Comments on: Beer Brawl Part II: How Gusto Lost Its Mojo

By: George Betts

George Betts — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 21:08:13 +0000

When I was growing up, our local brewery was Kholer Beer. Anyone remember Kholer? Any one? That’s what I thought, no one. As kids we’d cut through the alley next to the brewery and get knocked out by the odor of cooking hops, daring to see who could stand it the longest without spilling their guts out. I’d come home and my Mom would say “You smell like a brewery, you’ve been in that damn alley again!” I think Larry makes a very good point about supply chain theory. Craft beers are big and growing, as are the craft distilleries that are coming into their own. Moonshine is alive and well!

By: Larry McC.

Larry McC. — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 10:47:06 +0000

There was a time when ALL breweries in America were local. Coors in Colorado, Schaeffer in New York, etc. We’re gonna return to those days soon. The 2,000-mile supply chain doesn’t work well anymore: Bud being brewed in Anaheim and trucked to Nashville, etc., etc. I’ll dust off my last bottles of Schlitz and Knickerbocker and salute the brewers of yore.

By: Jon S.

Jon S. — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 21:24:14 +0000

Wow! Getting the second installment of “Beer Brawl” from Bill’s BrainWorks is like opening the mailbox and finding new issues of “Oxford American” and “Rolling Stone” at the same time.

Having worked a bit on the Schlitz account at Leo Burnett in the early ’70s, the writers would invariably pick almost any brand over Schlitz in blind taste tests. Hal’s team took this beer that had been around the block several times around the world to proudly proclaim: “You Only Go Around Once In Life… So, Go For All The Gusto You Can Get!”

Schlitz’s branding effort was as flat as the beer itself. Budweiser’s product was only marginally better, but they made one smart choice: they stayed consistent with their positioning strategy, year after year. I can’t wait to see how this story ends. Spoiler Alert: Belgium!

By: Andy A.

Andy A. — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 17:52:19 +0000

Seems they could have gone back to the old recipe and done a media blitz calling the old recipe “Schlitz Classic.” Problem solved. I mean, that’s how they do it these days, right?