Beer is America’s Beverage of Choice

Anheuser-Busch’s ‘Here’s To Beer’ Campaign Toasts Adults’ Appreciation for Beer.

ST. LOUIS.– The latest Gallup Poll shows that of the 64 percent of Americans who consume alcohol, beer continues to be their beverage of choice, with 40 percent choosing it over wine and hard liquor. The 2007 consumption poll was reported on Gallup’s Web site today.

Having maintained its standing in the past two polls, beer represents the largest segment in the alcohol beverage category in both volume and dollar sales and accounts for 56 percent of all alcohol beverage servings.

The Anheuser-Busch-led industry campaign – “Here’s To Beer” – is now in its second year and continues to elevate the image of beer through consumer, retailer and wholesaler education programs.

“We are very pleased with the reception the ‘Here’s To Beer’ campaign has received from our fellow brewers, as well as from the beer distributor and retailer communities,” said Bob Lachky, executive vice president, Global Industry Development, Anheuser-Busch, Inc. “Additionally, we’re encouraged by the consumer data such as today’s Gallup poll and this year’s ACNielsen global trend report that reinforce beer’s supremacy as a driver of food and beverage growth worldwide.”

“Here’s To Beer” continues to offer tools to help consumers develop a deeper appreciation for beer and help retailers grow their beer business.

The campaign will soon launch “The Beer Connoisseur” Web site – an online beer university in which adults can enroll to learn about beer’s ingredients, brewing process, styles and the fundamentals of food-pairing.

Of particular value to retailers, “The Beer Connoisseur” will generate reports, allowing, for example, a supermarket beverage director or bar manager to track an employee’s progress as they complete beer education courses within the training program. A preview of the new site is available at www.herestobeer.com today, with details on enrollment and registration coming later this summer.

Earlier this year, “Here’s To Beer” commissioned “The American Brew,” a documentary‑style film produced by Florentine Films that celebrates brewing and beer’s role in American culture. The film aired Saturday, April 7, on A&E – timed to the 74th anniversary of the repeal of Prohibition. DVDs of the film are available for sale now at retail accounts across the country and herestobeer.com.

HTBMarketing.com, the “members only” site for beer wholesalers, provides downloadable sign making and point-of-sale templates to create attractive in-store materials to elevate and enhance the beer aisle. Beyond the more than 600 wholesalers in the Anheuser‑Busch network, an additional 350 members from the ranks of competitive brewers and non A-B wholesalers are also registered members.

The consumer-focused Web site www.herestobeer.com continues to see healthy traffic with visitors spending extended amounts of time exploring the site. In March 2007, the site was redesigned bringing even more original content to adults including humorous short films about famous people in history who enjoyed beer, tips on becoming a beer connoisseur and lists of upcoming beer events across the country. For more information on “Here’s To Beer,” visit www.herestobeer.com.