Budweiser
Adolphus Busch and Carl Conrad developed a Bohemian-style lager in 1876 within their brewery located in St. Louis, Missouri. This American pale lager emerged from a trip to Bohemia that inspired the founders. The brand became one of the largest selling beers in the United States over time. It is now produced by the Belgian company AB InBev after years of corporate evolution. Early distribution relied on kegs and bottles before cans arrived decades later.
An ongoing series of trademark disputes exists between Anheuser-Busch and the Czech Budweiser Budvar Brewery regarding name usage. Beer has been brewed in Budweis since it was founded in 1265. In the European Union except Ireland Sweden Finland and Spain the American beer may only be marketed as Bud. The Budweiser trademark name is owned solely by the Czech beer maker Budweiser Budvar in those regions. Some countries like the United Kingdom allow both lagers under the Budweiser name though logos differ.
Budweiser has produced TV advertisements featuring frogs lizards impersonating frogs and a team of Clydesdale horses known as the Budweiser Clydesdales. From 1987 to 1989 Bud Light ran an advertising campaign centered around canine mascot Spuds MacKenzie. Budweiser pays $20 million annually for MLB licensing rights while Bud Light paid $1 billion for a six-year NFL agreement in 2010. Between 2003 and 2006 Budweiser sponsored the BMW Williams Formula One team. Anheuser-Busch spent $449 million on marketing in the United States alone during 2012.
Budweiser is produced using malted barley rice water hops and yeast. The brewing process involves seven steps including milling mashing straining brew kettle primary fermentation beechwood lagering and finishing. It is lagered with beechwood chips in the aging vessel. These chips are boiled in sodium bicarbonate for seven hours beforehand so there is little flavor contribution from the wood. Maturation tanks are horizontal causing flocculation of yeast to occur much more quickly than other methods.
Cans were first introduced in 1936 in an attempt to re-stimulate interest after Prohibition repeal. Since 1936 twelve major can design changes have occurred excluding temporary special editions. In 2011 a branding redesign eliminated traditional imagery like eagles and red white blue colors. This new design responded to a large decline in sales threatening status as America's best-selling beer. On the 3rd of August 2011 Anheuser-Busch announced its twelfth can design emphasizing the bowtie shape.
Of the fifteen Anheuser-Busch breweries outside the United States fourteen are positioned in China. Budweiser is the fourth-leading brand in the Chinese beer market. The American beer is available in over eighty countries globally. In Russia Budweiser began selling its beer in 2010 while operations continue expanding in China. Budweiser is licensed produced and distributed in Canada by Labatt Brewing Company which is also owned by AB InBev.
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Common questions
Who developed Budweiser and when was it created?
Adolphus Busch and Carl Conrad developed Budweiser in 1876 within their brewery located in St. Louis, Missouri.
Where is Budweiser produced today and who owns the brand now?
Budweiser is currently produced by the Belgian company AB InBev after years of corporate evolution.
Why does Budweiser have different names in some European countries?
In the European Union except Ireland Sweden Finland and Spain the American beer may only be marketed as Bud because the Czech beer maker Budweiser Budvar owns the trademark name in those regions.
What ingredients are used to make Budweiser beer?
Budweiser is produced using malted barley rice water hops and yeast through a seven-step brewing process that includes lagering with beechwood chips.
When did Budweiser first introduce cans and how many designs followed?
Cans were first introduced in 1936 in an attempt to re-stimulate interest after Prohibition repeal and twelve major can design changes have occurred since then excluding temporary special editions.