I don't care for beer of any variety, but it appears that many of you do, so I thought I'd share.

 

 

 

The iconic Budweiser brand continues a long slide out of favor with American drinkers, falling to third place.

 

By Kim Peterson on Mon, Jan 9, 2012 3:57 PM

 

Coors Light has officially booted Budweiser to become the No. 2 beer in America.

 

If Anheuser-Busch InBev (BUD +3.33%) isn't panicking yet, it should be. This is the first time in nearly two decades that Anheuser-Busch hasn't controlled the top two beers in the country. The King of Beers is on its way to becoming court jester.

 

Budweiser has seen sales drop for years, and ran into serious trouble in 2009 and 2010.Last year wasn't as bad, but shipments still fell 4.6%, according to trade publication Beer Marketer's Insights. Coors Light shipments rose less than 1%, but that was enough to move it into second place.

 

Since 1988, Budweiser shipments have dropped by more than 60%. Ouch.

 

The two brands are still very close. Coors Light shipped 18.2 million barrels last year and Budweiser shipped 17.7 million, Advertising Age reports. The No. 1 brand is still the ubiquitous Bud Light.

 

"Anytime you can dethrone the king, it's special," a MillerCoors spokesman told Advertising Age. An Anheuser-Busch spokesman was less celebratory, saying the company was on track with a strategy to stabilize Budweiser.

 

Investors seem to be losing a little enthusiasm for beer stocks, Beer Marketer's Insights reports. Anheuser-Busch is still doing better than any other brewer, but its gains slowed to 10.5% last year from 18% in 2010. SABMiller (SBMRF 0.00%) was up less than 1% last year, and Heineken (HINKF 0.00%) fell 14%.

 

What can Budweiser do to turn its decades-long slide around? The company seems to be trying everything from dressing up its cans with bow ties to telling drinkers to "Grab some buds" in new music-heavy commercials. Anheuser-Busch even handed out free samples of Budweiser at trendy bars and restaurants.

 

Meanwhile, Coors Light has pushed a cool and refreshing theme, introducing cold-activated bottles and cans.

 

While Budweiser is slipping, craft beers are still riding a huge wave of momentum. Boston Beer Co. (SAM -0.11%) shares have absolutely been on fire since October, rising more than 30%.

Sooooooo........ which beer is #1?

Crap replaced by crap, no biggie.

According to that bud light

How would that be? Bud Light is Anheiser Busch - and they don't have one in the top......

I love how instead of trying to make the beer better they come up with stupid gimmicks to sell their beers. Cold activated cans, vortex bottles, triple hops brewed (I don't taste any hops). Maybe they should try making the beer taste good.

I love how instead of trying to make the beer better they come up with stupid gimmicks to sell their beers. Cold activated cans, vortex bottles, triple hops brewed (I don't taste any hops). Maybe they should try making the beer taste good.

 

Piss water is piss water no matter how you bottle it.

How would that be? Bud Light is Anheiser Busch - and they don't have one in the top......

 

Read the article again. It said Budweiser fell to number 3 and is the first time in nearly two decades that Anheuser Busch hasn't controlled the top two.

 

Either way, light beers such as Coors Light and Bud Light have a market, and it is huge. That is for a cheap, easy drinking beer, that will eventually get you drunk when you drink in large quantities. When you get to a certain point when drinking, you don't care how crappy the beer tastes...

The newark plant has shutdown most of it's stills and is suppose to completely close this year..

Tony, you mean that stuff is actually BREWED? I thought it was chemically synthesized!

Heineken (HINKF 0.00%) fell 14%.

What?

Guess I need to drink more..

i love coors light i can drink it all night long literally and it does not make my stomach feel full like budwieser

Coors Light is a great "If you don't start in the morning, you cant drink ALL day" beer

All three = yuck

With this being said.....

 

What is your beer of choice?

I drink miller lite

My beer of choice varys from season to season. My two favorite brewers are Sam Adams and Magic Hat. The top three beers do not do it for me. I Enjoy beer, not mass produced beer like substance

Ken

Crap replaced by crap, no biggie.

 

+1000

BMC(Bud, Miller, Coors) suck. None of these companies are American owned anymore either. I will give them credit though, because the beer they brew is technically the hardest beer to brew. This is because it's so light in flavor, any variations in temperature during fermentation can cause off flavors.

 

I started homebrewing a year and a half ago, so the beer I like is the beer I brew. This time of year I have a breakfast stout and a robust porter on tap. The stout is 8.1% alcohol, close to double what Miller Lite is.

I was a Yungeling fan. I recently started enjoying Stella Artois, and Guinness Black Lager

Dogfish Head 60 minute IPA & 90 minute IPA... My most favorite beer of all over the last few years... But like lots of other beers too (Sam Adams, magic hat, yuengling, etc)

 

Bud, Miller, Coors... SUCK!

BMC(Bud, Miller, Coors) suck. None of these companies are American owned anymore either. I will give them credit though, because the beer they brew is technically the hardest beer to brew. This is because it's so light in flavor, any variations in temperature during fermentation can cause off flavors.

 

I started homebrewing a year and a half ago, so the beer I like is the beer I brew. This time of year I have a breakfast stout and a robust porter on tap. The stout is 8.1% alcohol, close to double what Miller Lite is.

 

Hence the reason they always talk about drinking these kind of beers ice cold, you can't taste anything when it's that cold. Beer should be consumed at 40 - 50 F degrees, that's where it has the best flavor.

Piss water is piss water no matter how you bottle it.

 

Yup. I understand water-beer (lights) is on the cheap side, and is suitable for pong, but it shocks me how many people actually LIKE to drink it.

 

I like anything made by Troeg's, Magic Hat, Ithaca Brewing Company, Dogfish Head, Shock Top, Brooklyn, etc.

 

Larger companies include Stella, Heineken, Blue Moon, St Pauli, Landshark, etc.

Sam Adams here. Miller lite from time to time is good too. I'm also fond of Blue Moon, although a lot of people seem to lump that in with the piss water that's in the top three.

Boone's Strawberry Hill

Franziskaner Dunkel should be #1.... Too bad Inbev doesn't import Jupiler. It is really great beer and I bet it would sell huge in the US market.

Sam Adams here. Miller lite from time to time is good too. I'm also fond of Blue Moon, although a lot of people seem to lump that in with the piss water that's in the top three.

 

I'm kind of confused here. Are you saying most people don't like BM or that they categorize it with the light beers? Because BM compare to any sort of light beer couldn't be on any more opposites.

Technically Blue Moon is a Coors company, though Coors hasn't forced them to brew to the Coors standards or in their house. I hope it stays this way as I too am a big Blue Moon fan (and hopefully will make a stop at their place when I stop by later this week). I've done the tour at the Coors brewery in Golden, and it was a bit of a treat.

On another occasion, I've also stopped by Pottsville for a different perspective on beers, and that was a neat experience to see a smaller brewery. In both cases, amazing fresh beer. And in the case of Coors, I'll admit that I've always noticed the difference drinking Coors in the Denver area compared to other parts of the country... far more manageable in that area. Must be the water

SN Celebration was extra tasty this year. Get some while you still can.

I'm kind of confused here. Are you saying most people don't like BM or that they categorize it with the light beers? Because BM compare to any sort of light beer couldn't be on any more opposites.

 

I meant that quite a few people I've talked to call it crap. Not at all sure if that's the popular opinion everywhere, but I like me some Blue Moon.