Mexican beer is very sexy in the US. But AB InBev’s Mexican beer isn’t. So Anheuser-Busch has launched a multi-sensory experience with a tequila flavoured brew inside, called Oculto.
Anheuser-Busch launched Oculto on Friday 13. That was just one of its many ingredients added to make the new beer intriguing enough to gain the interest of drinkers. Only two have a flavour component. It is infused with blue agave to give it a citrus edge, and so that it can be called a tequila-flavoured beer and it is aged with wood from tequila barrels.
It does not contain contain tequila, but it has an alcohol content of 6%.
The product was conceived to reach a market in the US that AB InBev has “had trouble pursuing” since it bought Mexican brewer Grupo Modelo SAB de CV for $20.1 billion in 2013. In the US, Bud Light may command 19% of the market, but the two fastest growing brands are Mexican, Modelo and Dos Equis. Modelo is owned by Constellation Brands. Dos Equis is a subsidiary of Heineken International. Shipments of Mexican brands, Dos Equis and Modelo Especial, into the US more than doubled in the five years through 2013.
When AB InBev bought Modelo, it had to give up US import rights for the company’s most prominent Mexican beers—Corona, Modelo Especial and Pacifico—because of antitrust concerns. Modelo’s surge in the US has to be hurting. The third fastest growing beer there is Stella Artois, which is Belgian.
"Beer drinkers and partygoers are seeking unique, surprising 'mash-up' experiences," A-B's vice president of marketing, Jorn Socquet, stated. "We worked off untapped insights to bring an innovation that delivers against that expectation. We have a totally surprising brand that revolves around mystery and intrigue -- with a product that hits home with consumers looking for ways to break free from the everyday and find something exciting...an unexpected 'mash-up.'"
Most of the surprise comes in the “discoverable elements [that] are embedded in the bottle design and "a tactile feel" for the can.
Oculto means “hidden” in Spanish, and each bottle holds a secret message. The name, Oculto, is etched into a white skull that recalls the style of Mexican “Day of the Dead” art. The logo turns fluorescent and the skull’s eyes glow green when the bottle is cold.
The eyes are printed using thermochromic inks that appear only when chilled. The eyes are printed in both normal and thermochromatic inks. The temperature-responsive ink fills in a complete circle when cold, and fades to an agave plant eye design when warmed by a warm finger holding the bottle, when the (cold) beer has been drunk or when the bottle stops being fridge cold.
The bottle is interesting to hold because of its detailed embossing. This covers its shoulder and neck. The neck embossing mimics that used for spirits and visually references “beer aged on barrel staves”. The pressure-sensitive bottle labels, and the Oculto can also, have a textured ink finish.
The carton uses uses metallic fibreboard packaging, which AB claims as a first for beer packaging in the U.S.
"The premise of each packaging element was to really bridge the gap between two worlds, that of high-end hard liquor and beer. Each decision was all about bringing these two worlds together. That’s why you see some never-before-seen features on a beer bottle, such as tactical neck embossing, that are typically seen on liquor bottles," AB InBev stated.
Oculto has been launched in 6 and 12 packs of 350ml bottles and in 500ml and 750ml cans.
