances in bottling automation, new bottling materials and more efficient distribution methods. These advances have brought to market many new containers and package designs. Presently, Budweiser is distributed in 3 large container volumes -- 1/2 keg, 1/4 keg, and Beer Ball. In smaller consumption volumes, Budweiser is distributed in 8-, 10-, 12-, 16-, 22-, 24-, 32- and 40-ounce containers. Smaller consumption containers vary in materials with Budweiser offering glass bottles, aluminum cans, plastic bottles, and new-form aluminum bottles.
Package considerations are sometimes tailored to local customs and traditions. Local distributors may stock certain sizes based upon these regional customs. In St. Mary's County, Maryland 10-ounce bottles ^{[4] [5]} are the preferred package. Chicagoans widely prefer the 16-ounce can as this volume is sold at Wrigley Field. Wrigley Field Beer vendors are known for the efficient 16-ounce can double-pour [6]. Budweiser drinkers in the western stretches of Ottawa County, Michigan prefer the 8-ounce aluminum can. This Ottawa County preference for the 8-ounce can may stem from a long-standing blue law held in many Western Michigan cities that prohibit sale of beer and wine on Sundays ^{[7] [8]}. In response to this blue law, brewers and distributors presented the 8-ounce can as a smaller alternative with the aim at pairing back the blue laws for alcohol served in lesser volume.
Budweiser has introduced many can designs with co-branding and sports marketing promotional packaging. Today, most of these promotional programs are are represented only in the 12-ounce aluminum bottle container; however, many major league baseball and NFL teams also promote 24-ounce cans marked with team logos.

Slogans

The original Budweiser pledge reads "We guarantee that this beer is brewed especially for our own trade according to the Budweiser process of choicest hops, best barley and rice. This beer is brewed in St. Louis and warranted to keep in any climate. Take notice that all crowns are branded with our trade-mark." The last sentence was altered slightly in the early 1900s to read: "Take notice that all crowns ''bear'' our trade-mark."
It was altered again, albeit briefly to read as follows: "We guarantee that this beverage is healthful, refreshing, nutritious, free from bacteria, fully matured and aged, will keep in any climate, and fermented (?) in St. Louis. Take note that all crowns bear our "A" and "Eagle" trade mark". This pledge was reverted to the second pledge after only a few years.
The current pledge was placed on the bottle some time around the end of the Second World War. It reads: "This is the famous Budweiser beer. We know of no brand produced by any other brewer which costs so much to brew and age. Our exclusive Beechwood Aging produces a taste, a smoothness and a drinkability you will find in no other beer at any price."

Name dispute

:''See also Budweiser Budvar.''
Anheuser-Busch has launched numerous lawsuits in several different countries worldwide against the Czech brewery Budějovický Budvar because they also claim the right to call their product "Budweiser". Anheuser-Busch cites prior trademark, but Budvar wishes to maintain its right to market their beer, brewed in České Budějovice (German: Budweis, adjective: budweiser), as Budweiser. Budvar has marketed its product this way since 1895 and claim that Budweiser is a generic name, just as the pilsener style comes from the town of Pilsen (Plzeň).
The existence of the Czech beer of the same name has caused problems in some markets. A long-standing agreement with the Czech brewer divided the rights to the name "Budweiser", so that the Anheuser-Busch product is marketed as "Bud" (in France and elsewhere) and "Anheuser-Busch B" (Germany), where the Czech beer has the rights to the name. Anheuser-Busch has made offers to buy out the Czech brewing company in order to secure global rights to the name "Budweiser" for both beers, but all such offers have been refused.

The beer

Budweiser is brewed using rice, barley malt, water, hops and yeast. It is lagered with beechwood chips in the aging vessel, which, according to Budweiser, creates a smoother taste. While rice will produce a "clean finish", it is an ingredient utilized by many brewers because it is a less expensive ingredient than malted barley, rye, or other grains. Anheuser-Busch was also one of the few breweries during Prohibition that had the resources and financial wherewithal to convert to "cereal beer" production - malt beverage made with non-fermentables such as rice and unmalted barley and rye, and able to stay under the 0.5% limit established by the Volstead Act. Following the repeal of Prohibition in 1933, the major breweries continued to use unmalted cereal grains to provide the full body and mouthfeel of a "real" beer while keeping the alcohol content low. Budweiser and Bud Light are vegan beers, in that their ingredients and conditioning do not use animal byproducts. However they are sponsors of some rodeos, causing some vegans and vegetarians to boycott the beer anyway.
While beechwood chips are used in the maturation tank, there is little to no flavor contribution from the wood, mainly because they are boiled in sodium bicarbonate [baking soda] for seven hours for the very purpose of removing any flavor from the wood. The maturation tanks (they call them chip tanks) that Anheuser-Busch utilizes are horizontal and, as such, flocculation of the yeast occurs much quicker. By placing chips at the bottom of the tank, the yeast remains in suspension longer, giving it more time to reabsorb and process green beer flavors, such as acetaldehyde and diacetyl, that Anheuser-Busch believes are off-flavors which detract from overall drinkability.
As with most food products opinions differ regarding its taste. While some drinkers prefer the lightness of beers like Budweiser, and consume it as a refreshment,^[2] some beer writers consider it as being too bland.^[3][4]
Baseball broadcaster Harry Caray, who worked for the St. Louis Cardinals and later the Chicago Cubs, always championed the taste of Budweiser, even after he had been fired by the Busch company, which then owned the Cardinals. He said in interviews (such as a special that was produced by WGN-TV in the early 1990s) that he touted Bud because he thought it had the best flavor of any American beer.

Budweiser brands

In addition to the regular Budweiser, Anheuser-Busch brews several different beers under the Budweiser brand, including:

Bud Light

Introduced nationally in 1982 as "Budweiser Light", Bud Light is a 4.2% abv pale lager with 110 calories.^[5] Since 2001, Bud Light has been the best-selling beer in the United States, because of its consumption among college students and the fact that it can be used for drinking games due to its lower alcohol content. Its current marketing slogan is "Always worth it."

Budweiser Select

Select is a 4.3% pale lager that contains only 99 calories and 3.1 grams of carbohydrates.^[6] Anheuser-Busch has taken a very serious approach in the promotion of Budweiser Select, with a new spokesman in New York rapper Jay-Z and featuring the beer alongside Budweiser and Bud Light in most of the family advertisements and point-of-sale material. It is advertised under the tagline "Step up to Select" and "The Real Deal".

Bud Ice

Introduced in 1994 as "Ice by Budweiser". It is more alcoholic (5.5%^[7]) than Budweiser. The height of its popularity came in the mid-90's alongside an advertising campaign that involved a malevolent penguin that stalked Bud Ice drinkers and stole their beer whilst singing his signature song of "Dooby-dooby-doo.."
Bud Ice has not been nearly as buried commercially as its predecessor Bud Dry, but television and radio spots have virtually disappeared, with Budweiser Select taking over the third spot in the Budweiser Family.

Bud Ice Light

Introduced in 1994. Contains less alcohol than Bud Light (4.1% ABV) and has the lowest carb count of any Ice beer.

Budweiser Brew Masters Private Reserve

Private Reserve is an 8.5% abv strong lager.^[8]

Bud Dry

Bud Dry was introduced nationally in the U.S. in April of 1990^[9] with the slogan of "Why ask why? Try Bud Dry." It was originally successful in test markets and was expected to be a popular beer with the rise in Light Lager popularity.
However, with the introduction of Bud Ice in 1994, Bud Dry was bumped from the top three beers in terms of marketing. It has declined in mainstream popularity and no longer receives commercial attention.

Bud Silver

An attempt to appeal to the tastes of beer drinkers in the United Kingdom, this specially brewed beer contains 4.1% alcohol by volume.

Budweiser in the news

★ A-B Inc. has recently joined with Budvar to be the sole distributor of Budweiser Budvar throughout the U.S. [13] This, however, does not negate the ongoing lawsuits between the companies.

★ During the 2006 World Cup, approximately 1000 Dutch soccer fans were forced to remove their lederhosen in order to gain access to the stadium. The pants had the name of a competing beer (Bavaria) printed on them. FIFA made the decision in order to secure the right of Budweiser, the official sponsor, to advertise exclusively and to prevent "ambush marketing" by non-sponsors.^[10]

See also

★ Budweiser Frogs

References

1. [1]
2. Member Rating themanroom.com
3. Hops to lighten your step beerhunter.com
4. A Bud by any other namerealbeer.com
5. [9]
6. [10]
7. Realbeer.com: Beer Alcohol Content
8. [11]
9. [12]
10. [14]

External links

★ Budweiser official website

★ Anheuser Busch corporate website, including its

★ annual report

★ Budweiser Labels - private website

★ Bud Light Adverts

★ Budweiser calorie and carb info

★ Budweiser Budvar

References

1. [1]
2. Member Rating themanroom.com
3. Hops to lighten your step beerhunter.com
4. A Bud by any other namerealbeer.com
5. [9]
6. [10]
7. Realbeer.com: Beer Alcohol Content
8. [11]
9. [12]
10. [14]