AB InBev is gearing up to take another run at serving Bud Light to Brits – 16 years after pulling the beer off shelves.
Launched in the UK in 1998, the lower-calorie variant of the bestselling Budweiser brand fell flat, and production was axed in December 2000, with the brewer admitting: “Consumer attitudes to lighter beers did not move as quickly as we anticipated.”
The lager will begin its British return next week in royal blue cans similar to the US version, but with a less cluttered appearance. The bold, upper case logo appears in a round-cornered box and is higher up the front of pack to present a more craft-like look.
The design was revealed in December at the Bud Light Taste of America pop-up store in Brick Lane, London, where more than 3,000 visitors over two days were offered the chance to sample the brew. In the same month, AB InBev registered the boxed-out logo with the IPO.
Bud Light was launched (as Budweiser Light) in 1982 in the US, where it has a 4.2% abv and promises 110 calories per 12fl oz can – about 32 calories per 100ml.
News of the beer’s relaunch comes soon after the mooted UK debut of Budweiser Prohibition Brew, an alcohol-free beer, which AB InBev said had already received a “pleasing reception” in Canada. Positioned as premium and less sweet, the drink is intended to taste precisely like Budweiser but with a 0.0% abv.
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