USA: Anheuser-Busch announced on January 25 that beer drinkers were going strong at midnight on New Year’s Eve, celebrating with B-to-the-E, which features caffeine, ginseng and guarana as Budweiser’s newest entry in a long line of innovative beers. Due to tremendous interest in the new brew, Anheuser-Busch has pushed up the launch date to satisfy consumer demands.

“B-to-the-E is generating excitement for Anheuser-Busch,” said Dawn Roepke, brand manager, New Products, Anheuser-Busch, Inc. “In October we quietly rolled out BE in 55 cities. The response proves that B-to-the-E gives today’s highly social contemporary adults what they’re searching for in their beverage of choice.”

B-to-the-E is beer infused with caffeine, guarana and ginseng. Well balanced with select hops and aromas of blackberry, raspberry and cherry, B-to-the-E offers a lightly sweet and tart taste – a great mixture of beer and new flavors for adults to enjoy.

“B-to-the-E is a great beverage and really showcases Anheuser-Busch’s innovative culture,” said Roepke. “B-to-the-E goes right up against mixed drinks and will help us maintain and grow our share of contemporary adults who have many choices in today's competitive market.”

In test markets since mid-October, the brew has caused a sensation in bars and clubs with consumers enjoying the new beverage over ice as it goes head-to-head against mixed drinks.

Brewed at Anheuser-Busch’s Houston, Baldwinsville and Cartersville Breweries, B-to-the-E is packaged in a sleek, slim-line 10-ounce can with stylish graphics and coming soon a new 10-ounce slope-shoulder, shrink-wrapped bottle. B-to-the-E is priced slightly higher than Budweiser and marketed through local and national print advertising and numerous non-traditional elements.

Based in St. Louis, Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc. is the leading U.S. brewer and holds a 50 percent share in Grupo Modelo, Mexico’s leading brewer. In a survey of 10,000 business leaders and securities analysts, Anheuser-Busch ranked first overall in quality of products and services among nearly 600 companies researched in FORTUNE magazine’s 2004 “America’s Most Admired Companies” listing. The company also is one of the largest theme park operators in the United States, is a major manufacturer of aluminum cans and is the world’s largest recycler of aluminum beverage containers.

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