
	Home · About Us · Fun Facts! · News Stories · Customer Service · Contact Us · Checkout

LEARN

Featured Quote

Give me a woman who loves beer and I will conquer the world.

Kaiser Wilhelm

Have a favorite quote to share? Click here.

<< Back to the Learning Center

THE SUPERMARKET GUIDE TO BEER

PART 1 – THE BIG BOYS OF THE US MARKET

The US Beer market is dominated by big three boys, Anheuser-Busch (A-B), Miller and Coors. In 2006, these three breweries accounted for 77% of all the beer shipped in the US. A-B alone sold $15 billion dollars of beer in 2006. There are an increasing number of breweries in the US, but combined they still can’t touch these three in terms of size and sales. Of the beer sold in supermarkets, these three produce 16 of the 20 best selling beer brands. This means that when you walk down the beer aisle at your local supermarket, the vast majority of the beers you see in front of you have been produced by one of these three!

NOTE (Oct 31, 2007): It was just announced that Coors and Miller have entered into merger talks. Together Miller and Coors would have a U.S. market share of around 29 percent, compared with the 18 percent and 11 percent they respectively had apart in 2006, and would represent a significant challenge to Anheuser-Busch. Under the deal, a Coors product can be brewed at a Miller plant and vice versa. Thus, the combined firm will have more facilities from which to brew its beers, and will bring its production closer to end markets. This, they hope, will creating huge savings on shipping.

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE BIG THREE

ANHEUSER-BUSCH

Anheuser-Busch is the granddaddy of US breweries. Eberhard Anheuser was a German immigrant to the US and he made a fortune in soap and candles in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1860 he finance a small struggling neighbourhood brewery called The Bavarian Brewery, taking ownership of the company. Eberhard’s daughter, Lily, met Adolphus Busch. Adolphus had immigrated to the United States from Germany to join his 3 brothers in St. Louis in 1857 when he was 18. One of Adolphus’s brothers had started the John B. Busch Brewing Company in Washington, Missouri. Adolphus and Lily married in 1861 and in 1865, the two beer companies merged, with Adolphus and Eberhard as equal partners.

Anheuser-Busch was the first U.S. brewer to use pasteurization to keep beer fresh, the first to use artificial refrigeration and refrigerated railroad cars and the first to bottle beer extensively. Budweiser, America’s first national beer brand, was introduced in 1876. Today Anheuser-Busch has global revenues of over $15 billion and 24,000 employees world-wide, runs 12 breweries in the US and multiple Busch Gardens & other theme parks.

COORS

Coors beer was first introduced by another German immigrant Adolph Coors in April, 1874. He and a partner bought a brewery in Golden, Colorado. Already flexing their marketing arms, the brewers emphasised that the beer was brewed and took its flavor from the pure water of the Rocky Mountains for a uniquely crisp, clean and drinkable "Mile High Taste." This marketing message is still heavily used today.

During World War II, Coors won government approval for supplies by setting aside half its beer for sale to the military. When the service men and women returned home to states outside of Coors' original 11-state marketing region, they spread the word about the beer's taste and quality -- which became known as the "Coors Mystique." Prior to its national expansion in the 1980s, Coors' limited distribution left consumers in the eastern U.S. wanting a taste of the Rocky Mountains' finest beer. President Gerald Ford was known to take several cases of Coors on his Air Force One during return trips to the White House. According to the Coors website, in 1959, Coors became the first American brewer to package beer in an all-aluminum two-piece beverage can. In February 2005, Coors merged with Canadian brewer Molson and the merged company is called Molson Coors Brewing Company.

MILLER

Miller Brewing Company is the second largest American beer maker and is based in Milwaukee. Miller Brewing Company was founded in 1855 by Frederick Miller, yet another German-born immigrant, when he purchased the small Plank-Road Brewery. He used locally grown hops and barley and a unique brewer's yeast that he hand-carried from Germany. Today, they have eight breweries spread across the US.

WHAT KIND OF BEER DO THEY PRODUCE ?

When we’re talking about the mainstream American Beers from A-B, Miller and Coors, we’re predominantly talking about American-style Pale Lagers. This type of beer makes up 95 percent of all beer consumed in the US.

“Lager” is German for “to store,” Lagers are stored for much longer than Ales. They are stored near freezing for weeks to ferment before they are ready to drink. The cooler environment and the longer fermentation period helps create a very “crisp” beer. But you can also blame this brewing process for the stereotypical description of lagers as “light” beer, as it removes certain flavors and particles. Thus, although they can be everything from pale to black and sweet to bitter, lager beers tend to be very light in color and bland in taste (connoisseurs may call this “less complex”). The longer fermentation periods generally makes them taste drier and have high carbonation.

American-Style Pale Lagers is a mass produced, inexpensive beer with a high water content and mild flavor. These brands aim to create basic, straightforward, inoffensive beer, which the largest number of consumers can enjoy at an affordable price. From a taste and color standpoint, these beers are slightly sweet, very lightly hopped, straw colored and highly carbonated. They often use rice or corn as adjuncts (Adjuncts are unmalted grains (such as corn, rice, rye, oats, barley, and wheat) used in brewing beer which supplement the main mash ingredients (such as malted barley), often with the intention of cutting costs, but sometimes to create an additional feature, such as better foam retention). American-style pale lagers use these adjunts stems from the high protein content of American six-row barley, which can be more difficult to clarify than European two-row, the standard for most European beer styles. The use of the adjunct therefore dilutes the protein haze from the six-row barley as well as lightens the body of the beer.

We can further break this category down into a few groups:

Premium Beers: the top quality and priced lines of beers, higher quality grains are used. There’s not legal definition for using the phrase “Premium”, so beer makers generally use if to market their top-of-the-line beers.
Sub-premium or Value Beers: the lower quality and priced beer brands,
Light Beers: beers which have been reduced in alcohol content or in calories. There are a few different ways of making light beer:

o Diluting beer with carbonated water,

o Adding different enzymes which converts most of the dextrins (which are carbohydrates responsible for much of the beer’'s aroma and flavor) to alcohol, allowing you to use a lower-carb mix and ultimately make a beer with less carbohydrates but the same amount of alcohol

Ice Beers: the beers are cooled to freezing temperature causing the water to freeze while the alcohol stays liquid. The ice is then skimmed of the top resulting in a slightly higher alcohol-to-water ratio and higher alcohol content than premium beers. The removal of the ice also removes most of the haze producing protein compounds. These proteins adversely affects beer clarity and taste after packaging. Thus Ice beer is advertised as a providing a “cleaner taste” and slightly higher alcoholic level.

Click on our Beer Market Map© on the right to see how Anheuser-Busch, Miller & Coors fill up these categories.

WHAT BRANDS WILL YOU FIND IN THE SUPERMARKET?

With this size comes an enormous breath of beer brands. While you’re probably familiar with many of the brands the big-3 produces, some may surprise you. Nonetheless, most of these you will see walking down your supermarket aisle.

Anheuser-Busch

Coors

Miller

Budweiser Family Brands

Budweiser

Bud Light

Budweiser Select

Bud Dry

Bud Ice

Bud Ice Light

Michelob Family Brands

Michelob

Michelob Light

Michelob Ultra

Michelob Ultra Amber

Busch Family Brands

Busch

Busch Ice

Other Popular National Anheuser-Busch Brands

Rolling Rock

Natural Ice

Coors Family Brands

Coors Original

Coors Light

Keystone Family Brands

Keystone Premium

Keystone Light

Keystone Ice

Molsen Family Brands

Molson Canadian

Molson Canadian Light

Other Coors Brands

Killian's Irish Red

Blue Moon Belgian White

Miller Family Brands

Miller Lite

Miller Genuine Draft

Miller High Life

Other Miller Brands

Milwaukee's Best

Milwaukee's Best Light

Plank Road Brewery Family Brands

Icehouse

Red Dog

Now that you know the different types of beer offered, read some of the brewer’s own descriptions for the beer, shown here, and ask yourself if you can really tell the difference between each brand and supplier!

Enjoy!

*Brewer's Own Descriptions of their* *Brands*	*Logo*
Budweiser Premium Regular Category, American Style Lager Brewed and sold since 1876, Budweiser was created by Anheuser-Busch to be the first true country-wide beer brand by being brewed to be universally popular and to transcend regional tastes. Today Budweiser leads the U.S. premium beer category, outselling all other domestic premium beers combined. Anheuser-Busch describes its taste as “Fresh and subtle fruit notes, a delicate malt sweetness and balanced bitterness for a clean, “snappy” finish. Budweiser is a medium-bodied, flavorful, crisp and pure beer with blended layers of premium American and European hop aromas.
Bud Light Premium Light Category – American Light Style Lager Bud Light was introduced nationally in 1982. Bud Light is brewed using a blend of domestic and imported hops, as well as a combination of barley malts and rice. It contains more malt and hops by ratio of ingredients than Budweiser, which gives the brew a distinctively clean and crisp taste. Anheuser-Busch describes its taste as “Light-bodied brew with a fresh, clean and subtle hop aroma, delicate malt sweetness and crisp finish for ultimate refreshment.” Bud Light is the world’s best selling beer. Its share of the premium-light segment is 53 percent (more than the combined share of the next two premium-light brands). This is due in large part to the brand’s brand’s longstanding successful strategy of using humor to show Bud Bight’s popularity with beer drinkers.
Budweiser Select Premium Regular Category, American Style Lager Bud Select is a new beer offering a bold taste with a full and distinct flavor that finishes clean. Budweiser Select was developed using two-row and roasted specialty malts for a rich color. It offers excellent drinkability, and a taste that does not linger.
Bud Dry Premium Regular Category – American Dry Style Lager Introduced in 1989, this was the first dry-brewed beer produced by an American brewer. It is brewed with select hops, grains and barley malt, which results in a lighter body and less-sweet taste with fewer calories than most American lagers. As with all Anheuser-Busch beers, it is cold-filtered for a smooth draft taste, but then goes through a second cold-filtered finishing process to provide its unique taste.
Bud Ice Premium Regular Category – American Ice Style Lager Bud Ice was introduced in 1984. Its ice-brewing process removes “haze producing protein compounds” which adversely affects beer clarity and taste after packaging, thus Ice Beers are marketed to have a “cleaner” and “smoother” taste.
Bud Ice Light Premium Light Category – American Light & Ice Style Lager Bud Ice Light was introduced in 1994. Bud Ice Light combines Bud Ice’s unique taste profile with fewer calories.
Michelob Premium Regular Category – European-style Lager Michelob was created in 1896 to be the “draught beer for connoisseurs.” For 66 years, it was distributed only as a draught product, and only to the finest retail outlets. In 1961, it was introduced in a bottle that became a legend within its own right, with its unusual hourglass shape and gold foil shrouded neck. Its taste is described as: a malty and full-bodied lager with an elegant European hop profile surprisingly low calories and carbohydrate content.
Michelob Light Premium Regular Category – European-style, low-carbohydrate light lager. Launched in 1978, Michelob Light is a full-flavored and rich-tasting light lager offering a malty sweetness and aromatic hop profile with surprisingly low calories and carbohydrate content.
Michelob ULTRA Premium Regular Category – High End – American-style, low-carbohydrate light lager. Michelob ULTRA was introduced in 2002. Its brewed using the finest pale two-row and six-row barley, select grains, all-imported hops and a pure cultured yeast strain. The special choice of grains, combined with the extended mash process, produces a smooth, refreshing beer with fewer carbohydrates. Its subtle fruit and citrus aromas complement this light-bodied beer’s smooth and refreshing taste. One year after its introduction, Michelob ULTRA became the fastest-growing new brand in the industry and was a phenomenal hit among adult fitness enthusiasts, adult consumers living an active lifestyle, and those looking for a great tasting beer with lower carbohydrates and fewer calories.
Michelob ULTRA Amber Premium Regular Category – American-style, Light Amber Lager Introduced in 2006, Michelob ULTRA Amber features a beautifully rich, deep amber color with a complex, malty, full-flavored taste that is also low in calories and carbohydrates.
Busch Value Category – American-style lager Introduced in 1955, Busch has a smooth, light taste. The brand is the country's largest-selling subpremium-priced beer in all major demographics. Busch offers a refreshingly smooth taste and is the title sponser of the NASCAR Busch Series.
Busch Light Value Category - American-style light lager Introduced in 1989, Busch Light is already the 8th best-selling brand in the United States. Busch Light offers a light, balanced flavor, with fewer calories. Both beers have a pleasant hop aroma and a smooth, slightly sweet finish.
Busch Ice Value Category – American ice lager. In 1995, Anheuser-Busch introduced this smooth-tasting ice beer to satisfy consumer demand for a subpremium-priced product. Busch Ice undergoes Anheuser-Busch’s exclusive ice-brewing process, which takes the beer to a temperature below freezing. This leads to the formation of ice crystals in the finishing process, which help create its rich, smooth taste.
Rolling Rock Premium Regular Category – Extra Pale Lager. Anheuser-Busch acquired the Rolling Rock brand in 2006. Rolling Rock was founded in 1939. It is a light-bodied lager with a rich malt character that lends to its distinctive taste and subtle hop character. There’s quite a bit of mystique surrounding the “33” on the Rolling Rock bottle. Some say this might represent the number of words in the pledge of quality, the year Prohibition was repealed, the number of letters in the ingredient list, or was a mistake when the first bottle was printed. It remains a mystery.
Natural Light Value Regular Category – American-style light lager Naturally brewed and less filling, low-calorie Natural Light was introduced in 1977. Its longer brewing process produces a lighter body, fewer calories and an easy-drinking character. This was Anheuser-Busch’s first reduced-calorie light beer.
Natural Ice Value Category – American ice lager Natural Ice - Anheuser-Busch introduced Natural Ice in select markets in 1995 and took it national in 1996. This subpremium-priced ice beer, 5.9 percent alcohol by volume, has a smooth taste. It’s taste is characterized by its robust body, delicate sweetness and smooth, rich taste.

COORS

Coors Original Premium Regular Category – American Style Lager This is the oldest brand in the Coors portfolio, first brewed in 1874. In 1936, Coors also added the name “Banquet Beer” to its name. As legends go, miners in the Colorado area would through large parties during the 1800s called ‘Banquets’. Coors added the name as homage to the lively gatherings and western legend.
Coors Light Premium Light Category – American-Style Light Beer Also known as the "Silver Bullet" for its simple, silver-toned can, this beer was first brewed in 1978 as a low calorie beer. It is Coors top selling brand, and the third-best selling beer in the United States. It’s the official beer sponsor of the NFL and the NFL Network.
Keystone Premium Value Category – American Style Lager Keystone Premium is a light- to medium-bodied beer that is crisp, clean and refreshing with a light gold color. Introduced in 1989, Keystone is a popular-priced beer with exceptional market appeal. Keystone Premium is available nationwide in cans, bottles and kegs. Despite its name, Keystone is a value-segment beer not a premium.
Keystone Light Value Category – American-Style Light Style Lager Introduced in 1989, Keystone Light is a light-bodied, crisp, smooth and drinkable beer. Keystone Light is available nationwide in cans, bottles and kegs. Introduced in 1989, Keystone Light is packaged in "specially lined cans" intended to reduce metallic taste. The can is blue and silver and is narrower than a regular 12 ounce can of beer. An advertising campaign starring comedian Bob Marley claimed that Keystone Light relieved "Bitter Beer Face."
Keystone Ice Value Category – American-Style Ice Style Lager Keystone Ice is a medium-bodied, crisp beer that is lightly hopped with a slightly sweet flavor and medium-to-dry finish with a light gold color. Packaged in similar cans as Keystone Light, but with black and silver instead of blue. Keystone Ice is available nationwide in cans, bottles and kegs.
Molson Canadian Premium Regular Category – American-style Lager Molson Canadian is Molson Brewing Company's flagship brand. Starting with crystal clear water, malted barley and the finest hops, Molson Canadian is slowly fermented to produce a smooth, refreshing beer with a genuine taste. Clean and clear, crisp and cold, Molson Canadian is a classic lager.
Molson Canadian Light Premium Light Category – American-style Light Lager This is brewed with more flavor, body and color than most light beers, and with fewer calories and slightly lower alcohol content than Molson Canadian.
Killian's Irish Red Premium Regular Category – American-Style Amber Lager Killian's Irish Red is a traditional lager with an authentic Irish heritage, based on the Killian family's recipe created for the Killian's brewery in Enniscorthy, Ireland in 1864. Coors acquired the rights to brew and market the product in America and Killian's was introduced to the U.S. in 1981. Killian's Irish Red derives its distinctive red-amber color and taste from a special caramel malt that has been roasted at a high temperature longer and more slowly than most malts. There are no coloring agents or artificial additives used in brewing Killian's. The brew is known for its rich amber color and thick, creamy head.
Blue Moon Belgian White Belgian-Style White Wheat Ale This is a refreshing, medium-bodied, unfiltered Belgian-style wheat ale spiced with fresh coriander and orange peel for a uniquely complex taste and an uncommonly smooth finish. The name "Belgian White" is a reference to the cloudy white, opaque appearance of the beer. "Belgian White" also refers to the style of beer, which has been brewed in Belgium for about 300 years. This type of ale is brewed with malt, wheat and oats. It is unfiltered, which allows protein and yeast to remain suspended in the beer and creates the cloudy appearance. This also adds to the smoothness and full body of the beer. Putting a new twist on the lime ritual, Blue Moon is traditionally served with a slice of orange. Blue Moon was launched in 1995.
MILLER
Miller Lite Premium Light Category – American-Style Light Lager Miller’s flagship brand, Miller Lite, is the great tasting, less filling beer that defined the American light beer category in 1975. Miller Lite was essentially the first mainstream light beer. Rheingold Breweryin New York in 1967 first created "Gablinger's Diet Beer”. The recipe was given to one of Miller's competing breweries, Chicago's Meister Brau, who released Meister Brau "Lite" brand in the late 60's. When Miller acquired Meister Brau's labels the recipe was reformulated and relaunched as "Lite Beer from Miller" in 1975, and heavily marketed using masculine pro sports players and other macho figures of the day in an effort to sell to the key beer-drinking male demographic. Miller's approach worked and Miller rose to 2nd place in the American brewing marketplace. Other brewers responded, especially Anheuser-Busch with its heavily advertised Bud Light in 1982, which eventually overtook Lite in 1994. Miller Lite today has half the carbs of Bud Light and fewer calories.
Miller Genuine Draft Premium Regular Category – American-Style Lager Miller Genuine Draft debuted in 1985 made with an exclusive cold-filtered process that prevents some of the beer's flavor from being heated away. MGD is positioned as the ideal beer choice for consumers who want high quality at mainstream prices. MGD is actually made from the same recipe as Miller High Life, with a different treatment. High Life is heat pasteurized after packaging and MGD is filtered before packaging. It was developed to give High Life drinkers the same taste in a can or bottle as they found in non-pasteurized kegs.
Miller High Life Premium Regular Category – American-Style Lager This beer was put on the market in 1903 and is Miller Brewing's oldest brand. It has slightly less alcohol than European pilsners, at 4.7% ABV. Its a classic American-style lager recognized for its consistently crisp, smooth taste, classic clear-glass bottle and its famous "Girl in the Moon" symbol. The prevailing slogan on current packaging is "The Champagne of Beers", an adaptation of its long standing slogan "The Champagne of Bottled Beers". It was originally available in miniature champagne bottles and was one of the premier high end beers in the country for many years.
Milwaukee's Best Regular Value Category – American-Style Lager Miller's economy label. This was first brewed as an A. Gettelman Brewing Co. brand, first brewed in the 1890s. Miller gained the trademark when it purchased the Gettelman brewery in 1961. The actual Gettelman brewery buildings are still part of Miller's Milwaukee facility. Miller reintroduced Milwaukee's Best nationally as a popular-priced brand in the spring of 1984.
Milwaukee's Best Light Regular Light Category – American Light Style Lager Milwaukee's Best Light is Miller Brewing Company's lead low-calorie brand in the value segment. Miller first rolled out Milwaukee's Best Light in 1986 with an ambition to become the beer choice for guys. It stands for those moments for when a guy gets to genuinely be a guy. The marketing, including sponsorship with the World Series of Poker and award-winning TV spots, takes a humorous approach to reinforce the idea that "Men should act like men and light beer should taste like beer."
Icehouse Regular Premium Category – American Ice Style Lager America's first domestic ice beer, Icehouse is traditionally brewed, fermented, and just before aging its temperature is lowered to below freezing. This process imparts the beer's smoothness and an alcohol content that's slightly higher (5.5% by volume) than other regular premium beer brands. Icehouse was introduced in 1993 and has reinforced its position as the ultimate beer for wind-up party and pre-game occasions. Blending humor and high-energy excitement, Icehouse marketing encourages its target consumers to take occasions to the next level with a great-tasting beer.
Red Dog Although popular during the mid to late 1990s, Red Dog faded into near-obscurity after the turn of the century. However, since 2005 it has been making a comeback of sorts, returning to stores. The beer itself is slightly heavier in taste and body than most American beers, but not the sort of dark, European style beer common to microbrewers.