Getty Image / Scott Olson / Staff
While we didn’t get much fight in the actual Super Bowl between the Rams and the Patriots, we’re at least getting a battle between two gargantuan beer brands. A Super Bowl commercial has ignited a bitter clash between Bud Light and Miller Lite and the fight is centered around an unsuspecting divider… corn.
During Super Bowl 53, Anheuser-Busch aired the Special Delivery commercial which featured the Bud Light King, the Bud Light Knight and company attempting to return a massive barrel of corn syrup to its rightful owner. First, they attempted to deliver the corn syrup to the Miller Lite castle, but they had already received their shipment. Then they traversed the dangerous landscape to bring it to the Coors Light castle.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkHvj_KEHBk
The Super Bowl ad was not received well by the MillerCoors family and they got into a brouhaha. Miller Lite responded to the commercial with a full-page ad in the New York Times. The advertisement, which was addressed to the “Beer Drinkers of America,” wanted to clarify how they do use corn syrup, but it doesn’t actually make it into the finished product.
“You may have seen an ad on the Big Game going to great lengths to explain that Miller Lite is brewed with ‘corn syrup,’ while Bud Light is not. That’s a fact,” the ad states. “Miller Lite is indeed brewed with ‘corn syrup.’ We’d like to thank our competitors for taking the time and money to point out this exciting fact to such a large, national audience not once, but twice.”
https://twitter.com/MillerLite/status/1092814176777580547
The ad points out how Miller Lite uses corn syrup, but the corn-derived sugars are consumed by yeast during fermentation when brewing Miller Lite and Coors Light. “It’s unfortunate that our competitor’s Big Game ad created an unnecessary #corntroversy,” Miller says. “However, we thank them for starting this conversation on such a big stage because it allows us to clarify the truth and remind beer drinkers that Miller Lite has more taste than Bud Light with fewer calories and half that carbs.”
This started a Twitter war between Miller Lite and King John Barley IV.
https://twitter.com/budlight/status/1093258805998170112
Pete Marino, the CCO of MillerCoors, retorted with this.
https://twitter.com/pjmarino2/status/1093260752759259145
MillerCoors shot back at Anheuser-Busch InBev with this tweet.
Something to keep in mind when you’re stocking up for tomorrow: Bud Light has more CALORIES and more CARBS. Miller Lite has more TASTE. NO-BRAINER. pic.twitter.com/Ma4ZKKMn2u
— Molson Coors Beverage Company (@MolsonCoors) February 3, 2019
Suddenly, the Super Bowl commercial about beer was upsetting the National Corn Growers Association.
.@BudLight America’s corn farmers are disappointed in you. Our office is right down the road! We would love to discuss with you the many benefits of corn! Thanks @MillerLight and @CoorsLite for supporting our industry. https://t.co/6fIWtRdeeM
— National Corn (NCGA) (@NationalCorn) February 4, 2019
What the hell is going on? Why are there so many hop takes about corn in beer on Twitter? Let’s all just try to embrace each other over a cold one.
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