Posted on 07/17/2008 7:39:44 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
(Pabst touts ascent to No. 1 American-owned beer maker)
Pabst Brewing Co. doesn’t operate breweries anymore, but it wants to be the first choice for every red-blooded American beer drinker.
The company, which owns dozens of beer brands and contracts with MillerCoors LLC to create most of its brews, is staking its claim as the largest remaining American-owned beer maker.
Just days after industry giant Anheuser-Busch Cos. announced its sale to InBev, a European brewer, Pabst is conducting an online survey, asking customers about it.
“Did you know that after this sale is completed, Pabst Brewing Company will be the largest remaining American-owned brewery?” the survey asks. “How likely is this information to affect your decision to purchase beer? Would information about Pabst’s American ownership on packaging, like bottles or cans, impact your decision to purchase our products?”
Executives at Pabst, based in suburban Chicago, and spokesmen for St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday.
But a Pabst statement noted that it will be “the last of the famous iconic U.S. brewers to be fully independent and American-owned.”
“Most of our brands (Pabst, Schlitz, Stroh, Schaefer, Rainier, Olympia, and others) have been around since the 1800s,” the statement said.
It seems clear that Pabst is poised to snatch at the patriotic appeal long used by Anheuser-Busch.
That’s probably a smart strategy, given that some drinkers of Budweiser, the Anheuser-Busch brand that’s been sold with flag-waving ads, aren’t happy about the King of Beers being acquired by a company based in Belgium, said Mike McCarthy, an associate professor of marketing at Miami (Ohio) University.
“I do think Budweiser has cultivated a very, very strong patriotic, all-American beer image for many, many years,” McCarthy said. “I think there is a little bit of a sense that Bud is a quintessential all-American beer.”
However, with Budweiser and other Anheuser-Busch brands being owned by a European company, calling those brands all-American beers “will be a little hard to say with a straight face,” McCarthy said.
McCarthy said even if just 1% of Budweiser’s customers dropped the beer and switched to Pabst Blue Ribbon, that would bring a huge boost for the brand. Its Americana image was immortalized in the 1973 Johnny Russell song “Rednecks, White Socks and Blue Ribbon Beer,” and later in the 1992 Mary Chapin Carpenter song, “I Am a Town.”
Budweiser has seen declining sales for several years as beer drinkers turn to Bud Light and other low-calorie brews. But Budweiser in 2007 still posted sales volume of 24.6 million barrels, accounting for 11.3% of the U.S. market, according to trade publication Beer Marketer’s Insights.
Pabst Brewing, meanwhile, posted sales of 6.1 million barrels, or 2.8% market share, for all of its brands.
Anheuser-Busch’s 2007 market share was 48.2%, while Miller Brewing Co. and Coors Brewing Co., which have since combined to form MillerCoors, posted a 29.5% market share. MillerCoors is a 50-50 joint venture of London-based SABMiller PLC and Molson Coors Brewing Co., which is based in Denver and Montreal.
Pabst’s possible patriotic appeal could be seen as a bit ironic, given that its beers are made by MillerCoors, which is owned by one company based in Great Britain and another company that is co-based in Canada. Pabst, owned by the California-based Kalmanovitz Charitable Trust, closed its Milwaukee brewery in 1996 and shuttered its last remaining brewery in 2001 after hiring Miller to brew its brands. Pabst moved its offices from San Antonio, Texas, to Woodridge, Ill., in 2006.
Another irony: Anheuser-Busch in 2005 aired a TV spot that featured its employees talking about how they’re proud to serve “the only major American brewery that’s still American-owned,” profits from which stay in the United States.
The spot was a not-so-subtle dig at Coors, which earlier that year had merged with Canada’s Molson Inc., and Miller, which was sold in 2002 to South African Breweries PLC, which then changed its name to SABMiller.
In 2004, Anheuser-Busch put up posters in liquor stores and other retail outlets saying Miller is owned by “South African Breweries.” U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman ordered the posters be taken down, saying they were inaccurate because Miller was actually a subsidiary of SABMiller.
I believe Yuengling is owned by Bud.
There were a few stories in the papers the other day that talked about Samuel Adams now being the largest American owned brewery. I guess its all a matter of the wording. Pabst might be the largest American owned beer company, but Samuel Adams is the largest American owned brewer (meaning they actually brew their own beer).
Leinenkugel,
Just saw that on a sign at a restaurant on a dock last week. Never heard of it but it caught our eye and now you posted it here. Small world. :)
Do yourself a favor - don’t. However, I can’t say too many bad things about some of their brands, namely Old Style, Blatz, and Schlitz. I drank quite a bit of those in college.
The greatest line of his career, LOL!
First time I ever had a Pabst, my reaction was simple: “put it back in the horse.”
PBR was all we served in old DivArty Club in the basement of the white house next to the Whitefish Bay Armory!
Yeah, but you get what you pay for. It’s definitely the kind of beer that you drink when you’re stuck DDing and you gotta just slowly nurse a couple beers, not the kind you drink to get drunk from.
What’ll you have? Pabst Blue Ribbon.
What’ll you have? Pabst Blue Ribbon...
Pabst Blue Ribbon Beeeeeeeeeeer!!!
I remember that jingle well!!!
--------------------
How about this one:
I've got Pabst Blue Ribbon on my mind . . .
More and More Lately I find . . .
I've got a taste for Livin'
I'm Drinkin' Cold Blue Ribbon
I've got Pabst Blue Ribbon on my mind.
I never liked PBR, but I used to drink Old Style all the time, and sometimes Blatz and Schlitz, all of which are Pabst brands. That was back in my college rugby-playing days, where quantity prevailed over quality.
Are you sure about that? I’m pretty sure it’s not.
Yuengling is still family-owned.
Oh, it’s great. My favortie is the Honey Weiss, but they’re all good. I really like the Sunset Wheat also. Do you mind if I ask where you live? I’ve noticed it’s a lot more popular in the Upper Midwest. When I travel to other parts of the country I usually don’t see it.
What a “different” movie. To me, it was kind of like a train wreck - you just had to keep watching.
Strange but pretty good.
I’m glad we have Spotted Cow here in Wisconsin
I stand corrected. Thanks. I’ve seen their brewery in Tampa. The old Strohs brewery.
How about the old Hamms commercials with the Bear?
“Land of sky blue waters” stuff.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.