Are apples and beer a good mix?
Georgia beer drinkers will have a chance to decide as Bud Light Apple launches a 22-week test in the state to see if the new flavor is a hit that can be taken nationwide. Sales start today.
Georgia was chosen because state consumers have demonstrated a liking for apple-flavored adult beverages and because the state offers a little of every demographic — from the rural to the suburban to the metropolitan, said Ben Graziano, a brand director at Bud Light owner Anheuser-Busch InBev.
“We look at Georgia as a microcosm of the U.S.,” Graziano said.
The Budweiser brand, long known as the king of beers, is in a turnaround mode after several years of lagging sales. Anheuser reported Friday improving third-quarter global volume for its three main brands — Budweiser was up 11.5 percent; Corona 11.1 percent; and Stella Artois 12.9 percent.
But old-line beer brands remain under assault from a profusion of craft beers that have gained favor with younger drinkers.
Graziano said beer lagged behind other beverages for years as consumers looked for new taste profiles, especially fruit-based flavors. That changed for Bud Light when the brand in 2012 introduced Bud Light Ritas, flavored malt beverages that won the Nielsen Breakthrough Innovation Award in 2014.
Graziano said the company will promote Bud Light Apple through TV ads, billboards, store offers and taste tests in bars.
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