Earlier this year, Anheuser-Busch sent personalized cans of Bud Light to the transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, who then promoted the product on social media. A backlash ensued. The company swiftly pivoted, releasing a new ad about “the American spirit” featuring the brand’s signature Clydesdale. It’s an incident that illustrates how people drink a particular beer not only for its unique balance of hops and barley, but for what they believe the brand says about them.
