Budweiser To Release Special ZIP Code Beers

By Anthony Todd in Food on Sep 19, 2012 5:20PM

In a move that is absolutely, positively not just a rehash of parent company Anheuser-Busch InBev's plan to roll out area code-based beers throughout the country (modeled on Goose Island's successful 312 Urban Wheat Ale) or their plan to start producing beers based on airport codes, Budweiser announced yesterday that they would begin releasing beers based on zip codes. The first three will be released next month.

We're all for local pride, but it seems like the company should pick one of these code-based ideas and stick with it. On the plus side, it's interesting to see a huge brewing brand like Budweiser experimenting with small batch beers, though with the huge and growing number of genuinely local craft beers, these will have to be either quite appealing or well priced to compete.

The first three offerings are coming from St. Louis, Los Angeles and Williamsburg, Virginia. The recipes are a result of an internal competition Budweiser held among its brewmasters. They started with twelve competitors, and winnowed it down to these three through tasting competitions.

The St. Louis beer (63118) is a "a deep-golden pilsner with 6 percent ABV." The Williamsburg offering (23185) is a aged on bourbon barrel staves and spiced with vanilla. More details about each beer are available on the Anheuser-Busch website.

The beers will be released in a sampler pack on October 29.