The evolution and launch of Black Crown, Budweiser’s latest attempt to throw a white collar around a red neck, shows that the mega-brewer is trying like hell to drag its brand into the 21st century. You can see it in the way the beer came to market and in the crazy media kit they sent out to beer writers like yours truly.
Let’s Start from the Beginning
The genesis of Black Crown was Budweiser Project 12, a contest of sorts where the brew masters from Bud’s 12 regional breweries went “wild” and each made a “special” beer to compete in a series of public tastings (most likely at tractor pulls and Tim McGraw concerts). The winner would be brought to market as the newest member of the Budweiser family.
Bud even stole a page from the Sam Adams/Sierra Nevada Longshot/Beer Camp playbook and released the three finalists for the beer-buying public to taste in a special twelve pack. I reviewed it for Today.com, and dubbed the beers Bud Plus, Bud Hop and Bud Roast, because each “wild” and “special” beer tasted exactly like regular Budweiser with a little something extra squeezed in.
When the dust settled, Bud went with the most conservative choice, the one I called Bud Plus, which basically tastes like a Bud turned up to 11. While it was in development, Bud called the beer Batch No. 91406, named for the Los Angeles area code from which it originated. But for its official launch, they decided black is the new…uh…black, and called it Black Crown.
The Pre-Launch
Now that I’ve been a big boy beer writer for a while, packages of promotional goods have begun to steadily roll into my house. I get beers and tasting kits and other geegaws from brewers large and small from across the country. I’ll be honest and say I appreciate this – inspiration comes in many forms, and it’s terrific to have a cool story (or a great beer) appear at your doorstep.
But of all the swag that’s shown up, NOTHING compares to the kit Budweiser sent out for the launch of Black Crown.
I received a rather large box, and this is what’s inside (along with some marketing information that I quickly discarded):
Holy crap, I thought – it’s a spy kit! Budweiser wants me to be a secret agent!! What could be inside? A handgun? Top secret recording equipment? Deeply average beer? Ever the optimist, I flung it open to find…
Deeply average beer! But wait, there’s more. Along the left side of the protective case, nestled safely in custom-cut foam, were six small vials and a USB thumb drive. What could they be? Special aromas? Tasting companions? Marketing nonsense? A closer look revealed that they were…
Marketing nonsense! It looked as if each vial was meant to represent part of the essence of this very “premium” beer. As I had thrown away the literature that came with my Black Crown Spy Kit, I had to decipher their meanings myself. Here’s what I came up with:
Beechwood: This is easy – Budweiser’s always prattling on about Beechwood aging, blah, blah, blah, so obviously thy’re proud that Black Crown actually touched some wood.
Caramel Malt: Better than a vial full of rice, I guess.
Passion: This vial had a smear of lipstick on it, so obviously Budweiser’s brew master is a cross dresser who’s waaaay into Black Crown. Eww.
A Great Show: Glitter – whee! Perhaps this can be used to blind an enemy during a fight and flee unharmed – there’s still hope that this is a spy kit after all!
Handpicked: I dunno – looks like someone left a “to do” list in this vial. Maybe it’s my first mission…
The Unknown: Now this just seems lazy to me.
Account Exec (wearing hipster glasses) “What do we put in the sixth vial, you guys?”
Copywriter (bearded and wearing an ironic sweater) “I dunno.”
Graphic Designer: (A young female dressed like a sk8r boi *stomach rumbles*): I want sushi.
Account Exec and Copywriter: Hells yes!
Account Exec: But the vial…
Copywriter: I got it – “The Unknown” – we can leave the damn thing empty. Who cares, anyway?
Account Exec: I like it – mysterious!
Graphic Designer: Whatever – let’s eat!
The Launch
After attempting to grease the skids by showering the bloggers and media types with metal suitcases full of beer, it was time to officially launch the beer, and Bud went back to what they know best – Super Bowl ads.
Black Crown had the first commercial slot after kickoff last Sunday, a very forgettable spot filled with premium beer commercial clichés; confident and scruffy men dressed in fitted black shirts, stick-thin ladies in glittery dresses, and some kind of weak stab at portraying a secret society of taste makers.
The commercial was so unoriginal that it was almost over before I realized that this was the “big launch” I’d been waiting for. It was really ordinary and kind of disappointing – it did nothing to shake people up and make them take notice. It was a wasted opportunity to do something special.
After all the public tastings and the special 12 packs and spiffing the media with spy kits, Budweiser dropped the ball on the goal line.
What To Do with the Kit?
I looked up the case on Amazon, and it turns out that a new one will run you about $35.00. I hate to be wasteful, and besides being Budweiser branded, it’s a decent aluminum hard case of a very usable size. Here’s what it looks like with all the padding stripped out:
I think if I got some new foam for the innards, that this would make a cool case for my Nikon, or my laptop, or a dirty bomb – the possibilities are endless!
Of course, I’ll have to do something about the Bud logo on the cover. The aluminum plate that it’s on seems fairly well glued to the top of the case, so if all else fails, I guess I can “re-brand” it with all those beer stickers I never put on my fridge:
Anyway, nice try Budweiser – maybe next year.
Thanks for the fancy case.
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Beer & Whiskey Brothers 
Great read – as usual.
I picked up a bottle last week (kind of a “know thine enemy” thing) but haven’t summoned to nerve to open it quite yet. My impressions of the few Project 12 brews I tried was much like yours – all forgettable brews. No news there.
I’m having some difficulty understanding who Bud is trying to appeal to with this beer. In some ways Black Crown could be considered a gateway beer. A narrow gateway to be sure but to the extent that they’re possibly looking to introduce their carefully cultivated sycophants to “better” beer, the question follows: why? To what end? Its not as though they have a landing place for those potential converts that improves their own bottom line (unless they’re sinister plan is to move them up to Goose island right before they finally start to brew that lineup down to their masses).
So I’m still left wondering what the long term plan is. I guess it’s contained in that last vial.
Cheers!
I’m sure it’s made to appeal to “urban seekers” or “upward singles” or “office trailblazers” or some other imaginary demographic group the statisticians have winnowed out of the data as the target to best move the needle on Q1-Q3 sales, blah, blah, blah.
Sometimes big companies wind up talking to themselves, and this is what comes out of it.
i think if they were really looking to give Goose a goose, they would’ve done it directly.
Hey, Bud Black Crown is identical to the non german pilsner, non bourbon barrel aged lager that was in the Project 12 pack.
Remind me never to send you anything “promotional” in the future. I don’t want to be lampooned in public by ungrateful bloggers.
First off, Kev, you know what I like, so I’m sure whatever you sent me would hit the target.
Secondly, I don’t think it’s my duty as a beer writer to be “grateful” to Bud for trying to dazzle me with this elaborate piece of marketing. It’s my duty to be honest and write about what interests me (and hopefully people who read this crap), and I though that people would get a kick out of my take on the Black Crown Spy Kit.
This is a blog – if I can’t be honest then I have no business wasting peoples time with my words here.
It would seem to me that their best bet to impress you and your readers would have been to spend some time talking about the malts and hops they used (maybe they did and you threw it away w/ the promotional material?) If they’re making an honest attempt to make a beer from legitimate products (i.e., not rice extract) then they deserve props. If not then they deserve a big raspberry. In the first instance, they deserve an honest evaluation, in the second, just what they got.
BTW: The case is nice, but since you’re not a public official, you may want to make sure you claim its estimated value as income–just a thought. (Uncle Sugar may be listening.)
Well, I gave the beer an honest evaluation when I wrote about it for Today, saying it’s a slightly sweeter, maltier version of Bud. I liked the other two in the Project 12 set better, as one had a lovely hop pop and the other was smoky, so I’m disappointed that they went with the one that tastes just like the current beer, just 10% more intense.
You’d be hard pressed to tell the difference between one of these and a regular Bud if you weren’t drinking them back to back.
As for the case, i’m not sure what you’re referring to – what you see are computer generated graphics…. 🙂
Why would Kevin need reminded in the future if it hasn’t happened yet…..1.21 jiggawatts!!!
Kevin is a man of many talents…
Jim, I just come from the “old school” where you don’t–to use an ancient cliche–look a gift horse in the mouth, or bite the hand that feeds you. Whether you like or hate their business practices, you have to remember that we’d be nowhere if the larger breweries didn’t make beer that “we” don’t appreciate. If it weren’t for adjuncts, there would be no reason for smaller breweries to exist.
It’s not a gift, it’s an attempt to sway my opinion and therefore influence my audience by mailing me a package.
Theirs isn’t the hand that feeds me – ultimately, I’m fed by the people who read my stuff, and I’d be biting their digits for sure if I decided to let Bud buy my opinion (or my silence) with shiny metal box.
And saying their uninspired products are responsible for the craft beer industry is like saying the clap is responsible for the Penicillin industry.
Gee, don’t go talking smack gonorrhea, you guys – that stuff pays our mortgages!
This is more the Trojan version of a gift horse, I think.
great reply Kevin…
This article headline just popped into my head:
‘How to create macro beer marketing buzz. Or mission impossible.’
I vote for the latter. At least in regards to sending that aluminum box-o’-beer to craft beer bloggers. The effort is impressive, but ill placed for the effect they desired.
Unless of course their intent was to supply you with fodder for an incredibly entertaining blog post that chipped away at their brand equity. In which case, they succeeded.
I covered Project 12 for Today, and also included a Shock Top beer (an AB-InBev brand) in a round up or two that I’ve done over there, so they’ve gotten some decent ink sending stuff my way (even if I took a couple of shots at them in each of the aforementioned cases).
I might’ve written about this as well, but the beer is the same as the Batch No. 90210 (or whatever) that I had already written about for Today. If not for that, they would’ve gotten what they wanted, even if I’d have taken a few potshots along the way…
Understood. I get how it works. Any visibility is good visibility. And I’m sure your post will be part of the stats the agency shows AB InBev stating that their promotional efforts were a success because they resulted in X amount of press (agency and client talking to themselves again). I know how that works, too. 🙂
Speaking of all of this Bud beer, boss gave me a 12 oz. bottle of AB ‘Test Beer’ that I’m bringing to the next Ungettables Gathering. It came from a disti rep. No clue as to what it is. Generic white label with ‘Test Beer’ in black Helvetica on it and the words, ‘product of AB InBev, not for resale.’ Suspect it may be Black Crown or one of the Project 12 beers. But really I have no clue. It will be interesting to open it up next week at the Gathering.
Yes, I’m sure the gang will be glad to share their Sexual Chocolate and Pliny the Younger in exchange for a taste of such a rare nectar… 🙂
Indeed, but I don’t think they’ll be sending the client a link…
Ha! I’ll be bringing some Hair of the Dog BBA Fred from the Wood, too. But I’ll WOW them with the AB InBev test beer first!
“Golden Amber Lager” makes about as much sense as “BLACK India PALE Ale,” so they’re getting closer to craft in that respect, I guess. The amount of money they spent on marketing this and on Bud Light Platinum last year is unreal. Why not market the hell out of Goose Island instead of coming up with faux-premium swill?
I’m not sure what the rationale was to promote Budweiser over something better from within the company portfolio, but I bet the words “mothership” and “equity” we’re used liberally during the discussion.
Craft beer drinkers make up only 8% of the beer drinking market, and the people at Bud know this. They also probably know that TV spots for GI would not go over well with “beer nerds” (I know I wouldn’t like it). The great thing about craft is that almost all of it’s “promotion” comes from consumers within then online community through sites like this one and BeerAdvocate. We post threads about what’s new and what’s good and what isn’t. Also, GI is everywhere now. It’s literally in a small Italian restaurant in the ‘burbs down the street from me now. The manager informed me that 2 AB reps actually came into the store and next thing you know, the eatery had Pepe Nero, Matilda, Nut Brown, and Madame Rose. They’re getting way more placement, and I’m sure it’s selling like crazy.
Props on the article, Jim! Great read.
I prefer the build up video to the unveiling one. She has great legs. The beer doesn’t (have great legs).
For me the upside will be seeing those black cans littering our roadsides here in California. They won’t show up quite as harshly as the red, white, and blue Bud cans.
Yes, as litter it’s far more aesthetically pleasing…
Having worked in what is euphemistically called Recreation Management many years, I can tell you the most popular target shooting can is a Budweiser tall boy. That’s the Bud demographic. If they can convince that group to “upscale” their InBev suds, the company sees bigger profits.
Then consider this a beer for the Glock crowd…
I believe, in police circles, Glocks are known as “copperware.”
“…proud that Black Crown actually touched some wood.” I had a Beavis and Butthead moment with that one.
I do have some samples of Black Crown along with some Shock Top end of the World Midnight Wheat and Sead Dog Wild Blueberry. Man, my Budweiser Distributer doesn’t know me at all.
I have the Black Crown, the End of the World Wheat and an Apple Beer (which came in a rustic wooden crate that I now have to dispose of), but not the Blueberry beer. The Midnight Wheat wasn’t awful – it had the faintest pepper kick – but it was mostly bland. It’d blow the mind of a Bud drinker though…
Hint, try advertising the crate (maybe the aluminum case too) on E-bay.
Naw, my six-year old daughter has dibs on both. Problem is the Shock Top stuff is so cheap and “rustic” that they are splinter factories…
This just goes to show that AB places more emphasis on marketing than the actual product. The product should speak for itself.
It does, Teer; that’s why they have to scream and shout “no – look over here!!”
I appreciate you sharing with their marketing ploy with us.
This is essentially the non-light version of Bud Light Platinum. However, the selling point of Platinum was that it’s 6% abv, but still light on calories. This one is just a thicker Bud. I actually tried it when it was known as 90210 or whatever, and I agree w/ you – all 3 in that pack were unremarkable, and that one was the unremarkablest.
The most perplexing thing is the name. Most Bud drinkers hear “dark beer” and head for the hills. Why would they have a golden lager, and name it “Black”? Everyone I’ve talked to assumed it was a black ale or stout.
Name aside, the reason they do this instead of push the new, well respected craft brewer they just bought, is that Bud drinkers won’t seek out that Turkey Peninsula beer, or whatever it is. They’ll head straight to the Bud section of the package store, as usual, and they’ll see a fancier version of Bud for a dollar more, and might actually give it a shot.
I think you’ve nailed it with the word you created, Brett – it WAS the unremarkablest, simply a little more Budweis-ier than regular Bud.
Sounds like the seed for another post. What is the most unremarkablest beer you’ve ever had, or alternatively, which “craft beer” is the most Budweiserist.
My friends and I describe stuff like this as “whelming”…….as in, not underwhelming or overwhelming.
“The evolution and launch of Black Crown, Budweiser’s latest attempt to throw a white collar around a red neck, ” awesome opening line haha! I really enjoyed reading this (especially after how long it’s been)! Keep being honest man, if people don’t like it they can read something else. The only way I’ll ever try this is if it’s presented to me for free; I’m not giving one penny to AB-InBev or SABMiller.
That’s how I got mine, Jonathan, otherwise I’d only be reading about it, too!
I’m hoping to write more, but time has been crazy tight. Between my day job being busy and bleeding into my evenings (which are full of kids basketball practices, gymnastics and cheerleading practices), writing on deadline for Toady, and taking a new gig as the beer editor for a magazing called FSR (a restaurant industry pub), my dance card has been full.
Still, I miss posting here and will do it as often as I can – it’s still my favorite place to write!
I nearly spit out my much better beer when I saw this ad during the Super Bowl. It was like they said “Let’s make a commercial of vampires drinking beer instead of blood, like Lost Boys meets Underworld.” Maybe they’re hoping it would be ironic for PBR drinkers to start drinking Black Crown instead because of the whole retro vampire chic vibe.
Still a better love story than Twilight…
The beer actually seems a better fit with Twilight and its fans. 😉
It’s spawkly!!
Hahaha. Great post and I love that the repurposing of the case involved an immediate disguise.
Afterthought: After watching the promo, I do have to say that at least it doesn’t look like what goes down the urinal (unlike regular Bud, Millers, Coors, et al.)
Do they still sell Bud Light Wheat? You know, the beer that tasted just like Bud Light with some wheat flavoring thrown in? Kind of like adding berry syrup to a flavored coffee…
Reblogged this on cmcgnky's Blog and commented:
This is what having so much money left over after making a beer that you spend more on smoke and mirrors then you do on your product. Very entertaining read?
The Best description of AB I’ve ever heard from one of their employees was that they were a Marketing company that just happened to sell beer.
That marketing kit is absolutely unbelievable. They will spend anything for press of any kind. Christ.
It’s a bit nuts for sure. I managed to pry the entire silver “Budweiser” logo plate off the thing, and there’s just a ring of glue residue that should clear up with a little Goo Gone. So I get a camera case, my father in law gets a few fancy Budweisers, and the landfill gets the rest!
Great read, very assertive. I do have one thing I’d like to point out:
“This vial had a smear of lipstick on it, so obviously Budweiser’s brew master is a cross dresser who’s waaaay into Black Crown. Eww.”
Shouldn’t we try and get rid of these assumptions that a brewmaster CAN NOT be a woman? It is unfortunate that we are so set in this belief, albeit a highly accurate description of the current landscape, that we have to assume that if a brewmaster is associated with lipstick they must be a male born cross dresser. I’ll ignore my issues with the 90′s Hollywood label of a cross dresser as “Eww,” but we should at least try and start speaking about this industry as if we are willing to allow woman out of the marketing departments of our craft breweries.
I went for the funny. The mental image of a burly dude in a dress making out with a bottle of beer popped into my head, so I rolled with it without giving consideration to gender roles, the rights of cross dressers, whether or not the lipstick was tested on animals or if the glass vial was recyclable. The goal wasn’t to offend, it was to entertain, but clearly not everyone shares my sense of humor.
I believe this beer was created by the LA brewmaster, and he collaborated with a female brewer out of Bud’s facility in Fort Collins. I’m not sure what there was collaborate about exactly – I think one said “make it taste extra Budweisery,” and the other was like, “that is an EXCELLENT idea!!”
I’m all for women brewers, and I’m excited to see them starting to get a toehold in the industry. Several women brewers are converging at Wynkoop in Denver on Mondsy to brew the first-ever all-woman collaboration beer (a pale ale fermented with Belgian yeast), and I think that’s a good sign.
I’m not sure if they’re going to name it Cat Fight or Sugar and Spice or Cramp Killer, but it’ll be served during The Colorado Craft Beer Fest in March.
Again, humor. 🙂
All good, I probably overreacted to a single sentence. I think it’s just a reaction to hearing things like that throughout the industry consistently. Glad to see there are things in motion like the ones you mentioned, and you seem to have a great grasp of their importance.
Indeed. Spend a little time around here and you’ll see I’m mostly harmless!
As a blogger you are doing very well covering the niche market of blogs nobody cares about. You don’t get it. Don’t quit your day job since you are out here burning bridges. You are just another beer snob wanna be hipster that thinks they know beer better. That is the difference. You offend your audiences tastes because you are a know it all. Not only do real bloggers not set out to offend their audience but neither does writers, newspapers and basically all other media forms.
Meanwhile the beers you praise sit on the shelf at $8+ a six pack. Yup, you are the be all, end all to beer so if it doesn’t fit your tastes then it is fodder for kid jokes. I might add that black crown is doing very well in sales. I might add that many of Budweiser’s products do very well. After all, that’s why they are on the shelf. Meanwhile, all your hipster beer is constantly shuffling through distributors because it sits and collects dust. I guess this blog must be a hobby as you learn the beer industry. Looks like you have a long way to go.
I don’t think you understand how all of this works, Robbo.
Glad to see the ABInBev rep found his way here.
🙂
Robbo, go shoot a beer can you are over your head here. If what you call “hipster beer” was really collecting dust on local shelves the local breweries that I frequent wouldn’t be constantly turning a profit and expanding their output. If what you call “hipster beer” wasn’t doing so well then the 3 major beverage companies wouldn’t be buying up as many craft breweries as they can get their hands on. They are not even re-branding the craft breweries when they buy them. There is no need to.
Thanks – I didn’t have the energy to try to explain it…
Nice article! Also thanks to Robbo for clueing me into my beer store’s strategy!! I thought that they made a limit of 1 bottle on the Barrel Aged Bigfoot so they could share the love. It’s good to know it’s actually just so they can have some left for the shelve collection. Bring on the dust!
He might add that Budweiser products are doing quite well. 🙂
i have a case just like that… i use it for my roor 😉
I have to tell you Jim, your predictable criticism of anything Anheuser Busch is pathetic. As with most beer snobs, you are only interested in the weird, small, super unknown breweries. If you dont enjoy Bud Black Crown that is fine, but we all know that you immediately judge the beers before you even open it, just based on what is printed on the label…..a little advice, beer geeks like you are a dime a dozen, if you want to be taken serious just BE ORIGINAL!
I thought that the post was pretty original. The kitsch that Budweiser sent was unoriginal, uninspired, and a little bland. Kind of like AB-InBev beers in general. And yes, beer geeks are a dime a dozen, but beer geeks that can write funny and original review blogs are a bit rarer.
A little advice for you, El Culichi. If you don’t want to hear criticism of macrobrew sludge or about “weird, small, super unknown brewers,” then I respectfully suggest you stop reading blogs that mainly focus on craft beers and whiskeys and go watch recycled Budweiser commercials on YouTube.