While you were cracking open a double IPA or sipping on a saison last night during the Super Bowl, you may have caught Budweiser’s “Brewed the Hard Way” commercial.
The spot shows a denim shirt-sporting, mustachioed dude with text saying Budweiser isn’t brewed to be “fussed over” or “dissected.” “Let them sip their peach pumpkin ale,” says the ad, which declares Bud “proudly a macro beer.”
It seems people are upset that Anheuser-Busch InBev (Budweiser’s parent company) decided to take shots at craft beer—especially since the company has purchased a number of high-profile craft breweries recently. Just a week ago, Anheuser-Busch announced it was buying Seattle’s Elysian Brewing Co.
https://twitter.com/BarlowBrewing/status/562068979166875649
Elysian was the fourth craft-brewery acquisition by AB InBev, the world’s largest beer company, in the last five years. AB InBev bought its first craft brewer in 2011, paying $38.8 million for Chicago-based Goose Island. It has also purchased 10 Barrel Brewing Co. and Blue Point Brewing Co.
https://twitter.com/brew_york/status/562071658891321344
Why the scramble to acquire craft breweries, and to catch up with American consumers? Budweiser has been losing market share to craft beer over the last four years.
Chart: WSJ
AB InBev’s beers still account for nearly half of the 200 million barrels of beer consumed annually in the U.S., according to the WSJ, but volumes have fallen nearly 9% over the past decade. At the same time, craft brewers’ market share has surged to more than 10%. A recent company study found that 44% of drinkers aged 21 to 27 have never tried Budweiser, reports Tripp Mickle at WSJ.
Many are wondering why AB would choose to attack (and thus alienate) craft-beer drinkers, if those are the consumers Anheuser has been trying so hard to keep or win back.
https://twitter.com/dave_licherdell/status/562068184920899585
The Super Bowl commercial has spurred a hashtag, #BetterBeer. Here’s a look at what people have to say about the Budweiser spot.
https://twitter.com/ShopRaleighJen/status/562093674905866242
@JonnyBeers – I think it's a good time to parlay the truth. Bud is buying craft breweries because they know the truth about #BetterBeer.
— PortlandBeer (@Portland_Beer) February 2, 2015
https://twitter.com/NickEngvall/status/562076628054855680
#CraftBeer is #BetterBeer Share the truth.
— PortlandBeer (@Portland_Beer) February 2, 2015
Here’s the full advertisement, in case you want to watch: